Pressure and Release (PAR) model, part 3

Our students this year are a diverse group of meteorologists, engineers, government officers, hydrologists, dam operators, infrastructure analysts, and researchers, coming from Brazil, Malawi, Mozambique, Myanmar, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Timor-Leste and Vietnam. As such we received a great diversity of suggestions during the interactive part of the lecture. For this part, I divided the students in three groups to each work on a different type of flood affecting the Netherlands: oceanic storm surges, river floods, and heavy precipitation. 

The goal of the exercise was to develop safe conditions for each type of flood, as integrated in the PAR model. This would allow students to actively familiarize themselves with the PAR model as preparation for their course assignments, stimulate group discussions, and have them consider the cross-cultural transferability of disaster risk reduction measures.

The Ocean group came up with the following safe conditions:

• strong infrastructure building
• elevated area for residence
• backup of food, medical checkup facilities
• training institution for preparedness

The Ocean group also developed ideas for reducing pressures:

• development of local institutions
• hospital services
• information services (mobile phone, TV, radio)
• early warning centers
• high elevated houses
• high/increase government budget

The River group came up with the following safe conditions:

• negotiation between the government and the solution-maker (local authority on spatial planning) for the space allocated in housing
• establishment of disaster risk reduction team from the country (including search and rescue team)

The River group also developed ideas for reducing pressures:

• design of flood proof structures (e.g. concrete revetments)
• foreign assistance (in the form of training, not financial)
• develop/prepare/establish systems/drills with the help of universities
• proper/intentional information dissemination
• proper coordination

 The Precipitation group came up with the following safe conditions:

• strengthening of early warning systems
• development of disaster risk management and contingency plans (vertical evacuation, safe gathering areas, public alerts and warnings, hazard mapping) 
• construction code for flood-proof structures

While not all solutions were placed in the correct column of safe conditions or reducing dynamic pressures, the general concept of the PAR model was understood by all groups. From the results of this exercise we found several overlapping solutions, namely early warning systems/information centers and flood-proofed areas. When investing in disaster risk reduction in real life, these overlapping items are likely to reduce vulnerability to all three types of flood hazards and can thereby serve as a starting point for practical vulnerability reduction plans.