Vana Tsimopoulou

HZ University of Applied Sciences · Domain of Technology, Water & Environment

This short communication presents a practical tool for assessing the subsurface connectivity of animal burrows, with emphasis on its potential for early detection and evaluation of animal-induced damages in levees that can compromise the structure during high water emergencies. Drawing inspiration from fundamental biology research and plumbing leak...

The study investigates the feasibility of Electric Resistivity Tomography (ERT) to monitor subsurface changes during large-scale overflow experiments on levees. Conducted in Belgium and the Netherlands as part of the Interreg-funded project Polder2C, the experiments reveal correlations between flow rate and subsurface alterations. ERT time-lapse im...

Detection pf animal burrows with smoke bombs

Temporary protection of animal burrows with road plates

This report presents in detail a number of exploratory activities related to the detection, monitoring and repair of animal burrows on earthen levees, aiming at advancing knowledge on this topic. All presented initiatives took place in the Living Lab Hedwige-Prosperpolder in the context of the Interreg-funded project Polder2C's, and have contribute...

Building flood resilience in coastal and estuarine areas requires an integrated system approach that develops capacities in infrastructure, society and the environment. Living labs present opportunities for development of such capacities through experimentation in real-world settings, formulation of partnerships that capture domain-based knowledge...

Tidal flats and salt marshes are unique coastal habitats with a high biodiversity providing a wide range of goods and services to coastal societies, including flood-risk protection and recreation opportunities. Yet, these coastal ecosystems are disappearing at alarming rates due to anthropogenic and natural pressures. To preserve and restore some o...

In 2018, Lombok island, Indonesia, was hit by a series of destructive earthquakes that caused thousands of casualties and widespread material damage. In response to those events, a field survey was conducted along the coast of Lombok aiming at collecting data about disaster preparedness and awareness of local inhabitants regarding natural disasters...

In 2018 Lombok island, Indonesia, was hit by a series of destructive earthquakes that caused thousands of casualties and widespread material damage. In response to those events a field survey was conducted along the coast of Lombok aiming at collecting data about disaster preparedness and awareness of local inhabitants regarding natural disasters,...

In 2018 Lombok island, Indonesia, was hit by a series of destructive earthquakes that caused thousands of casualties and widespread material damage. In response to those events a field survey was conducted along the coast of Lombok aiming at collecting data about disaster preparedness and awareness of local inhabitants regarding natural disasters,...

A great deal of coastal communities throughout the world are threatened by large-scale flooding caused by tsunamis, tropical cyclones, or extra-tropical storms. In order for those areas to stay protected, investments in multi-layer safety projects are often contemplated. This chapter presents a procedure to derive cost-efficient design specificatio...

This dissertation concerns mainly the development of models for the economic optimization of investments in flood protection systems. Since economic optimization is the method used for the determination of flood safety standards in the Netherlands, the primary objective is to facilitate the update of these standards, which the Dutch Government has...

The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami was the first significant transoceanic tsunami in the digital age, allowing the population of the entire world to witness the destructive power of such phenomena. Despite the fact that such events form part of the culture of countries such as Chile and Japan, many other places had virtually not heard about them before...

After the flood disaster of 1953, the Netherlands adopted a rational approach to flood risk management with the use of protection standards determined by means of cost-benefit analysis. Due to scientific and political developments that have recently taken place, an update of the Dutch protection standards is being undertaken. One of the major prior...

The changes in a flood-defence system over time are dynamic in nature. There is a wide range of aspects in the system and its surroundings that evolve through time, such as climate, the available amount of knowledge, societal risk perception, structural deterioration due to subsidence, economic and demographic growth, etc. These variations are hard...

Since 2004 there is a growing global awareness of the risks that tsunamis pose to coastal communities. Despite the fact that these events were already an intrinsic part of the culture of some countries (such as Chile and Japan), in many other places they had been virtually unheard of before 2004. Nevertheless, the frequent reoccurrence of these eve...

Recent experience of large-scale water disasters such as Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the Great Eastern Japan Earthquake and Tsunami in 2011 has reminded mankind that disasters cannot be ruledout. Unprecedented low-probability events can happen even in the most well monitored areas, causing major social-economic disruption. Failing to prepare for...

This paper presents an assessment of the multi-layered safety system in Tohoku, Japan based on the tsunami disaster of March 2011. The performed analysis has been based on data provided by local researchers and field observations. First an overview of the tsunami behaviour along the affected coastline of Tohoku is presented, which shows clearly tha...

The earthquake and tsunami of March 2011 led to death and destruction in coastal areas in Japan. A seminar was held in June 2012 for Japanese and Dutch coastal researchers to discuss lessons for the management of the risks in coastal areas associated with tsunamis, typhoons and storm surges. The seminar has highlighted important practical and theor...

This paper presents the development of a semi-probabilistic method for armour layer design of rubble mound breakwaters, which is based on the use of safety factors. The objective is to introduce an approach that is both attractive to designers and sufficiently reliable when a high degree of uncertainty is involved in the design process. The main fo...

The tsunami that hit the north pacific coast of Japan on March 11, 2011 has been characterized as a mega disaster. It inundated over 560 square kilometers of land, devastating a large number of coastal communities, causing over 20,000 casualties and huge economic damage in Tohoku region. The purpose of this report is to give insight into the magnit...

One of the failure mechanisms of a rubble mound breakwater is the failure of its armour layer. In order to determine the stability of an armour layer, the design load has to be defined, which is in fact the wave that attacks the structure. Being a highly stochastic phenomenon, the wave action is not easily defined, while there is always some uncert...

This paper introduces the development of a methodology for performance of oil spill risk analysis in coastal zones through a prototype application. The main objective of the research effort is to develop the basis for a tool that can assess risks due to the occurrence of an oil spill event aiming at assisting to the risk response process. The metho...

The Great Eastern Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of March 11, 2011 can be characterized as a catastrophe. It inundated over 560 km2 of land, devastating a large number of coastal communities, causing over 19,000 casualties and huge economic damage in the Tohoku region. Due to the relatively high frequency of tsunamis, the region was considered well p...