Earth: Our Home

Full Geography

CHAPTER 8
Floods and
Droughts

Chapter 3: Plate Tectonics

 You will learn…
- to describe the natural and human causes
of floods and droughts
- to discuss the impact of floods and
droughts on human lives and the
environment
- to evaluate the effectiveness of
management strategies taken to mitigate
and adapt to floods and droughts
 Floods and Droughts
• Floods occur when land that is usually dry
is submerged by large amounts of water.
• A drought is a prolonged period with little
or no rainfall.
 Floods and Droughts
• Floods and droughts are considered
hazards as they can adversely affect
lives and property.
 Floods
 The occurrence of floods
can be due to both natural
and human causes.
 Natural causes of floods
include:
 Excessive rainfall
 Storm surges
 Melting snow
 Global atmospheric
processes
 Movements of the Earth’s
surface
 Floods
 The occurrence of
floods can be due to
both natural and
human causes.
 Human causes of
floods include:
 Clearing of forests
 Urban development
 Enhanced greenhouse
effect
 Natural Causes of Floods
• Excessive rainfall: Floods occur when
rainwater is unable to seep into the ground
quickly enough, or rivers overflow their banks
because river channels cannot contain excess
water.

 Common in places
experiencing tropical monsoon
climate.
 Natural Causes of Floods
• Storm surges: Occurs when strong winds raise
the waves in the ocean to exceptionally high
levels, causing them to crash onto the coast and
flood the land.

 Common in coastal areas and places with low-lying

relief.
 Natural Causes of Floods
• Melting snow: Melting of snow in spring
releases large amounts of water into the rivers,
causing them to overflow their banks.

 Common in places
experiencing cool
temperate climate.
 Natural Causes of Floods
• Global atmospheric processes: Abnormal weather
phenomena such as El Niño and La Niña can result in floods or
droughts.

 El Niño is the warming of surface ocean waters at the

southeastern part of Pacific Ocean.
 Surface temperature of ocean off the coast of South America
heats up. Air above oceans becomes hot and humid.
 Extreme weather like heavy rain and thunderstorms in South
America result.
 Natural Causes of Floods

• Movements of the Earth’s surface: Earthquakes can

bring about landslides or trigger off tsunamis.

 When landslides occur, loosened soil

may be deposited in rivers, causing
overflowing of these rivers.
 Tsunamis triggered by strong
undersea earthquakes can flood and
devastate coastal settlements.
 Human Causes of Floods
• Clearing of forests
– Lack of vegetation cover
to hold the soil together
on slopes. Soil is thus
eroded and deposited in
rivers, making them
shallower.
– Bare slopes increase
surface runoff and volume
of water flowing into
rivers.
– Flooding occurs when
rivers overflow.
 Human Causes of Floods
• Urban development: The clearing of land for
development of housing and industries, thus
increasing built-up areas.
 Concrete pavements and tarred
roads prevent rainwater from
seeping into the ground.
 Less natural vegetation is
available to intercept the rain.
 Increase in surface run-off
flowing into rivers result in flooding.
 Human Causes of Floods
• Impacts of enhanced greenhouse effect:
Human activities are the most likely causes
of enhanced greenhouse gases.

Global warming results in climatic changes

such as higher rainfall, which in turn leads to
incidences of floods.
 Droughts
 Droughts can be
attributed to both
natural and human
causes.
 Natural causes of
droughts include:
 Delayed rain or
insufficient rainfall
 Global atmospheric
processes
 Droughts

