The SEED-FD project, focusing on Strengthening Extreme Events Detection for Floods and Droughts, has officially started. This initiative, driven by an international consortium of experts, aims to enhance flood and drought forecasting through advanced hydrological simulations and Earth Observation techniques.
With a three-year duration starting in January 2024, the SEED-FD project is a collaborative effort involving Magellium (France), ECMWF (UK), CNR-IRPI (Italy), ICPAC (Kenya), IIASA (Austria), vorteX.io (France), Polimi (Italy), Design & Data (Germany), and JRC (EU). Each of them is committed to leveraging their expertise to address global water challenges and improve disaster management practices.
The primary objective of SEED-FD is to enhance the Copernicus Emergency Management Service (CEMS) Early Warning Systems (EWS) for floods and droughts. By integrating satellite data and innovative in-situ micro-sensors, the project aims to deliver more accurate and reliable hydrological forecasts, particularly in regions currently lacking adequate coverage.
As the project starts with the scientific development phase, the consortium will focus on two data-rich regions—the Danube and Bhima Basins—to implement and test new algorithms and concepts. This phase will lay the groundwork for subsequent validation across other vulnerable regions, demonstrating the transferability of SEED-FD solutions.
Motivated by a shared vision to improve global resilience to extreme hydrological events, the SEED-FD consortium is dedicated to pioneering advancements in hydrological modelling. This project not only aims to fill critical gaps in existing early warning systems but also aspires to set new standards in flood and drought forecasting.