China has experienced an increase in severe floods, especially across its northern regions. As climate patterns shift and extreme weather events become more common, governments and municipalities are exploring innovative ways to improve flood management. One promising solution involves using machine-learning-powered CCTV systems to monitor urban waterways in real-time. These smart camera networks could serve as a cost-effective way to prevent floods before they happen.
Key Takeaways
1. AI-powered CCTV systems offer a cost-effective, proactive solution to prevent floods by detecting waterway blockages before they escalate.
2. Integrating AI with existing CCTV networks reduces the need for manual monitoring, allowing authorities to respond efficiently and safely to potential flood risks.
3. The scalable and adaptable technology is particularly beneficial for flood-prone regions, making it an essential tool for building climate-resilient cities in China and globally.
The Hidden Role of Culverts in Flood Management
A lesser-known but critical part of water infrastructure is the culvert—a pipe or tunnel that allows streams, rivers, and stormwater to flow under roads, railways, and other urban developments. Culverts are everywhere, hidden beneath our cities, suburbs, and villages. Water cannot flow freely if these passageways become blocked, resulting in dangerous flooding and infrastructure damage.
At the entrances of culverts, trash screens—a series of metal bars—are installed to stop debris, such as natural waste and litter, from entering and clogging the system. However, if these screens themselves become blocked by debris, water begins to pool upstream, increasing the risk of localized floods and even structural failures. Monitoring these screens effectively is crucial, but with thousands of culverts in urban areas, doing so manually is time-consuming and expensive.
How AI-Enhanced CCTV Systems Work
New research from the University of Bath presents an exciting solution to this challenge: AI-trained CCTV systems that can detect blockages in real-time. Their software, called “AI on The River,” uses machine learning to identify obstructions like leaves, branches, or garbage building up on trash screens.
This technology can be integrated into existing CCTV networks, meaning no large-scale infrastructure overhaul is needed. Cameras that are already installed along rivers, streams, and culverts can simply be upgraded with this software. Once a blockage is detected, the system sends an early warning alert, giving maintenance teams time to clear the obstruction before the situation escalates into a flood.
A Promising Solution for China’s Flood Challenges
Given the challenges China faces with frequent floods—particularly in the north—AI-powered surveillance systems could provide significant benefits. Chinese cities, with their dense infrastructure and expanding urban development, are especially vulnerable to waterway blockages. Heavy summer rains, combined with the accumulation of debris, can quickly overwhelm drainage systems, making proactive monitoring essential.
The cost-effectiveness of AI-based monitoring makes it a practical tool for cities across China. Rather than requiring large-scale projects such as dam construction or drainage overhauls, these smart systems offer a low-cost, preventive approach that focuses on early intervention. They also provide a sustainable solution by reducing the manpower needed for manual inspections.
Towards a Smarter Future in Flood Prevention
Flood prevention has long relied on structural defenses, such as levees and dams, but the future lies in smart, adaptive technologies. AI-driven tools like “AI on The River” represent the next generation of flood management—predictive, real-time, and scalable. As cities around the world, including those in China, look to bolster their defenses against extreme weather, these innovative monitoring systems could become an essential part of their infrastructure strategy.
By stopping blockages before they turn into floods, AI-powered CCTV provides not just flood protection but also peace of mind for urban planners and residents. With the growing impacts of climate change, solutions like this show that technology will play a crucial role in building resilient cities for the future.
This approach not only promises to reduce flood risks but also highlights how existing technology can be repurposed to meet new challenges.
Proactive Flood Defense: A Smarter Approach
According to Dr. Andrew Barnes, a lecturer in Bath’s Department of Computer Science and a member of the Centre for Climate Adaptation & Environment Research, the AI-driven system offers a proactive alternative to traditional flood management strategies. Instead of waiting for a flood to happen, the AI can detect obstructions early and raise an alert, giving local authorities time to intervene.
“We’ve developed an efficient model that identifies blockages before they become a problem,” Barnes explains. “It’s flexible and scalable, which means it can be applied almost anywhere—especially in regions where developing similar tools from scratch would be challenging.”
This versatility is critical for countries with limited technical or financial resources. By integrating with existing monitoring systems, AI-enhanced CCTV makes flood management more accessible and affordable.
High-Accuracy Detection with AI
The research team tested the system at a culvert site in Cardiff, where they trained cameras to identify potential blockages with nearly 90% accuracy. This level of precision ensures that maintenance crews can prioritize problem areas before they turn into emergencies. In the UK, culverts are traditionally monitored by local authority staff who manually observe banks of CCTV screens—a time-consuming task prone to human error. The use of AI helps automate the process and focus attention where it’s most needed.
The system allows local authorities to allocate resources more efficiently, responding to blockages in real-time and preventing minor obstructions from escalating into serious floods. Beyond efficiency, this proactive approach offers an added safety benefit: response teams can address blockages early, reducing the need to operate in dangerous conditions after floodwaters have risen.
Addressing a Growing Global Problem
As climate change intensifies, the risk of flooding is rising worldwide. This new system presents a lightweight, cost-efficient solution for managing urban flood risks, making it especially useful for cities grappling with extreme weather events.
Dr. Thomas Kjeldsen, a Reader in Bath’s Department of Architecture & Civil Engineering and a member of the Centre for Regenerative Design and Engineering for a Net Positive World (RENEW), emphasizes the broader significance of the project:
“Climate change is increasing flood risks everywhere. Our research provides a first step toward sustainable flood forecasting, opening new opportunities for lightweight, affordable solutions that can be adopted globally.”
Kjeldsen adds that the system not only offers a practical response to today’s challenges but also creates new avenues for exploration and innovation in the field of flood management.
Building Resilience for a Changing Climate
As cities around the world prepare for more frequent and severe floods, AI-based monitoring tools represent a game-changing advancement. Countries facing resource shortages—whether due to finances, technical expertise, or data limitations—can benefit from these adaptable, low-cost systems.
The technology developed by the University of Bath is a blueprint for the future of flood management: smart, proactive, and scalable. By combining AI, existing CCTV networks, and real-time alerts, it offers a powerful new way to keep waterways flowing and communities safe from flooding.
The system’s global potential is clear: whether in South Africa, the UK, or flood-prone cities in China, AI-powered early warning systems can help local governments stay one step ahead of floods and adapt to a rapidly changing climate. This innovation offers not just a practical tool for today but also inspiration for future solutions—paving the way for smarter, safer cities around the world.