THE NEW GEOGRAPHY

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The present study comprised research to investigate the relationships between flood hazards, landforms, and land use in nine towns in the central western Nara basin, western Japan, to examine the validity of land use as a proxy for assessing flood hazard risk. Urban areas avoided flooding for small flood events. In contrast, approximately 50％ of urban areas were located in areas that were high-risk for experiencing large-scale floods every 150 years. For medium-scale flood events, the relationships between the flooded area and the urban area depended on the physical and social environment of a town. In towns that were situated primarily on plains, approximately 90％ of old urban areas which had been sited in1922 avoided flooding. In towns that included hilly topography, newly developed urban areas were located on relatively safe landforms. In towns with highly convenient transportation, urban settlements were located in high-risk areas. These results suggest that land use only exhibits flood hazard risks when flood hazard events are either small or medium. Comparison of new and old maps is suitable for students learning the small and medium-scale flood hazard risks.

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