NERC Chief Science Advisor to the Flood & Drought Research Infrastructure (FDRI) capital project

15^tH Dec 2022 to 13^th Nov 2024

FDRI is a 5-year capital investment by the UK Government enabling essential science and innovation to improve the UK's resilience to hydrological extremes. In June 2022, the UK Research and Innovation department announced their intention to invest £38M towards the establishment of a nationwide, digitally enabled Floods and Droughts Research Infrastructure. FDRI is a new integrated field- and digital-infrastructure to facilitate the next generation of hydrometric and hydrological science by UK scientists working in partnership with UK water sector practitioners and international researchers.

The FDRI Chief Science Advisor provides advice to the FDRI Senior Responsible Officer (SRO) and FDRI Project Board. They chair the FDRI-Community Advisory Group (FDRI-CAG); the FDRI-CAG's role is to provide the best possible and timely advice on behalf of the community to NERC and the FDRI Project Board on this new infrastructure by way of science recommendations. Advice from the FDRI Chief Science Advisor, supported by the FDRI-CAG, will support the FDRI Project Board's responsibilities to ensure that the FDRI delivers maximum scientific and innovation benefit to the UK science community and other users, as well as optimal delivery of the FDRI Science Case within budget. The FDRI Chief Science Advisor works in partnership with the FDRI-CAG, the SRO, the FDRI Project Board members, and the FDRI Delivery Group, to offer scientific advice based on expert knowledge to support successful delivery of the infrastructure; this may include providing advice at short-notice and agile working.

The field component of the FDRI infrastructure is centred on three catchments - the 105 sq km Chess, 139 sq km Upper Tweed and 174 sq km Upper Severn. The most upstream discharge gauge (Upper Hafren Flume) within the 174 sq km Upper Severn is shown above; this UKCEH gauge currently has Lancaster University live telemetry. Mobile field kit for use within these and other catchments across the UK will be available. The new field-infrastructure will be fully integrated with new FDRI digital-infrastructure to deliver live sensor control and live simulation and information/data sharing

Funding sources

Natural Environment Research Council of UK Research and Innovation (EAA5045)

Investigator

Nick A Chappell

Project partners

Natural Environment Research Council; FDRI Project Board; FDRI Community Advisory Group (CAG); FDRI Delivery Group comprising of the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (UKCEH), University of Bristol, and Imperial College London)

Outputs

Chappell, N. 2023. Forty years of hydrological monitoring in UK catchments: its evolution, challenges and needs. Invited presentation at the British Hydrological Society National Meeting Hydrology learning between the generations: 40 years of BHS on 6 Nov 2023, ICE, London. view presentation (pdf)

Chappell, N. 2024. Science, Ambition, Inspiration. Internal presentation to FDRI Delivery Group FDRI Kick-off Meeting on 10 May 2024, UKCEH, Wallingford. view presentation (pdf)