Land use management effects on flood flows and sediments - guidance on prediction

Management of rural land use offers a potentially attractive approach to reducing the need to structural flood defences and channel maintenance to control sediment. The Flood Risk Management Research Consortium (FRMRC) (2004-2012) was tasked with increasing knowledge concerning the efficacy of rural land use management for these purposes, and with developing suitable tools for predicting the effects of rural land use on downstream flood risks and sediment yields. This guide presents the scientific basis for natural flood and sediment management through rural land use management in the UK, drawing primarily on evidence obtained from FRMRC research, but also including some findings generated by other projects. Part of a suite of four CIRIA guides (C717, C719, C720, C721).