Flood Risk for Developers

The development of communities and local infrastructure increasingly needs to consider the growing risk of flooding from rivers, the sea, intense rainfall or rising groundwater. Climate change is increasingly contributing to this risk but so is the nature of the developments and their proximity to low-lying, naturally flooding land.

We have a long history of advising developers looking at the conversion of brownfield sites, extending existing operational property or protecting their assets from flooding. Our teams advise all major utility companies on flood resilience, especially those with critical infrastructure located in flood zones, and we compile flood resilience plans to address the identified needs. We also prepare flood risk assessments to advise on which risks should be managed and submit this information to the local risk management authority.

In Hong Kong, we have successfully conducted numerous drainage impact assessments and drainage master plans, and provided comprehensive solutions to alleviate flood risks for infrastructure development and urbanisation. Taking into account technical constraints, cost effectiveness and environmental considerations, we assist in formulating short- and long-term drainage measures to meet the city’s future development needs. We are also actively involved in developing flood protection schemes and flood mitigation programmes to cope with the latest development pressures and challenges brought by climate change, thereby bringing enhanced levels of flood protection to high-risk areas.

Our expertise in understanding complex river, coastal or groundwater conditions and the accuracies of the various models used to inform flood risk mean that we are often able to provide a proportionate and sustainable approach to implementing flood resilience.

We have an even wider portfolio of experience among the RSK group of companies; this includes experts who can advise on a wide range of projects from relatively small domestic sites to large infrastructure projects. We can also undertake site investigations and environmental surveys, and advise on mitigation techniques including environmental enhancement measures, river restoration proposals and better use of natural floodplain management techniques.