Predicted Erosion Hazards to Transmission Towers in the Mersey River Valley

Simulated future erosion hazards for electricity transmission towers in the Mersey River valley under six hypothetical flow scenarios from 2018 to 2050. The dataset was generated using the CAESAR-Lisflood landscape evolution model, driven by a 15-meter resolution DEM and daily-averaged flow inputs. It assesses the relative risk to each tower from climate change-induced river channel and floodplain erosion.

Use Cases

• Compare erosion severity across the six hypothetical flow scenarios (baseline, plus 10-50%) to assess tower vulnerability.
• Analyze the relationship between daily-averaged flow inputs (m3 s-1) and simulated landscape changes at tower locations.
• Model long-term erosion risk to critical infrastructure using the 32-year simulation period from 2018 to 2050.
• Validate the CAESAR-Lisflood model's predictions of river channel change and floodplain erosion rates for a ~4.5 km river reach.

Strengths

• Contains projections for a 32-year future period (2018-2050) under six distinct climate scenarios.
• Model simulations are based on high-resolution (15-meter) digital elevation model (DEM) data.
• Focuses on a specific, critical application: assessing risk to electricity transmission infrastructure.

Limitations

• Data is based on hypothetical flow scenarios and model simulations, not observed measurements.
• Geographic scope is limited to a single ~4.5 km reach of the Mersey River valley.
• The underlying model (CAESAR-Lisflood) has inherent uncertainties in predicting complex geomorphic processes.

Provenance

Source

Environmental Information Data Centre, supported by Natural Environment Research Council Grant NE/S01697X/1.

Collection Method

Simulated using the CAESAR-Lisflood landscape evolution model with DEM and flow inputs.

Time Range

2018 to 2050 (projected scenarios).

Freshness

Last updated in March 2026, containing forward-looking projections to 2050.

Geography

A ~4.5 km long reach of the Mersey River valley.