Abstract:
This Flood Hazard data is produced to meet the requirements of Article 6 of the European Communities (Assessment and Management of Flood Risks) Regulations 2010 to 2015 (the “Regulations”) (implementing Directive 2007/60/EC). This data shows the centre-line of rivers that have been modelled to generate the Community-Scale Flood Hazard Maps. It is an indicator of the channels that have been included in the river network model and from which the resultant fluvial flood extents have been derived.
Flooding from other reaches may occur, but has not been mapped, and so areas that are not shown as being within a flood extent may therefore be at risk of flooding from unmodelled rivers (as well as from other sources).
The purpose of the OPW's Flood Maps is not to designate individual properties at risk of flooding. They are community-based maps, suitable for community-level assessments.
Lineage:
The modelled river centrelines data is a derivative of the Environmental Protection Agency River Network dataset, which is released as Open Data under the CC BY 4.0 licence.
The process may vary for particular areas or maps. Technical Hydrology and Hydraulics Reports set out full technical details on the derivation of the flood hazard data.
The CFRAM data was the first set of community-scale maps delivered under the EU 'Floods' Directive [2007/60/EC] and is updated as required under subsequent cycles of this Directive.
The OPW's updated Community-scale Flood Maps are effectively a combination of the following datasets:
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CFRAM 2018 - This data was produced for the 300 'Areas of Further Assessment' (AFAs), as identified under the first cycle of the EU 'Floods' Directive [2007/60/EC] and designated under the Preliminary Flood Risk Assessment. Data was also produced for other reaches between the AFAs and down to the sea that are referred to as 'Medium Priority Watercourses' (MPWs). River reaches that have been modelled are indicated by the CFRAM Modelled River Centrelines dataset.
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National Flood Map Reviews - Updates and revisions take place to the community-scale flood maps on an ongoing basis, where evidence is presented of a change in physical conditions, a detection of errors or based on other specific evidence. More information can be found on the OPW's Flood Map Review Page, https://www.floodinfo.ie/map-review/.
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Completed Flood Relief Schemes - Updates and revisions take place to the community-scale flood maps where a Flood Relief Scheme has been completed. More information can be found on the OPW's Flood Relief Scheme Information Summary Page, https://www.floodinfo.ie/scheme-info/.
v101 (March 2025)
The section of map near Oranmore Galway updated following a map review process see https://www.floodinfo.ie/map-review/ for further information, Map Review Code: MR019.
v102 (July 2025)
The section of map near Claregalway updated following a map review process see https://www.floodinfo.ie/map-review/ for further information, Map Review Code: MR057.
v103 (October 2025) The section of map near Drogheda updated following a map review process see https://www.floodinfo.ie/map-review/ for further information, Map Review Code: MR029.
Purpose:
The data has been developed to comply with the requirements of the European Communities (Assessment and Management of Flood Risks) Regulations 2010 to 2015 (the “Regulations”) (implementing Directive 2007/60/EC) for the purposes of establishing a framework for the assessment and management of flood risks, aiming at the reduction of adverse consequences for human health, the environment, cultural heritage and economic activity associated with floods.
The purpose of the OPW's Flood Maps is not to designate individual properties at risk of flooding. They are community-based maps, suitable for community-level assessments.
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