Global warming, sea level rise, ageing flood defence systems: Why European countries have been flooded

Subject: Geography

Section: Atmosphere

In the news:

Heavy rains have hit France, England, Netherlands and Germany for more than two weeks, causing rivers to burst their banks in many areas, flooding homes and prompting evacuations.
A combination of factors, including global warming, rising sea levels, and ageing flood defence systems have led to the deluge in the countries.

Details:

These floods followed Storm Henk‘s recent impact in these areas.
Flooding has been intensified by three key factors: rising global temperatures, sea level increases, and outdated flood defence systems.

Firstly, global warming contributes to more frequent and severe rainfall events. Warmer temperatures lead to increased evaporation, allowing the atmosphere to hold more moisture, resulting in heavier and more prolonged rainfall.
- El Nino, an abnormal warming in the Pacific Ocean, has also raised ocean temperatures, increasing evaporation and subsequent rainfall.
Secondly, rising sea levels prompt rivers to overflow and flood surrounding areas. For instance, in northern France, a 4.4 cm rise in sea levels from 1966 to 2018 likely contributed to recent flooding.
Lastly, outdated flood defence systems, particularly in France, failed to manage the influx of water effectively. Additionally, construction on floodplains in France and England disrupts natural drainage routes, causing water to inundate specific areas instead of being absorbed into the soil.

What’s next?

The forecast indicates worsening conditions ahead. With a warming planet, storms are expected to intensify, leading to heavier rainfall and more frequent extreme weather events like floods.
Hydrologists project the UK experiencing wetter winters and hotter, drier summers, with periods of intensified rainfall. This ongoing climate change is anticipated to elevate river flows, exacerbating flooding and its impacts on communities, property, and public services.
To address these challenges, there’s an urgent call to enhance flood defences, implement early warning systems, and bolster resilience measures to manage the aftermath of heavy rainfall.

Places in news:

Trent River: England
- The Trent is third in the list of longest rivers in the United Kingdom.
- Its source is in Staffordshire, on the southern edge of Biddulph Moor.
- It flows through and drains the North Midlands into the Humber Estuary.
- The river is known for dramatic flooding after storms and spring snowmelt, which in the past often caused the river to change course.
Ijsselmeer inland sea: The Netherlands
- The IJsselmeer, also known as Lake IJssel in English, is a closed-off inland bay in the central Netherlands bordering the provinces of Flevoland, North Holland and Friesland.
- The river IJssel flows into the IJsselmeer.