Further improvements needed to manage major flood risk in Paris and Seine basin

Following the 2014 OECD Review of the Management of Flood Risks in the Seine Basin, French authorities asked the OECD to evaluate their progress in making the Paris metropolitan area more resilient to the risk of flooding.

This report assesses the implementation of the 14 Recommendations adopted by the High Level Risk Forum in 2013. It is based on an in-depth analysis and extensive consultation with all key stakeholders, from government, local authorities, private sector and civil society.

Exploring the issues of risk governance, resilience and financing, the report acknowledges the significant progress made in the last four years. However, important challenges persist and only continued efforts will significantly reduce this major risk for France, as demonstrated by the floods that occurred in May-June 2016 and the large scale economic consequences.

The report suggests six recommendations to further consolidate these continued efforts.  

Media release

• Further improvements needed to manage major flood risk in Paris and Seine basin, says OECD

Blogs

• City on the edge: Paris faces yet another major flood
• Flood watch on the river Seine: A return to 1910?

Paris flood - Questions & Answers 

OECD Risk Expert, Charles Baubion, answers some key questions from the report. 

Questions:

• What would be the economic consequences of a major flood in the Paris region?
• How well is Paris protected from the risk of a major flood?
• What is the future for cities that are prone to flooding?
• What lessons have been learned since the Paris floods in 2016? 
• How does Paris compare with other OECD cities?
• What are the solutions to reduce the risk of flooding?

2014 report on which this progress report is based

• Seine Basin, Île-de-France, 2014: Resilience to Major Floods