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The Water Cycle and Water InsecurityAMAZON + MALAYSIA → South asian association for regional cooperation
Australia (2006-2007) - ‘The Big Dry’ drought
Key facts
- El Nino year
- Worst conditions during October and November
- Ended by a La Nina year
- Exacerbated by population demands
- Farmers and civilians disagreed over water use
- 1 in a 1000 year event
The problem/ context
- Australia is the driest continent- average rainfall is 455mm annually → lack of
water
- Predicted 7 degrees increase in temperature with a 40% decrease in rainfall by
2070 in eastern Australia
The consequences
- Rivers drying up → loss of wetland habitats, increase salinity, decrease fish stocks
and algal bloom
- Decline in water in Murray- Darling basin which provides ¾ of water nationally→
Australia’s food basket- contains half of Australia’s arable land and 70% of its
population
- Land degradation and increase bushfires and dust storms
- Reservoirs are depleted, irrigation restricted → crop yields are low → stocks are
low → Loss of 1% of economy in 2006-7
- In Melbourne the local government stated that the city’s water consumption was
16% lower in 2007 than 2006
Management
- Recycling ‘grey water’ (wastewater that is the product if domestic processes e.g
washing machines, bathing and washing) but it was not supported
- Desalination (process where salt and minerals are removed from water to make it
potable) plant was built in Western Australia and supplies 17% of Australia’s water
needs
- → Sydney proposes to build a $1.3billion desalination plant which will distribute
water to 1.5 million people
- → In Victoria, a larger project estimated at $3.1billion will begin in 2009 to deliver
an additional 150 billion litres of water to Melbourne and Geelong
- A North-South pipeline costing $750 million is being built in Victoria but has been
criticised by opponents as t takes water from the driest catchment areas to one of
the wettest (Melbourne)
,North West England - Cumbria floods 2009 and 2015
The facts (2009)
- Made up of several rivers e.g Greta, Cocker and Tyne
- 2009 → 31cm of rain fell in 24hrs daily flooding of Cockermouth and Eden Valley
Causes
- 2009 → depression was formed in the Atlantic Ocean → prevailing winds
65-90mph winds on the coastline pushed a conveyor belt of warm air towards land
→ air rose over Cumbrian mountains and cooled (RELIEF RAINFALL)
- 2009 → urbanisation, blocked sewers, inefficient flood defences, lack of dredging
leading to blockage of river
Responses
- 2009 → flood risk management scheme was implemented in Cockermouth
protected 400 homes and businesses → multiple flood defences such as
embankments and flood gates costing £45 million
- 2009 → Regular river dredging to increase river carrying capacity
- 2009 → Early warning systems and education
- 2009 →Businesses and homeowners moved to safer areas
The facts (2015)
- Hit by Storm Desmond with 341.4mm of rain → over-topping of flood defences
such as 2013 self-closing barriers
Meteorological factors (2015)
- Low pressure depression in the Atlantic
- Monsoon rainfall
- Snowmelt
- Prolonged heavy rainfall
- Position of the jet stream
- Antecedent saturated ground
- Overland flow carried excess water to the river
Human factors (2015)
- Impermeable surfaces
- Overgrazing of sheep created bare slopes and faster run off
- Mismanaging of rivers (prediction for the frequency of flooding can be incorrect)
Socio economic consequences (2015)
- 5200+ houses were flooded
- Local services were forced to close temporarily
- Impact on mental health, trauma
- Businesses were forced to close
- Damaged infrastructures
- Agricultural damage
- House price drop
- Reduced tourism due to fear of flooding
- Costs of flooding £500m
- 45 schools were affected
- Insurance claims at £325m
Environmental costs
- River banks were eroded
- Contaminated rivers with sewage
- Habitats destroyed and ecosystems affected
- Landslides caused by saturated grounds
,Henan, Eastern China - Banqiao Dam flood 1975
Meteorological factors
- Typhoon Nina- rainfall exceeded the yearly average in 1 day
Physical factors
- Antecedent rain conditions- heavy rainfall over 3 days
Human factors
- Lack of drainage at the dam and refusal to add more
- Dam had risen the water table dangerously high
Socio economic consequences
- 28,000 drowned
- 145,000 died from epidemics caused by water contamination
- Famine
- Communication lines broke down
Environmental
- 62 dams burst as a result
- Contamination of ecosystems
Management
- There was a lack of management because flood wasn’t prepared for
, Bangladesh flood 1998
Meteorological factors
- Prone to monsoon conditions
- Monsoon rain lasts over 3 months
Other factors
- Low lying delta- funnel shaped topography
- The Ganges flows down into the delta from the Himalayas which creates
orographic rainfall
- High tides and glaciers melting (snowmelt)
- All 3 major rivers reached peak discharge at the same point (Ganges,
Brahmaputra and Meghna)
Human factors
- Deforestation of Nepal
- Urbanisation
- Global warming increased glacial melt
Socio economic consequences
- 80% of the country was submerged for 3 months
- 400 factories closed
- 700,000 hectares of crops were destroyed
- 20 million were made homeless
- 1000 died
- 2.04 metric tonnes of rice crops lost
Environmental costs
- Pollution spread causing typhoid disease
- Ecosystems were destroyed
- Animals drowned
Management
- Ideas where proposed such as damming upstream to hold more excess water but
lack funds
- Reliant on international aid
- The USA donated a weather station in Bangladesh
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