Opinion | Environmental Degradation and Its Role in Flood Disasters

Since the last few years, the flood disasters have shown alarming trends in their frequency and intensity around the globe. Mountainous and ecologically fragile regions like the Himalayas have been the worst affected. Intervention practices like deforestation, unregulated mining and irresponsible land use activities weaken natural barriers and, as a result, make floods much more destructive and frequent.

1. Overview of Environmental Degradation and Flood Vulnerability.

Environmental degradation is referred to as the deterioration of the natural environment through human actions. Within this context, the environment weakening refers to ecosystems that would once absorb excess rainwater, stabilize soil and regulate river flow getting destroyed. In the absence of these natural safeguard mechanisms, a rainfall event that is ordinarily manageable could set off abnormal flooding, landslides, and erosion.

Flood vulnerability increases when:

When forests are cleared, removing root systems which anchor soil.

When mining and blasting and road construction destabilized hillsides.

When riverbanks are encroached upon, narrowing waterways and restricting flow.

Effectively, environmental degradation renders what could have been a manageable weather event a full blown disaster.

2.The Role of Deforestation in Intensifying Floods.

Forests serve as a natural sponge, taking in rainwater and releasing it gradually into the rivers and groundwater systems. In hilly terrains, the roots of trees provide stability to the soil and minimize chances of landslides during heavy rains.

The following are some impacts through which deforestation influences floods:

Loss of soil stability: Without tree roots, soil becomes loose and is easily washed away, clogging rivers and increasing risk of floods downstream.

Tendency for surface runoff: Rainwater is fast tracked on its way to the streams, without percolating within the soil and as a consequence flash floods ensue.

Sediment delivery: Sediment from eroded slopes gets deposited into the rivers, creating a situation whereby the rivers’ capability to hold water is compromised resulting in overflow.

Wherever about in Kishtwar, timber, agricultural development and infrastructure have contributed to deforestation; consequently, the ability of land to absorb heavy rainfall is considerably reduced, hence aggravating the cloudbursts.

3.Mining: Interruption of Geological Equilibrium.

Mining in hilly regions, for coal, limestone, or any other mineral, usually involves blasting, excavation, and clearance of vegetation. And while it creates some economic returns, the environmental consequences are often devastating.

How mining raises flood vulnerability:

Destabilized slopes: Blasting destabilizes the rock formation in such a way that the rocks can easily slide during extreme rains.

Blocked drainage paths: Mining waste usually blocks natural paths of drainage; thus, accumulating water and causing flooding during storms.

Loss of cover due to vegetation: Mining sites are usually stripped of trees and shrubs, thus exposing the soil to erosion.

In areas where mining is extensively carried on without any environmental safeguards, it weakens the terrain around it. A sudden rainfall can turn these areas into debris flows or landslides as loose rock and soil move downstream contingent on water.

4.Land Misuse Encroachment and Poor Planning.

Flood disasters in the hilly areas are largely caused by unplanned settlements by people and land misuse. As population increased, more people resort to construction on riverbanks, floodplains and unstable slopes.

Land misuse problems:

Encroachment of floodplains: Natural floodplains act as buffers, allowing rivers to expand during heavy rain without damaging settlements. To build on these places means taking away that safety.

Blocking of natural drainage systems: Roads, buildings and other infrastructures could obstruct small streams and drainage channels, leading to waterlogging and flash floods.

Overgrazing: Too much grazing pressure by livestock takes away the vegetation from hillsides, thus promoting soil erosion and flood risk.

In Kishtwar and similar regions, the perpetuation of unregulated settlement by weak zoning laws has allowed encroachment of hazard zones, greatly exposing the communities to the adverse worst effects brought about by flooding.

5. The Combined Effect of a Natural Event into Disasters

When deforestation, mining, and land misuse are done in a series, they produce fatal synergies the deforested hills rapidly shed water.

Heavy rains cause mined slopes to collapse easily.

Encroached riverbanks prevent safe water flow which back spills into the inhabited areas as the backup gets flooded.

This combination turned an otherwise localized flood into a sweep. The Kishtwar cloudburst had the steep terrain so weak as a result of human activities that it could not withstand the vast amount of rainwater and then the landslides originated, blocked rivers, and caused downstream devastation.

6. Arguments for Sustainable Practices.

To reduce damages from floods in hilly areas, action must be taken toward environmentally sustainable practice.

For Forest Management: Stop or strictly regulate tree felling in vulnerable catchment areas. Encourage reforestation and afforestation projects especially in landslide susceptible slopes. Protection and monitoring of forests should include local communities in their protection.

For Mining: Environmental impact assessments should be the basis of approval or disapproval of mining projects. Slope stabilization measures and proper waste disposal should be included within the command. Ban mining in ecologically sensitive and high risk flood zones.

For Land Use Planning: Construction in floodplains and unstable slopes is prohibited by zoning laws. Natural drainage channels should be preserved and restored. Develop eco friendly housing designs that reduce impact on the landscape.

7. Role of Government and Community in Prevention. Governments can set the legal regulatory sanctions for land use, provide political environment laws, and allocate finances for investment into disaster construction infrastructure. But those policies would not be effective unless communities really understand and support them.

Actions Required from Government for: Further strengthen enforcement of environmental regulations. Integrate climate risk assessment for all development in project designs. Early Warning Systems for floods and landslides should be funded.

Needed Community Actions: Built at least in the meantime, not in high-risk areas short-term convenience. Join reforestation drives and watershed protection programs. Report illegal mining or deforestation to authorities.

8. The Overarching Threat Climate Change. Climate change worsens the adverse effects of environmental degradation through intensification of rainfall as well as making it unpredictable. The warmer the air the more it can hang onto moisture so that it pours down harder. When this is compounded by degraded landscapes the result is catastrophic flooding.

Kishtwar has been a forewarning: we may not prevent such extreme weathers, but we can mitigate their negative effects through the restoration and protection of the environment.

(Writer is a Teacher, An Author and Columnist hails from Boniyar Baramulla and He Can Be Contacted on mukhtar.qur@gmail.com)