Utilising shared knowledge against flooding
Students become researchers in a citizen science project at HSWT. By collecting and analysing data, they are helping to protect the town of Selbitz from flooding in the future.
After a flood caused severe damage in Selbitz in July 2021, the small town in Upper Franconia took the initiative. It successfully applied with a so-called „sponge floodplain concept“ as part of the „Landscape planning in Bavaria - municipal and innovative“ project funded by the Bavarian State Ministry of the Environment and Consumer Protection. The project was technically supported by the Bavarian State Office for the Environment (LfU) and communicatively by the Bavarian Academy for Nature Conservation and Landscape Management (ANL).
The town of Selbitz now wants to further establish this approach to flood protection with the help of the Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University of Applied Sciences (HSWT) as part of a „Citizen Science“ project with pupils and citizens. Teacher Ann-Katrin Marquart's environmental working group with 16 fifth and sixth graders from Hochfranken-Gymnasium in Naila is devoting an entire school year to this project. „Together, we want to take a close look at the effectiveness of the sponge floodplain measures in the neighbouring municipality of Selbitz, which was badly affected by the 2021 floods,“ explains Ann-Katrin Marquardt, the supervision teacher.
Kick-off event with the school classes
Prof Dr Kristian Förster, HTA Research Professor of Climate Change Hydrology, and scientist Korinna Schmitz from the HSWT introduced the environment working group to the topic at a site visit at the end of September: „Together with the pupils, we want to investigate how water can be stored in the landscape using a sponge floodplain concept in order to mitigate periods of drought.“ The core of this project is data collection, which is used to make science accessible to young people. Various measuring points were set up for this purpose.
Participation of citizens
In order to draw meaningful conclusions, sufficient amounts of data are required, for which Professor Förster is dependent on further help from the local community. Citizens are cordially invited to participate as citizen scientists and collect data on walks or on the way to work, for example. Progress is reported regularly at the „sponge table“, the monthly get-together of the local sponge meadow initiative.
The sponge meadow concept
A sponge meadow is a landscape element whose hydrological storage effect is improved by near-natural measures: instead of running off directly, more water seeps away and is retained in the soil. This reduces the risk of flooding during heavy rainfall. At the same time, water is kept in the landscape for longer during dry periods. As an increase in hydroclimatic extremes such as heavy rainfall and drought is to be expected as a result of climate change, sponge floodplain measures are an important component of climate adaptation strategies.
Background to the HSWT research project
The implementation of the sponge field measures in Selbitz is being scientifically monitored by the Schwammbox research project funded by the Bavarian State Ministry of Science and the Arts. In order to be able to assess the effectiveness of the sponge floodplain measures, water levels in water bodies and ditches as well as soil moisture must be measured continuously. However, information that can be seen at a glance or easily determined on site is not available to the researchers as an analysable data basis. Project manager Dr Kristian Förster is therefore involving local people. „Citizen science“ is the name of this approach, in which lay scientists become co-researchers. Citizens or school classes can use the CrowdWater app to collect data at defined measuring points around Selbitz.
