Field: Water Resources Engineering

Thesis Title: Flood Risk Management and Surface water Drainage

Members:

 ADRIAN A. ALBACETE
 ALFREDO S. DIMACULANGAN Jr.

Problems:

1. Do Floods have large social consequences for communities and individuals?

As most people are aware, the immediate impacts of flooding include loss of human life, damage to
property, destruction of crops, loss of livestock, and deterioration of health conditions owing to
waterborne diseases. As communication links and infrastructure such as power plants, roads and
bridges are damaged and disrupted, some economic activities may come to a standstill, people are
forced to leave their homes and normal life is disrupted.

Similarly, disruption to industry can lead to loss of livelihoods. Damage to infrastructure also causes
long-term impacts, such as disruptions to supplies of clean water, wastewater treatment, electricity,
transport, communication, education and health care. Loss of livelihoods, reduction in purchasing
power and loss of land value in the floodplains can leave communities economically vulnerable.

Floods can also traumatise victims and their families for long periods of time. The loss of loved ones
has deep impacts, especially on children. Displacement from one's home, loss of property and
disruption to business and social affairs can cause continuing stress. For some people the
psychological impacts can be long lasting. - Dr Geoff Garrett, 2011

2. Inadequate Capacity of Drains and Culverts

A drainage system includes the pavement and the water handling system. They must be properly
designed, built, and maintained. The water handling system includes: road surface, shoulders, drains
and culverts; curb, gutter and storm sewer. When a road fails, whether it’s concrete, asphalt or
gravel, inadequate drainage often is a major factor. Poor design can direct water back onto the road
or keep it from draining away. Too much water remaining on the surface combine with traffic action
to cause potholes,
cracks and pavement failure. - Zumrawi, Magdi. (2014)

3. Flooded road obstructed traffic flow

Water is the main contributor to the failure and damage of roads. Water can be in the form of ground
water, surface water (streams and rivers) or rain, as runoff from the surrounding areas. In addition,
water may flow laterally from the pavement edges or it may seep upward from a high ground water
table. The water flow can damage the road in several ways. Rokade et al [1] reported that water-
related damage to pavement can cause one or more of the following forms of deteriorations: a)
reduction of base, subbase and sub grade strength, b) differential swelling in expansive sub-grade
soils, c) stripping of asphalt in flexible pavements, d) frost heave and reduction of strength during
frost melt, and e) movement of fine particles into base or subbase materials resulting in a reduction
of the hydraulic conductivity considerably. The damage to the road can be reduced if the flow of
water is controlled. Minor damages can easily be repaired as part of the regular maintenance
provided to the road and its structures. If the flow of water is not properly managed, the
deterioration of the road will be more serious and occur more rapidly. This will lead to higher
maintenance demands and in the worst cases result in serious damage which may obstruct the traffic
flow. - Zumrawi, Magdi. (2014)

4. Improper Grading
to a drainage catch basin or down to the curb. Unfortunately, homeowners, landscapers and builders
don’t always get their grades right, and this can cause water to become trapped, or worse yet, flow
toward the house and into the basement, home or building. The solution to this watery mess: a new
drainage plan. The plan may involve drains to collect water and pipe it away, subsurface drainage to
collect water as it percs into the ground or regrading to direct the water in the correct direction.
5. Improperly Installed Downspouts and Gutters
Gutters and downspouts are essential parts of a home’s exterior, but if they aren’t installed or
maintained properly, they can cause problems. The most common hurdle is when the gutters
overflow or when leader pipes are not directing water away from the home. Instead, runoff will pool
around the foundation of the home and cause both landscape and structural problems.
To fix, make sure all downspouts are pointed away from the home and that they lead far enough
away from the dwelling. Connect these spouts to a drainage system if necessary, to carry the water
even further.
6. Run Off from Neighbours
Erosion coming from higher elevations is a major problem, and it happens when you live downhill
from other properties. It’s not really your neighbours’ fault that this is happening, but you can’t
exactly ask them to prevent it, either. The best thing to do is to watch at how the water runs into your
yard during a rainstorm. You can then divert the water by building a berm or swale, or by re-routing
the water to a catch basin or dry well. Another option is to hire a professional landscaper to grade
broad surfaces.
7. You’re Landscaping
It’s hard to believe that your hard work may be causing the problems, but it’s possible. Bare soil
without vegetation, a yard that slopes toward your home or paved surfaces that direct water to the
structure are all potential problems. Unfortunately, not everyone thinks of these things when making
amendments to the home. The key is to divert the water elsewhere, which can be done with French
drains or other creative solutions like gravel and rocks.
Often, we see that people use too much topsoil or mulch in their planting beds, or they were simply
graded the wrong way when they were created. They become raised and slope back toward the
house, causing water to run back and against or into the home. If the gutters overflow, too, then you
have real problems. Be sure the grade of the planting beds is AWAY from the home or structure.
8. Reasons for the flood damage in 2009 (Gatan, 2009)
The flood inundated more than 80% of the land and caused 173 deaths in the Manila
metropolitan area (NDCC, 2009), or officially called as the National Capital Region (NCR). An
official of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), raised the following
reasons for the flood damage in 2009 (Gatan, 2009):
1. Occurrence of extreme rainfall amount and intensity directly caused the flood damage.
According to Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration
(PAGASA), the 24-hr rainfall of 455 mm recorded from 8 a.m., September 26 to 8 a.m.,
September 27 at the Science Garden in Quezon City is equivalent to a return period of more
than 100 years.
2. Existing river channels do not have the capacity to flow the above extreme discharge,
particularly Pasig with a present flow capacity of 500 m3 /s and Marikina with 900 m3 /s.
3. Existing internal drainage systems in Metro Manila cannot convey the unusual run-off. The
old drainage systems constructed in 1975 are 70% silted and the design flood was based on
10-year return period. The design run-off coefficient of 0.4-0.5 was utilized taking care of
percolation and infiltration. At present, due to the effect of urban development, which is
being undertaken at an alarming rate, the runoff coefficient was significantly increased from
50% as originally designed to 95 %.
4. Many of existing internal drainage systems are clogged up due to indiscriminate throwing
of garbage.
5. Some drainage inlets/manholes were purposely plugged by some residents to prevent
proper drainage. It caused flooding from which they were able to earn money by providing
services to people with stuck vehicles and also from elevated catwalks for pedestrians for a
fee.
6. Illegal occupation of informal settlers along the waterways, which causes obstruction to the
free flow of flood waters to the rivers.
7. Encroachment on waterways due to the uncontrolled rapid urban development.
Threats of flooding are expressed by the possibility of flood damage multiplied by the
magnitude of flood damage as described in Section 2.2.1. The Manila metropolitan area is
frequently attacked by tropical squalls with high rainfall intensity and typhoons generated in
the Pacific Ocean. The Philippines Islands are hit by an average of six to seven typhoons per
year (Shoemaker, 1991). Moreover, the uncontrolled development in the area has been
amplifying the possibility of flood damage as emphasized as one of the reasons of the 2009
flood. The potential magnitude of flood damage also has been increasing following the urban
growth with the continuous population inflow and the accumulation of investment in the
area. That is to say, the threats of flooding in the Manila metropolitan area are increasing by
the factors that amplify both the possibility and magnitude of flood damage.
-Katsuhama, Yoshihiro.Colorado State University, ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 2010.
3419051.