kkhanum

I saw this artical and thought it would be useful for us to know about the causes of flood.





http://freshclick.wordpress.com/2009...in-bangladesh/

Bangladesh has one of the three most powerful rivers passing though it Ganges, Meghna and Brahmaputra.

The Physical Causes of the Floods:

Most of the country consists of a huge flood plain and delta.
Snowmelt from the Himalayas takes place in late spring & summer.
70% of the total area is less than 1 meter above sea level.
10% of the land area is made up of Lakes and Rivers.
Bangladesh experiences heavy monsoon rains, especially over the highlands.
Tropical storms bring heavy rains and coastal flooding.
The main cause was the above average & long period of heavy rain which caused all 3 rivers to have their peak flow at the same time.
In the spring, melting snow from the Himalayas further increases the flood risks as torrents of melt water enter the rivers at their source.
The Human Causes of the Floods:

Deforestation in Nepal and the Himalayas increases run off and add to deposition and flooding downstream.
Urbanization of the flood plain has increased magnitude & frequency of floods.
Global warming is blamed for sea level rise, increased snow melt & increased rainfall in the region.
The building of dams in India has increased the problem of sedimentation in Bangladesh.
Poorly maintained embankments (levees) leak & collapse in times of high discharge.
Increasing population pressure in Bangladesh itself has resulted in the sinking of many new wells resulting in the lowering of the water table and the subsequent subsidence of land making it even more prone to flooding.
http://freshclick.wordpress.com/2009...in-bangladesh/



Watch a video of the flooding:

(1) http://www.newsplayer.com/floods-in-bangladesh-video

(2) http://www.reuters.com/news/video?videoId=63679

(3) http://www.encyclopedia.com/video/R3...sh-floods.aspx

(4) http://news.nationalgeographic.com/n...-video-ap.html



More on the floodings in Bangladesh:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/3929217.stm