Flood Exposure of Residential Areas and Infrastructure in Greece

Abstract

Worldwide, floods are the most common and widespread type of disaster during the 21st century. These phenomena have caused human fatalities, destruction of infrastructures and properties, and other significant impacts associated with human socioeconomic activities. In this study, the exposure of infrastructure (social, industrial and commercial, transportation) and residential areas to floods in Greek territory was considered. To accomplish the goal of the current study, freely available data from OpenStreetMap and Corine 2018 databases were collected and analyzed, as well as the flood extent zones derived under the implementation of the European Union’s (EU) Floods Directive. The results will be useful for policy-making and prioritization of prone areas based not only on the extent of flood cover but also on the possible affected infrastructure types. Moreover, the aforementioned analysis could be the first step toward an integrated national-wide flood risk assessment.