Resilience Scanner

Social Vulnerability Atlas for Climate Risk Mapping

Solution Overview

With the contribution of different government areas, Buenos Aires created a Social Vulnerability Atlas in a GIS-type web repository, consisting of 6 social vulnerability to disasters maps and 2 ground heat spots and flood risks atlas.[1][2][3] The School of Geography of the University of Buenos Aires and Claudia Natenson, PhD, supported the development of this mapping system through a comprehensive report on social vulnerability to disasters and specific risks in the City of Buenos Aires.[1] This technology-enabled approach provides municipal authorities with spatial analysis tools to identify areas where climate hazards intersect with vulnerable populations.

Technical Components

The implementation operates as a GIS-type web repository that integrates multiple data layers into a unified platform.[1][2][4] The system comprises six distinct social vulnerability to disasters maps that assess population exposure across different dimensions.[1][2][3] Two additional atlases focus specifically on ground heat spots and flood risks, providing spatial analysis of environmental hazards throughout the urban area.[1][2][4] Multiple government departments contributed data inputs and technical expertise to construct the repository's comprehensive mapping framework.[1][2][3]

Climate Adaptation Relevance

This approach directly addresses Buenos Aires's most pressing climate hazards, particularly flooding, which represents the main natural risk in the city due to its topography, including a slight slope, high soil waterproofing, and low level of natural water evacuation.[2] Increasing annual volumes of precipitations over the last decades has resulted in the expansion of flood-prone areas, with the highest levels of hydraulic risks found in the urban habitat extending towards the southern and central areas of the city.[2] The atlas enables municipal authorities to identify where these environmental hazards overlap with socially vulnerable populations, supporting targeted adaptation interventions.

Sources