Integrated modelling of surface water-groundwater flooding in the Oxford floodplain

Groundwater flooding results in insurance claims exceeding £50 million each
year within England and Wales. This type of flooding is predominantly caused
by the rise of the water table above the land surface but its occurrence
depends on the properties of the subsurface. Within the Oxford floodplain,
complex interactions between surface water and groundwater, affected by
urban infrastructure, have caused groundwater flooding in unexpected areas
and resulted in significant damage to properties.
To improve the understanding and simulation of flood generation within
Oxford, two existing models, developed in isolation by two different
organisations, have been coupled: a ZOOMQ3D groundwater flow model of
the alluvial aquifer and an InfoWorks RS model of the Isis and Cherwell rivers.
This has been achieved using the Open Modelling Interface (OpenMI), which
enables the two models, operating on very different spatial and temporal
scales, to interact. Preliminary results indicate that OpenMI technology can be
applied for integrated surface water-groundwater modelling successfully.
However, some limitations of the two models were identified during the
process.