Huang et al. (2026) A cascading risk and resilience assessment framework for urban lifeline systems under extreme flooding

Identification

• Journal: Journal of Environmental Management
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-04-01
• Authors: Hongjie Huang, Shenghui Cui, Lihong Wang, Yin Zhang, Yunfeng Huang
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2026.129582

Research Groups

• State Key Laboratory of Regional and Urban Ecology, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen, China
• University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
• Xiamen Key Lab of Urban Metabolism, Xiamen, China
• Environmental Engineering Department, Jimei University, Xiamen, China

Short Summary

This study develops an integrated assessment framework combining cross-dimensional cascading failure models, social vulnerability assessment, and emergency recovery capacity assessment to understand and mitigate cascading risks in urban lifeline systems under extreme flooding. Applied to Xiamen, China, the framework quantifies flood impacts, identifies high-risk zones and critical infrastructure, and proposes targeted restoration priorities to enhance urban resilience.

Objective

• To develop an integrated assessment framework for understanding cross-dimensional cascading failures in urban lifeline systems under extreme flooding, and to quantify flood impacts, identify high-risk zones, and prioritize emergency restoration to enhance urban resilience.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Xiamen, a coastal city in China.
• Temporal Scale: Scenario-based analysis for extreme flooding events with inundation heights of 1 meter, 3 meters, and 9 meters.

Methodology and Data

• Models used: An integrated assessment framework combining:
  • Cross-dimensional cascading failure models
  • Social vulnerability assessment
  • Emergency recovery capacity assessment
• Data sources: Implied: Urban lifeline system network data, social demographic data, and flood inundation data for defined scenarios.

Main Results

• Cascading effects significantly amplify the number of affected people during extreme flood events.
• High-risk zones facing the most severe impacts were identified, enabling the design of targeted protection measures for vulnerable groups.
• Critical infrastructure types and facilities were identified, informing targeted strategies to optimize emergency restoration priorities.
• The framework provides empirical support for disaster management authorities to refine climate adaptation policies and improve urban resilience.

Contributions

• Extends cascading effect analysis beyond physical infrastructure networks to assess associated social impacts and emergency recovery efficiency.
• Quantifies the spatial scale and severity of flood impacts, setting priorities for emergency restoration.
• Offers risk mitigation strategies that are adaptable to other coastal cities.
• Provides a comprehensive framework for assessing cascading risks and resilience in urban lifeline systems under extreme flooding.

Funding

• Not explicitly mentioned in the provided text.

Citation

@article{Huang2026cascading,
  author = {Huang, Hongjie and Cui, Shenghui and Wang, Lihong and Zhang, Yin and Huang, Yunfeng},
  title = {A cascading risk and resilience assessment framework for urban lifeline systems under extreme flooding},
  journal = {Journal of Environmental Management},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1016/j.jenvman.2026.129582},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2026.129582}
}