Investigating the influence of urban morphology on pluvial flooding: Insights from urban catchments in England (UK)

• Published in: The Science of the total environment 2024-11, Vol.953, p.176139, Article 176139
• Main Authors: Zhu, Yue, Burlando, Paolo, Tan, Puay Yok, Blagojevic, Jovan, Fatichi, Simone
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Flood mitigation; Machine learning; Urban morphology; Urban pluvial floods
• ISSN: 0048-9697; 1879-1026; 1879-1026
• DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.176139

As climate change intensifies, cities globally are experiencing more severe rainfall and frequent pluvial floods. Urban expansion is altering the permeability of the land, thus increasing the risk of flooding. This study investigates the impact of urban morphology on pluvial floodwater distribution in 15 urban catchments across England, UK, to provide an analysis of how urban morphology influences flood magnitude. Using a cellular automata-based model, pluvial flood simulations were conducted for catchments characterized by diverse urban morphologies. Then a series of machine learning models were adopted to reveal the relationships between the morphological characteristics of urban configurations (e.g., building footprints, impervious surfaces, street network, topography) and pluvial flooding. These models were used to identify and quantify the effects of key urban morphological indicators on pluvial flooding. The results indicate that, although the total area of impervious surfaces plays the most significant role in floodwater distribution, the edge density (ED) of building footprints and impervious surfaces also influences this process. Synthetic experiments with an exemplary urban fabric show that decreasing “ED of building footprint” and increasing “ED of impervious surface” can mitigate flood volume by up to 6.3 % at 100 % drainage efficiency and 7.8 % at 50 % efficiency. The results of this study are anticipated to aid urban planners and policymakers in developing strategies for implementing flood-resilient cities. [Display omitted] •Urban morphology considerably influences pluvial flooding in urban area.•Higher edge density of building footprints increases floodwater area and depth.•Higher edge density of impervious surfaces decreases floodwater area and depth.•Adjusting urban morphology can mitigate up to 7.8 % local flood volume.•Provides actionable insights for developing flood-resilient urban designs.