Improving flood warnings in West Yorkshire

The West Yorkshire Flood Innovation Programme (WYFLIP) has been awarded funding to test flood warning technology.

The Long-Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN) project will produce technology to monitor surface water flooding.

Surface water flooding is a growing problem across West Yorkshire. It disrupts residents and businesses, causing substantial damage to properties and infrastructure.

It has now received £30,000 from the Natural Environment Research Council-funded University of Leeds Impact Acceleration Account to move to the next stage of testing its technology.

Working with the council

Water@leeds researchers will work with Wakefield Council to develop, test and implement the technology for flood warning sensors.

This collaborative project will last 12 months from April 2025.

It will involve creating and testing a low-cost, practical surface water sensor prototype and kickstarting a scientifically rigorous pilot study of surface water sensors in hotspot locations across West Yorkshire.

The project aims for its LoRaWAN system to be practical, robust, and compatible with regional and national requirements.

It’ll result in a more joined-up approach to improving proactive flood resilience through environmental data and state-of-the-art flood mitigation research, directly contributing to flood risk management policy and long-term strategic plans within the region and nationwide.