A growing number of people around the world are becoming vulnerable to flooding as cities increasingly expand into flood zones. Scientists say exposure to "climatic shocks" is increasing for many countries.
What's happening?
Our overheating planet is supercharging the water cycle, which means heavier rainfall extremes and related flood risks. Now, scientists say the increasing number of cities expanding into flood zones is putting more people in danger.
"Flooding remains a complex challenge with no quick fix, especially in densely populated urban areas," according to Think Landscape. "But despite the risks, cities are continuing to expand into high-risk flood zones."
An international team of scientists representing the U.S., Switzerland, and Greece combed through data to see how pervasive the expansion of cities into flood zones is. The results of their study were published in a report titled "Global evidence of rapid urban growth in flood zones since 1985."
"Using high-resolution annual data, this study shows that, since 1985, human settlements around the world — from villages to megacities — have expanded continuously and rapidly into present-day flood zones," according to the 2023 study. "In many regions, growth in the most hazardous flood zones is outpacing growth in nonexposed zones by a large margin, particularly in East Asia, where high-hazard settlements have expanded 60% faster than flood-safe settlements.
"These results provide systematic evidence of a divergence in the exposure of countries to flood hazards. Instead of adapting their exposure, many countries continue to actively amplify their exposure to increasingly frequent climatic shocks."
Why is the expansion of cities into flood zones important?
While extreme weather has always existed, scientists have found that the human-induced climate crisis supercharges extreme weather events, making them even more dangerous. Our warming world has been linked to increasing rainfall intensity. An analysis of 150 U.S. locations by Climate Central revealed hourly rainfall intensity has increased for 136 of them since 1970.
"Climate change is projected to increase the frequency and intensity of storms in all regions of the U.S.," a report from Indiana's Environmental Resilience Institute stated. "These storms can lead to extreme flooding and other impacts that can overwhelm or damage water infrastructure."
An expansion of cities into flood zones means more people are at risk of the significant health risks associated with this type of severe weather. Aside from the most immediate danger of drowning, there are several other risks, like exposure to contaminated water, electrocution from downed power lines, and long-term mental health effects.
What's being done about more people being exposed to flooding?
Emerging technology brings hope for mitigating potential flooding impacts. A startup company in Spain is harnessing quantum computing technology to create powerful new models to better predict flood risks.
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