As climate change makes the risk of flooding more likely across the world, flood defence systems often need to be constructed rapidly and steel sheet piling is one of the go-to materials for this. 

The double whammy of climate change and population movement change is predicted to greatly increase the numbers of people exposed to flood risks from rising sea levels and an increase in flash flooding.

A Nature Communications report forecasts that, “Between 2020 and 2100, the population likely exposed to a 1% annual risk (100-year) flood hazard will increase from 1.6 to 1.9 billion people. Of this change from the 2020 exposure, we attribute 21.1% to climate change, 76.8% to population change and 2.1% to both climate and population change.”

Long-term and short-term planning is required to prepare for this increased risk of flooding. And, steel sheet piling could become key to both short and long-term flood preparations.

Steel sheet piling is typically formed of sheets of hot or cold-rolled steel that interlock to build strong barriers that are generally impenetrable to water. Having a small footprint, it can be used to build temporary or permanent flood retaining walls very quickly and relatively inexpensively. And it’s very flexible, it can be used for sea walls, river banks and to create freestanding walls.

Sheet piling is used for flood control worldwide

Sheet piling is already being used to mitigate flood risks in many areas of the world. Sheet Piling UK, for example, has installed steel sheet piles to protect 1,000 homes in Hull in the North of England. This scheme involved installing steel sheet piles to cope with tidal surges along the Humber estuary and to protect low-lying land in the area. It took ten weeks to install the plain, uncoated sheet piles using conventional piling methods.

In Germany, Hoesch Spundwand und Projekte GmbH used steel sheet piling to create flood defences for the city of Duisburg. It used interlocking individual steel sheets and bituminous or synthetic seals to create a strong waterproof barrier.

In the United States, ArcelorMittal Sheet Piling was called on to replace the old sea wall in West Palm Beach, Florida, which hadn’t been able to contain the storm surge caused by Hurricane Sandy in 2012. The new sea wall was built using coated AZ 26-700 steel sheet piling with a thickness of 12.2 mm and a 100-year design life.

Being highly resistant to corrosion and erosion, steel sheet piling is extremely durable and long-lasting. It is also reusable and recyclable, relatively light and easy to transport and quick to install.

Governments across the world have or in the process of updating their flood defence regulations. As part of its long-term strategy, for example, the UK Environment Agency has called for all infrastructure to be resilient to flooding and coastal change by 2050.

Expect to see it increasingly used to protect river banks and sea walls across the world.