Argentina - Urban Flood Prevention and Drainage Environmental Impact Assessment

To assist the Government o f the City of Buenos Aires in addressing the problems related to severe urban flooding, the project will develop a cost effective approach to comprehensive urban drainage. The City of Buenos Aires frequently suffers from serious flooding that damages property, the economy, and affects the bulk of its population. Over 25 deaths have been recorded since 1985. Natural phenomena such as intensive rainfall in urban catchment areas, and high tides caused by strong winds in the Rio de Plata (“Sudestada”), are compounded by deficient, old drainage infrastructure.

When completed, the project would have: (i) provided the City of Buenos Aires with protection against floods associated with rainfall events having return periods of up to 10 years, while mitigating the impact of storm events with return periods larger than a decade; and (ii) strengthened the institutional capacity of the City of Buenos Aires to manage the drainage system.