WORKSHOP ON RISK ASSESSMENT AND ACCEPTABLE RISK (WP. 4.3 & 6.1)

The workshop was held at the Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) the 30.11.16 and 01.12.16. It was organized by IMO, the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI) and the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) and was financed by the NORDRESS project.

The main aim of the workshop was to create a platform for exchanging experience, knowledge, and new ideas on risk assessment and acceptable risk, with special reference to floods and storm surges. The workshop encouraged the establishment of networks, and created channels for knowledge exchange between the Nordic countries and neighbouring countries. This was facilitated by a set of lectures and group sessions introducing and exploring the different dimensions of acceptable risk. In addition, participants in the workshop got an insider introduction to the Sendai framework for action 2015-2030 and the related roadmap.

The workshop was divided into four themes: Social framing of acceptable risk; Implementation of natural hazard management schemes; Applying risk assessment; Sharing responsibility and risk. There were fifty participants at the workshop, with excellent speakers from the Netherlands, the UK, Denmark, Norway, and Iceland. The overall outcome of the workshop is that it was successful, the speakers gave good insight into the topics and fruitfull discussions took place during the group-sessions.

The agenda of the workshop was following:

Agenda 30.11.16

09:00 – 09:30    Registration

09:30 – 09:50    Welcome – NORDRESS context, purpose and organization of the workshop

Social framing of acceptable risk

09:50 – 10:10    Virginia Murray, Public Health England, Consultant in Global DRR and UNISDR –

video presentation The importance of risk assessment for implementation of the Sendai Framework (20 min)

10:10 – 10:50    Jeroen Warner, Wageningen University and Research, Netherlands

Decision structures and framing issues in risk management (30 + 10)

10:50 – 11:10    Coffee break

11:10 – 12:10    Group work part 1 (4 groups) – assignment: discuss and answer questions

  • Which groups / organisations in society should decide on scope and level of ´acceptable risk‘?
  • What are the dimensions (elements) of acceptable risk?
  • How to shape the decision process on determining scope and level of ´acceptable risk‘?

12:10 – 12:45    Synthesis from working groups – summary presentations per group (4 x 5) + discussion (15)

12:45 – 13:45    Lunch

Implementation of natural hazard management schemes

13:45 – 14:25    Thorsten Piontkowitz, Kystdirektoratet Denmark

Costal Flood Hazard and RIsk Management in Denmark within the context of the EU´s Floods Diretive (30 +10)

14:25 – 15:10    Mark Franklin, Environmental Agency UK

Flood Risk Mapping and Forecasting in England (30 +10)

15:10 – 15:30    Coffee break

15:30 – 16:30    Group work part 2 (4 groups) – assignment: discuss and answer questions

  • What gets lost and what is gained in translation from theory to practice?
  • How and to what extent can we transfer lessons from one country or hazard type to another?

16:30 – 17:15    Synthesis from working groups – summary presentations per group (4 x 5) + discussion (25)

19:30                  Dinner at Kol restaurant, Skólavörðustígur 40

 

01.12.16

Applying risk assessment

09:00 – 09:40    Farrokh Nadim, NGI

Acceptable risk for facilities subjected to geohazards (30 +10)

09:40 – 10:20    Ruben Jongejan, Jongejan RMC Cunsulting, Netherlands

Flood risk management in the Netherlands (30 +10)

10:20 – 10:40    Coffee break

10:40 – 11:20    Tómas Jóhannesson, IMO

Risk management: How to balance the risk of fatal accidents, property damage and social disruption in the planning of disaster (30 +10) 

11:20 – 12:20    Group work part 3 (4 groups) – assignment: discuss and answer questions

  • How do presented (and other) assessment methods fit to alternative policy and societal frames of acceptable risk?
  • What are the dimensions (elements) of acceptable risk?

12:20 – 13:00    Synthesis from working groups – summary presentations per group (4 x 5) + discussion (20)

13:00 – 13:45    Lunch

Sharing responsibility and risk

13:45 – 14:25    Mia Ebeltoft, Finans Norge, Norway – via skype

Private -public project: Can insurance data help preventing natural catastrophes and urban flooding damage? (30 + 10)

14:25 – 14:55    Jaap Kwadijk, Deltares

                            Tools for long therm planning for climate change (20 + 10)

15:00 – 16:00    Group work part 4 (3 to 4 groups) – assignment: discuss and answere questions

  • How to shape the decision process on determining scope and level of ´acceptable risk‘? – Revisit from yesterday – Main emphasis on this question.
  • What are the lessons for NORDRESS‘ WP4, WP5 and WP6? – WP leaders to emphasis on how they see this workshop has helped/given an input into their work.

16:00 – 16:15    Coffee break

16:15 – 17:00    Synthesis from group work and concluding discussion – WP leaders to comment on lessons learned from NORDRESS  (4×5) + discussion (25)

17:00 – 17:15    Wrap-up and closure of workshop

Acceptable risk short minutes

Related literature

Tracing the impacts of  public dialogue projects supported by Sciencewise: Flood risk
communications

Weather related damage in the Nordic countries from an insurance perspective.

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