 Human causes of droughts

include:
 Reduced forest cover
 Enhanced greenhouse effect
 Overuse of water
 Natural Causes of Droughts
• Delayed rain or insufficient rainfall:
Occurs mainly in arid or semi-arid regions,
and in tropical monsoon regions, when
monsoon winds that bring rain are
delayed.
 Natural Causes of Droughts
• Global atmospheric processes
– El Niño causes droughts in countries like
Indonesia and Australia in the western Pacific.
– La Niña causes droughts in countries like
Peru in the eastern Pacific.
 Human Causes of Droughts
• Reduced forest cover: Reduced vegetation
cover results in lower rates of transpiration.
 Less water vapour in the atmosphere leads to fewer
clouds formed.
 Soil exposed to direct sunlight dries up quickly.
 Human Causes of Droughts
• Impact of enhanced greenhouse
effect: Global warming can also
cause droughts in places with drier
climates.
 High temperatures increase the rate
of evaporation, drying up land, rivers
and lakes.
 Human Causes of Droughts
• Overuse of water: Places with rapid population
growth require more water for homes, industry and
agriculture.
 Water sources such as rivers and groundwater may not
be able to sustain the increase in water usage.
Impact of Floods and Droughts
Floods and droughts are natural hazards, but not
all of them are considered natural disasters.
Impact on human lives and property varies.
 How Floods Affect People and
the Environment
• Loss of lives: Floods often occur when
least expected.
People are often not prepared and thus
drown.
Impact is higher near
floodplains, which are often
densely populated due to
soil fertility.
 How Floods Affect People and
the Environment
• Damage to property and infrastructure:
Floods damage homes, roads, power supply
etc.
Such damage is very costly and takes a long
time to repair.
 How Floods Affect People and
the Environment
• Spread of diseases: Homeless flood victims
are housed in makeshift shelters.
Crowded conditions without proper sanitation
can cause the outbreak of diseases.
 How Floods Affect People and
the Environment
• Damage to the environment: Trees,
vegetation and natural habitats of animals
can be destroyed.
 How Floods Affect People and
the Environment
• Fertile soil for agriculture: One benefit of
the regular flooding of rivers is that fertile
alluvium deposits are produced.
 How Droughts Affect People
and the Environment
• Damage to the environment: Prolonged
droughts can cause desertification in arid and
semi-arid regions, making the ground dry and
barren.
 How Droughts Affect People
and the Environment
• Forest fires and haze: Prolonged droughts
cause vegetation in forests to become very
dry. Vegetation thus catches fire easily.
Adapting to Floods and Droughts
• Reducing the impact of floods
– Building artificial levées or dykes
– Construction of dams
– Building control
– Watershed management
– Flood insurance
– Monitoring and education
– Post-flood management measures
 Reducing the Impact of Floods
• Building artificial levées and dykes
 Walls of sand, stone and concrete are built along river
banks to increase the capacity of the river to hold water.

• Construction of dams
 Dams control the amount of water
flowing into the rivers, using
gates to hold back or release
water.
 Reducing the Impact of Floods
• Building control
 Maps showing flood-prone areas provide information for developers
to ensure that floods would not affect the buildings they construct.

• Watershed management
 Programmes can be implemented to manage the entire watershed
by conserving vegetation cover or re-planting trees so as to reduce
surface run-off.

• Flood insurance
 Residents in flood-prone areas can have their property insured
against flood, so that they can afford to repair their property if floods
occur.
 Reducing the Impact of Floods
• Monitoring and education
 Scientists can use modern technology to monitor weather
patterns and warn of floods in advance.
 Citizens can be educated on how to react when floods
occur.

• Post-flood management measures

 Plans can be made by authorities
to evacuate victims when
floods occur.
 Foreign aid may also be offered
to help flood victims.
Adapting to Floods and Droughts
• Reducing the impacts of droughts
– Management of watershed and agricultural practices
– Using proper irrigation techniques
– Cloud seeding
– Post-drought management measures
Reducing the Impact of Droughts
• Management of watershed and agricultural practices
 Plans such as the Agenda 21 report teaches countries on how
to manage their watershed.
 Effort is put in to increase vegetation in drought-affected areas
in order to prevent desertification.
 Crops that are more resistant to droughts can be planted.

• Using proper irrigation techniques

 Irrigation brings water to areas through the use of man-made
channels.
 Proper irrigation minimises water loss, and helps conserve
water.
Reducing the Impact of Droughts
• Cloud seeding
 Cloud seeding induces the
formation of rain.
 Substances that enable water
droplets to form more easily are
dispersed into the air by aeroplanes.

• Post-drought management
measures
 International aid organisations can
provide money, food and water to
countries affected by drought.
Living with Floods and Droughts
• Preparation is key!
 Occurrences of floods and droughts
can never be fully prevented.
 We can instead prepare for them
and reduce the negative impacts
that they bring.
 Technology can help to better
manage floods and droughts.