DEPARTMENT FOR SCIENCE, INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY

Climate Science for Service Partnership (WCSSP) South Africa - Calls- tender-UNIVERSITY OF PLYMOUTH

Project disclaimer

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Description

Collaborative project between meteorological services in South Africa and UK focusing on capacity building for improved weather and climate services, enabling mitigation of risk from extreme weather events. Research into advancing rip current forecasts for beach locations across South Africa.

Objectives

Rip currents are one of the biggest dangers facing beach users in South Africa. To safeguard members of the public and prepare emergency services, a collaborative project by the University of Plymouth and SAWS developed forecasting tools for rip current hazards in South Africa. The one-year project, funded by WCSSP South Africa in FY20-21, engaged the National Sea Rescue Institute, City of Cape Town, Stellenbosch University, and Lifesaving South Africa, bringing together sea rescue incident records, wind, wave, and water level forecasts as well as the results of field experiments. Despite challenges from the pandemic, a pilot operational rip risk hazard forecast for the Cape Peninsula coastline was developed and successfully trialled in June 2021 to warn the public of the risk of rip currents. Building on the success of the initial trial service, expansion to an operational service with greater coverage of South African beaches is deemed both desirable and important. There is particularly a need to extend forecasts beyond Cape Town for other dangerous locations across South Africa. This project would build on the previous project, helping to strengthen capacity at SAWS and advance the application of rip current forecasts. Over the course of the three-year project (pending funding extensions for years 2 and 3), the aim is to establish a long-term sustainable service that contributes a measurable (and evidenced) improvement in rip current incident prevention at multiple locations, to enhance beach safety. The work aligns with the WCSSP South Africa Science Plan, which identifies the marine sector as one of four priority sectors. It also responds to the desire of SAWS (a core partner in WCSSP South Africa) to expand and update the current code and further explore coastal hazard services at SAWS.

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Location

The country, countries or regions that benefit from this Programme.

South Africa

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