Flood Risk and Vulnerability Analysis Project - Atlantic Climate ...

Reduce the risk to public safety during flood events
Reduce incidents of flooding,
Reduce susceptibility to flood damage,
Mitigate the impacts of flooding, and
Preserve the natural resources of flood plains.
6.2.1 Structural and Non-Structural Strategies
Strategies can be Structural (e.g., dams, levees, shore stabilization), or Non-Structural (e.g.,
building codes, regulations and flood forecasting warnings). It should be noted that although
flood insurance is not currently available in Canada, it is listed here as a Non-Structural
strategy. Structural strategies can effectively address site or location specific threats, such as
reducing the flood frequency along a river corridor or limiting erosion along a coastline.
Structural strategies utilize engineering approaches to make defined improvements to address a
defined need. However, Structural strategies are generally higher cost flood mitigation
strategies than Non-Structural mechanisms.
Given the scope of this evaluation and available data, this report does not specify locations for
structural mitigation measures in the Sub-regions. Instead, this report provides general
guidance that those communities for which structural mitigation measures may be applicable.
Communities should consider identifying locations, through more detailed evaluations, where
construction of structural practices may be appropriate, as part of a more comprehensive flood
mitigation strategy.
Table 6-4 also includes a larger set of Non-Structural strategies. Although there may be
structural components to several of these strategies, Non-Structural strategies are generally
more programmatic in nature, often requiring contributions by regional and local government
entities. For instance, building code standards define structural components required for
development, yet because the components are the result of policy decisions that primarily affect
the development process and a site‟s usability, building codes are considered a Non-Structural
strategy.
Local and Provincial officials should first consider the benefits of Non-Structural strategies,
before Structural ones, as their costs are typically significantly lower. This is especially the case
where population densities and infrastructure investments are relatively low and the benefits of
large engineered structures, in terms of flood loss mitigation, are also low.
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