Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of soft and hard engineering as a river flood management strategy

Outline some of examples of soft and hard engineering techniques as well as their definition. Soft engineering advantages include: Relatively cheap, low maintenance, environmentally friendly and 'green', working with the environment in a sustainable manner, usefulness in poor countries. Soft engineering disadvantages include: can be unreliable, they do not stop floods occuring, they may only stop the frequency of high magnitude floods, areas are still prone to flooding, damage may still be caused, cannot work effectively in built up urban areas. Hard engineering advantages: can be effective at stopping flooding altogether, can create jobs in maintenance, examples such as a sea wall may also create promenades, damns can be used for hydroelectric power. Hard engineering disadvantages: can be very expensive to both construct and maintain, altering the channel of the river upstream may lead to an increased likelihood of flooding downstream, they 'don't look natural' and may be considered unsustainable. (There are more advantages and disadvantages relating to specific engineering types)