The reasons for the increase in floods in Afghanistan

General
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The reasons for the increase in floods in Afghanistan
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The increase in floods in Afghanistan occurs for several reasons, including:

  1. climate changes: increasing temperature and changing rainfall patterns have caused heavy and irregular rains that lead to sudden floods. Heavy rains in a short period of time, especially in spring, increase the risk of flooding.

  2. Deforestation and reduction of vegetation: Cutting down trees and destroying forests and pastures reduces the capacity of the land to absorb rainwater, which causes more water to flow to the surface and cause floods.

  3. Infrastructure weakness: Many areas of Afghanistan lack proper water management systems, dams and reservoirs that can control the volume of flood waters. The lack of modern infrastructure increases the intensity and damage of floods.

  4. Increase of unauthorized construction: Expansion of constructions in flood-prone areas without complying with engineering and environmental regulations can disrupt the natural flow of water and cause sudden floods.

  5. Melting of glaciers: The increase in temperature due to climate change has caused the rapid melting of glaciers in the mountainous areas of Afghanistan, which can quickly increase the volume of water in rivers and cause severe floods.
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These factors, along with the lack of comprehensive water resource management plans, have increased the intensity of floods and the resulting damages in Afghanistan.

Flood and its factors in Afghanistan

Flooding is one of the frequent natural disasters in Afghanistan that threatens the lives of many people and property every year. Various factors cause floods in this country, which can be divided into several main categories:

  1. Natural factors:
    Heavy and irregular rainfall: Afghanistan is faced with short and intense rainfall seasons, which cause sudden floods, especially in spring and summer. Heavy rainfall in a short period of time leads to floods due to the inability of the earth to absorb water quickly.
  • Melting of glaciers: The mountainous areas of Afghanistan have natural glaciers. In the spring, as the temperature rises, the glaciers melt quickly and increase the volume of water in the rivers.
  • Earthquakes and landslides: Earthquakes or landslides in mountainous areas can block rivers or turn them into large floods.

  1. Human factors:

    • Deforestation and destruction of pastures: Cutting down trees and destroying vegetation reduces the ability of the soil to absorb water. This problem accelerates the flow of water and leads to more floods.
    • Illegal construction on the banks of the rivers: Many people build houses on the banks of the rivers and flood-prone areas due to the need for housing, which blocks the natural paths of water flow and increases the intensity of floods.
    • Weakness of infrastructure: The lack of advanced water management systems and the lack of proper dams and reservoirs to store and control flowing water are other reasons for severe floods in Afghanistan.

  2. climate changes:
    Global climate change has caused an increase in temperature and changes in rainfall patterns. These changes lead to heavy rains, long droughts and as a result sudden floods.

  3. Demolition of canals and old water structures:
    Many channels and traditional water management infrastructure in Afghanistan have been destroyed due to war and lack of proper attention and are no longer able to channel or store water.

These factors have caused floods in Afghanistan to become one of the serious problems and natural threats to people and infrastructure.