This month’s issue of The Geographical Journal, published by the Society, includes a themed section on the UK’s winter floods of 2013-14.
The themed section reflects on the social, economic, political and physical geographies of the storm surges and floods that affected the nation during a winter of persistent storms and record levels of rainfall.
Contributions have come from historical and cultural geographers, as well as hydrological modellers and fluvial (river) geographers.
“The collection of papers pose questions not only about how flooding is understood (both scientifically and culturally) but also how flooding impacts on communities and landscapes,” said Klaus Dodds, Editor of The Geographical Journal.
"The overarching lesson learned from the events of winter 2013/14 is that left unchecked, flooding will become increasingly socially divisive and that Government needs to work with scientists, engineers and local stakeholders to plan and deliver long-term solutions to flooding problems that are otherwise likely to escalate unacceptably in a ‘business as usual’ future”, concludes flooding expert Colin Thorne in his paper ‘Geographies of UK in flooding in 2013/14’.