Valencia had a 20-year “flood zones” map

Cadastral data shows houses were built in critical areas.

Spain waits for the victims to stop coming after the worst disaster of the century, but many wonder how it happened so quickly. Once the intangibles of nature are removed, data are emerging to contextualize the drama. For instance, 20 years ago, an area was declared “critical” for floods and “bricks” were built accordingly. Coinciding with the 2008–2009 real estate and financial bubble burst.

The news. Datadista reported it yesterday using Copernicus EMS numbers. The DANA flooded 15,633 hectares in Valencia, affecting 190,000 people, 17,597 residential buildings, and 3,249 km of streets and roads.

However, pulling the thread, the media found something very interesting through the Cadastre’s analysis of all residential buildings in the Copernicus EMS area: more than 75,000 homes are affected by the DANA, and almost a third were built this century since 1950. Despite knowing these areas were critical, brick was built.

The 2003 Plan. PATRICOVA is a territorial planning tool to manage and mitigate flood risks in the Valencian Community. The 2003 plan (revised in 2015) outlines measures to prevent and reduce flood damage to people, property, and the environment.

What are they? Since then, PATRICOVA’s main goals have been:

Assess and understand Valencian Community flooding risks.
Include flooding in territorial and urban planning programs and projects.
Coordinate public administrations and social agents to mitigate flood damage.
Promote more efficient territorial models by directing urban development to non-flood-prone or safer areas.
Manage flood zones in Green Infrastructure to preserve and improve water-related natural and cultural landscapes.
In summary, PATRICOVA classifies the territory by flood hazard and sets land use restrictions and recommendations. It also encourages flood hazard studies and structural and non-structural flood protection.

Datadista’s work casts doubt on many of these actions, since three out of ten homes in the affected areas were built in “flood zones” despite being known.

Ground zero, building. According to Datadista maps, the disaster site is in the southern part of Valencia, a metropolitan area with over 200,000 residents. It is in a flood zone because it receives precipitation from the province’s interior, which flows into the Albufera de Valencia and the sea through the Turia River’s new course.

River runoff in ravines and higher areas, where a train of storms regenerated for hours, caused much of the DANA’s flooding. The total rainfall in 24 hours was 618 liters per square meter, with a maximum of 179.4 l/m² in one hour and a peak of 42 l/m² in 10 minutes, setting a record for Spain in one hour.

Strengthening key areas. Media data raises the question: Why is construction allowed in “flood zones”? The Public Hydraulic Domain Regulation (RDPH) governs the management, protection, and use of rivers, streams, and other continental water currents at the national level. Its goal is to conserve and sustain water resources and reduce flood risks.

It was last updated in 2023 and allowed the construction of homes in flood zones if risk and danger were mitigated and safety was improved. A guide on how to implement these measures is available from the Insurance Compensation Consortium, since three million Spaniards live in high-risk flood zones.

An “entrenched” issue. According to El País, Spain has over 26,000 km of rivers with flood zones, home to 2.7 million people. Valencia’s events emphasize the need for structural changes and management plan revisions, such as the Júcar’s. The issue? Since 1960, uncontrolled urban expansion allowed construction in flood-prone areas.

“Until practically 2015, when the latest version of the land law forced city councils to prepare a flood report with flood risk maps and declare these lands non-urbanizable,” Jorge Olcina, University of Alicante Land Management professor, told the media.

Since 2003 and its 2015 revision, the law requires flood reports, but some municipalities still have old plans without restrictions. The professor stated that “all plans older than 15 years must be updated to incorporate current regulations.”

Valencia had a 20-year “flood zones” map

Cadastral data shows houses were built in critical areas.

By knl9j

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