Participatory early warning and monitoring systems: A Nordic framework for web-based flood risk management

Abstract This paper reviews recent hydrological risk assessment, communication and early warning systems and proposes a framework to reformulate the classic view of Early Warning and Monitoring Systems towards a participatory one. The new framework is developed for flood risks (from multiple flood hazards), using examples from selected Nordic and other European countries. The study shows a potential for public participation in all stages of the Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) cycle, with enhanced risk communication and awareness. Web-based access to hydrological data and nationwide modelling results can support adaptive and integrated management and learning about the flood risks on catchment scale. This can help identify cost-efficient solutions with synergy to other policy goals. The study shows how social media and digitalisation initiatives in the Nordic countries can support web-based access to historical data, real-time forecasts, and climate projections. Furthermore, the web-based access to data and model results can provide a coherent and integrated platform for stakeholder interaction and co-production for planning and decision-making that integrate hazard and risk knowledge. This can increase societal resilience and flood risk assessment across community and sector boundaries with proper analysis of risk areas, trade-off in costs and benefits of different solutions, and optimisation of climate change adaptation at the catchment scale.