Resilient Urban Morphology to the flood risk in the final stretch of the Girona River (Alicante province)

Abstract

[EN] The Litoral-Cota 100 zone represents approximately 25% of the total area of the Region of Valencia and concentrates more than 70% of the urban area. One of the consequences of this situation has been the high urban developments produced in the last 50 years. The Comunitat Valenciana has a river flood hazard mapping, according to which, in the Litoral area, more than 80% of the flood hazard is concentrated. As a result of the experienced urban development and the extent of flooding, there is a significant number of people and property exposed to flood hazards. In order to analyze in detail the urban morphology on the coast and its interaction with floods, research has focused on the specific area of the final section of the Girona River, in the province of Alicante. Specifically, in the municipalities of Els Poblets, El Verger, Denia and Beniarbeig, located in the surroundings of the Girona River, very different urban morphologies have been generated that are not adapted to the existing flood hazard. The analysis carried out allows us to conclude that, despite the significant expansion of urban land, existing urban morphology offers ample possibilities to reduce the risk of flooding. It is proposed the integration of overflows in the built city, avoiding the consolidation of non-built land and designing particular measures on affected buildings. These measures of adaptation to the problem will generate a resilient urban morphology.