Evaluating the challenges of flood prediction and mitigation

What is it about?

The Earth's water cycle has become increasingly erratic due to climate change. This has changed rainfall and storm weather patterns all over the world, leading to a rise in the frequency of floods. Increased human activity, meanwhile, is only expected to add to the problem. Urbanization (which leads to increased pressure on the land) and climate change could lead to more floods. The authors of this review provide a broad overview of the state of current research on floods. The most prominent challenges we face in the fight against flooding are discussed. Finally, future directions for effective flood research are outlined.

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Photo by Sadiq Nafee on Unsplash

Photo by Sadiq Nafee on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Floods are the most common natural disaster around the world. They are a great threat to the environment, human livelihood, property, and food security. This threat is only expected to rise in the future. This review adds to the literature on floods. It also gives suggestions on how to improve flood prediction. For example, including climate and land use changes in flood prediction models could make them more accurate. We also need improved flood data collection methods. Using simple resources (like social media and citizen and local data) can help here. An adaptive, joint approach in this field can help us map which factors determine the severity and frequency of floods. Mitigation plans can then be developed to reduce flooding. KEY TAKEAWAY: Understanding how floods are generated and behave is the starting point to reducing their frequency and intensity. This review explains how integrating climate information and local data into civil infrastructure designs can help us build cities with lower environmental impact and flood risk. The review also highlights the need for collaborative research in this field. This research relates to the following Sustainable Development Goals: • SDG 13: Climate Action • SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure • SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities • SDG 15: Life on Land