The National Ground Risk Model (NGRM): Climate includes the UK’s first ever map of ground risk data and it will also enable lenders to satisfy requirements set by the Bank of England and PRS to understand climate related financial risks.

Indeed, the objective of the 2021 Biennial Exploratory Scenarios (BES) is to test the resilience of banks, insurers and the financial system to different climate pathways. Lenders must prepare for this by June 2021.

Tom Backhouse, Terrafirma CEO and founder said: “The release of the NGRM: Climate is a game-changer for understanding ground risk. It dramatically improves the quality, availability and accessibility of ground hazard and risk information for lenders.

“Across the UK, homes, infrastructure and land are at risk from complex ground hazards that can remain hidden for years.

“Every day decisions worth millions of pounds are being made without true understanding of the consequences of these hazards, so Terrafirma set out to improve understanding of the ground and the complex ways it interacts with the built environment.”

Revolutionise decision-making

Terrafirma has been working on NGRM: Climate for 18 months in its bid to provide the first commercial model of its kind.

It was developed by geologists, soil scientists, engineers and geospatial data analysts using Terrafirma’s National Ground Risk Model – the first map of all major ground instability risks in Great Britain.

The National Ground Risk Model provides instant access to ground risk information for every property, parcel of land and asset in the UK – that’s 29 million properties, 50 million structures and 30 million parcels of land.

As well as offering an understanding of how ground risk can impact property Terrafirma said NGRM: Climate would  revolutionise how industries from lending and insurance, to construction and property developers, make decisions about property, land and assets.

It combines geological, soils, mining, coastal erosion, landslide and climate data with nine of the Met Office’s UK Climate Projections (UKCP18) emissions scenarios and provides lenders with easy-to-understand risk scores.

Lenders will be able to see how ground risk will change in low, medium and high emission scenarios in the short-term (2020-2040), medium-term (2040-2060) and long-term (2060-2080). A ‘present day’ baseline provides a clear picture of ground risk today and forms the context for the projected changes.

It also includes a new coastal hazards model, which clearly illustrates the projected impacts of rising sea levels and increased erosion on coastal property and land.

Backhouse added: “We have worked on NGRM: Climate for 18 months to provide the first commercial model of its kind. The model has been engineered by geologists, soil scientists and geospatial data experts. It provides a foundation for lenders to make decisions with a greater understanding of the ground and issues that can affect the value of the property they are lending against, in a manner that is easy to understand.

“This will help them to make informed decisions without needed to be ground risk specialists themselves.”