FLOOD A high flow of water which overtops the bank of a river.

CAUSES -Coastal flooding-tropical cyclones & tsunamis -River flooding Others: snowmelt Deforestation 1. reduced discharge in river channel & sedimentation 2. Global warming 3. Landslides and houses collapse, homeless 4. Death 5. Contaminated drinking water 6. Diseases 7. Destroy farmland 8. Submerged villages SOFT ENGINEERING

EFFECTS

FLOOD MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES HARD ENGINEERING

Working against physical processes to prevent flooding. It involves significant economic investment, justified by the potential cost of repairing flood damage.
EXAMPLES 1. Flood walls, embankments and levees. - flood embankments with sluice gate, - Problem: may raise flood levels up and downstream. 2. Chanelisation (resectioning, realignment) -channel enlargement to accommodate larger discharges. Problem-enlarge channel rarely used, may fill with weed. 3. Relief channels. -bypass, possible in area where its impossible to modify original channel.

Working with physical processes to reduce the impacts of flooding. It accepts that preventing all flood is unviable (not successful), and is generally thought to be more environmentally sustainable.
Working with nature 1. Afforestation - planting more trees. (increase interception, reduce runoff, increase ET) 2. Contour ploughing, strip farming -ploughing along the hill, sideways not downhills, reduce sediment wash down slope into the soil) 3. River restoration schemes (naturalization) -opposide channelization, -river follow natural course (prevent flooding downstream)

4. Wetlands (Water meadows) -flooded water, later release to channel /natural reservoir)

4. Flood interception schemes -These divert only part of the flow away, allowing flow for town and agricultural use, e.g. Fenlands. 5. Flood storage reservoirs. -Widely used especially as many reservoirs created for water supply purposes may have a secondary flood control role. 6. Settlement removal -Removal of settlement rarely used because of cost.

5. Flood plain zoning - near to river channel-wetland, other landuse further away, e.g. hospital, police station etc. (lowest risk land ) -calculate flood recurrent interval & use this to predict how often flood of certain size will take place 6. Forecasts and warnings -weather pattern you can predict when flooding will occur & warn people for evacuation.

PREVENTION & MANAGEMENT OF FLOODING Modifying events: Flood abatement measures focus upon water stores & in drainage basin-increase size of stores and slowflow processes. How? 1. Local measures: reafforestation & revegetation. (increase evapotranspiration losses, and land management to reduce soil erosion. 2. Flood diversion-to control and divert flood waters by hard engineering. Examples: Levees, dams, channel management

Flood Recurrence Intervals: R = n + 1/m R = Flood recurrence interval (yrs) n = number of yrs of record m= rank of flood in order of discharge

Forecast and warning: 1.Prediciton: Flash flood difficult to predict, but data such as meteorological (weather), discharge and tidal data can be collected using better technology, computer modeling enables scientists to predict how individual river systems will reach to precipitation inputs, or tide levels relate to forecast storms 2. warning to public effective with improved communication technology. 3. Community preparedness: Public response to warning given by evacuation, removal of valuables to higher levels in buildings, can save lives and property loss. 4. Land use planning-restrict development in high risk areas of floodplains. Only use pasture, leisure uses and undeveloped areas of floodplain. (approach link to flood hazard mapping) -land use planning increasingly important in managing coastal flooding. (with rise in sea level the cost of building and maintaining sea defences will increase) RESPONSES RESPONSES

-Aids from government in the form of food, shelter, medicines etc. -rescuers for flood victims (army, police force, etc) -foreign aids to repair damages. -rehabilitation programme (restore back to normal) to repair and construct housing and sanitation