Greening Water Risks Natural Assurance Schemes

• Other Authors: López-Gunn, Elena (Editor), van der Keur, Peter (Editor), Van Cauwenbergh, Nora (Editor), Le Coent, Philippe (Editor), Giordano, Raffaele (Editor)
• Format: Electronic Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer Nature 2023
• Series: Water Security in a New World
• Subjects: Physical geography & topography; Hydrology & the hydrosphere; Ecological science, the Biosphere; Urban & municipal planning; Natural disasters; Nature-based solutions; Water-related disaster risk reduction; Floods, droughts and natural hazards; Sustainable development; Urban planning; Economic, biophysical and social assessment; Nature conservation; Natural resources; Urban Geography and Urbanism
• Online Access: OAPEN Library: download the publication; OAPEN Library: description of the publication

Confronted with an increase in floods, droughts and other natural hazards, cities and regions are alert to find climate proof solutions that overcome the limitations of traditional grey infrastructure. Nature-based solutions are proposed as a valid way to address risk and adapt to climate change while increasing resilience through the multiple benefits they generate. However, in spite of the widespread academic and political support for NBS, their implementation is lacking. As key barriers to implementation there are institutional and regulatory barriers, an absence of clear evaluation of NBS performance, funding/financing barriers and knowledge and acceptance barriers. This Open Access book provides a hands-on guide to overcome these barriers, through the stepwise creation of nature-assurance schemes that operationalize the insurance value of ecosystems. At the basis thereof is an integrated biophysical, economic and social assessment which is integrated with implementation considerations through the generation of business models and blended funding and financing schemes. This book will be of interest to practitioners and researchers who want to better understand how to operationalize the insurance value of ecosystems. The book provides 9 DEMO examples on the application of this method across different scales: urban, medium and large catchments and target both floods and droughts.