Deriving Flood-Mediated Connectivity between River Channels and Floodplains: Data-Driven Approaches

The flood-mediated connectivity between river channels and floodplains plays a fundamental role in flood hazard mapping and exerts profound ecological effects. The classic nearest neighbor search (NNS) fails to derive this connectivity because of spatial heterogeneity and continuity. We develop two novel data-driven connectivity-deriving approaches, namely, progressive nearest neighbor search (PNNS) and progressive iterative nearest neighbor search (PiNNS). These approaches are illustrated through a case study in Northern Australia. First, PNNS and PiNNS are employed to identify flood pathways on floodplains through forward tracking. That is, progressive search is performed to associate newly inundated cells in each time step to previously inundated cells. In particular, iterations in PiNNS ensure that the connectivity is continuous - the connection between any two cells along the pathway is built through intermediate inundated cells. Second, inundated floodplain cells are collectively connected to river channel cells through backward tracing. Certain river channel sections are identified to connect to a large number of inundated floodplain cells. That is, the floodwater from these sections causes widespread floodplain inundation. Our proposed approaches take advantage of spatial-temporal data. They can be applied to achieve connectivity from hydro-dynamic and remote sensing data and assist in river basin planning and management.