Dynamics of collaborations between practitioners and researchers to improve flood-forecasting systems in France

Abstract

Given the technical and scientific progress, one might believe that existing knowledge and data are sufficient to understand and model all the physical processes governing natural phenomena on Earth. However, providing accurate flood forecasts remains a difficult task and there is still considerable room for improvement, with social and economic stakes calling for the common efforts of scientists and practitioners. In this paper, we present the development process of a hydrological tool widely used in the French flood forecast network. The development of the model is based on two decades of research results but also on the interaction between scientists and practitioners. We describe how regular meetings and workshops favor the exchanges between researchers and practitioners and we provide two examples to illustrate concretely the active role of end-users in recent scientific developments implemented in the operational flood-forecasting tool. The promising results obtained in the everyday model use demonstrate the importance of the synergy among the actors involved for the development of innovative tools.