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Volume XIV |

Flood exposure and settlement vulnerability in the Moldavian Plateau, Eastern Romania

Abstract: This paper quantifies settlement-level exposure to centennial flood across the Moldavian Plateau (NE Romania) using a reproducible GIS workflow. Official flood-hazard bands were intersected with built-up limits and building footprints; rural housing was completed by manual digitization, while urban fabric relied on OpenStreetMap layer. Exposed population was estimated from household counts using the national average of 2.6 persons/household, with additional rules for apartment blocks. Results are reported at multiple scales—by river basins (Siret, Jijia including Buhai–Miletin–Bahlui–Bahlueț, Bârlad and Prut/Chineja) and urban case studies (Iași, Bacău, Vaslui). The Siret basin concentrates the highest systemic exposure, Prut highlights transport-corridor vulnerability (DN/DJ roads and railway segments), while Bârlad exhibits dense, localized hot-spots. City-level estimates indicate approximately 68,750 exposed inhabitants in Iași, 36,756 in Bacău, and 2,550 in Vaslui under centennial flood scenario, together with clusters of socio-economic assets and critical infrastructure near the hazard band. Key limitations include potential under or over counts in recent developments, block-stairwell granularity, and reliance on census-based household averages. The findings support differentiated risk-reduction priorities: structural measures across Siret sub-basins, transport protection and redundancy along Prut, and targeted local actions in Bârlad. Periodic updates of hazard mapping using LiDAR and hydraulic modeling are recommended to refine exposure estimates and planning decisions.