Resilient Deltas

This module deals with the societal challenge of making deltas resilient to climate change, subsidence, unprecedented economic growth and urbanisation. Future increases in sea level rise, droughts, extreme precipitation and flooding can have adverse effects on the physics and dynamics of delta's, salt intrusions and groundwater, which requires new delta interventions to be developed. The focus is on deltas globally, using the Dutch Delta as a nearby example and laboratory.

The module is split in 3 themes:

Theme 1 (3EC) - Physics of the coupled delta system under climate change and human interventions - provides students with the scientific understanding of the interaction of atmospheric, fluvial and marine processes that comprise the delta system, their response to human interventions, and their sensitivity to climate change (LO 1,2,3)

Theme 2 (3EC) - Climate change and scenarios gives students hands-on experience on the use of statistical and dynamical downscaling techniques and long-term observational datasets, which they need to analyze to understand the impact of natural and man-made climate change on the delta system. Students will study and discuss different methods to construct climate scenarios, contrasting approaches developed in various countries (for example Switzerland, UK and the Netherlands) and learn how to apply them to different regions/ Focus will be on the specific climate variables: (extreme) precipitation/ droughts and sea-level rise. (LO 1, 2, 4, 5)

theme 3 (4EC) - Adaptation pathways for deltas - guides students to develop pathways towards new delta technologies (flood defence and water treatment) based on climate model/data analysis using the Dynamic Adaptive Policy Pathway method among other analytical tools, and guided by SCRUM project management (LO 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)

Weekly Syllabus

The module takes an inquiry-based approach, in which students start in wk 1 by exploring a delta system of their choice and interest. They will create a conceptual map of their current understanding of that delta system including the interlinkages or feedbacks between processes (a concept map). They will do this as part of a multidisciplinary team.

In wk 1, one of the final deliverables of this module a proposal for an adaptation pathway for a hypothetical client/stakeholder - will be explained. Student teams will serve as advisors for one delta and stakeholders for another delta. The stakeholders are responsible for climate adaptation of a delta, the advisors are hired to develop pathways. Together they will agree on a product that the advisors will deliver to the stakeholders. This product should at least contain an analysis of the local climate change effects on the main delta systems, and proposals for solutions and adaptation pathways. As examples, they might focus on flooding, salt intrusion of beach nourishments in their chosen delta system under climate change.

During wks 2 8, the students will take an iterative approach towards their deliverable, enriching their conceptual understanding of the delta system in each iteration with knowledge and skills from Unit 1 en 2, which they put in practice in weekly computer labs. In the computer labs, students may develop python notebooks in which climate projected data obtained through dynamical downscaling with high resolution models are evaluated against observations. Alternatively, students develop statistical downscaling techniques by combining global climate model data with local observations. They will also be trained in obtaining useful trends from long observational data sets of the present climate and try to attribute these to global warming.

Teamwork in Unit 3 towards the deliverable will be supported with SCRUM project management. That product will be developed in three iterative cycles ("sprints), ending in wk 4, wk 8 and wk 10 (the final assessment).