JANUARY 7 — As millions celebrated Christmas last week, the twin storms Eva and Desmond brought heavy rain to areas across North England. The barrier at the River Foss was lifted thus allowing water from the River Ouse to flood large parts of York. 

Normally such an occurrence would be prevented by the flood defence mechanism -- pumping water from River Foss to River Ouse. This time, the National Environment Agency had no choice but to lift the barrier for fear that all the pumps would break down from the rapid inundation.

Other than York, the cities Manchester, Rochdale and Leeds were also hit hard. Thirty severe flood warnings have been issued by the Environmental Agency so far and with Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) estimating damages in the region of £900 million to £1.3 billion, this is slated to be the worst flooding England has experienced in 70 years.

The situation in England reminds me of something we face every year back home -- the flooding in the Peninsular east coast states of Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang. The question that remains, however, is whether the floods are caused by Man, Nature or a combination of both? 

Floods in Malaysia

I have to admit that I used to look forward to the heavy rain and subsequent floods in December. The flooded drains and streets back in my hometown of Tumpat would mean hours of endless fun; either netting escaped fish from the nearby river or frolicking in the clear waters with our tyre tubes. 

Although the heavy rain is an annual occurrence brought on by the north-eastern monsoon, the degree of flooding differed from year to year with major flooding occurring about every decade from my experience.

That has changed.

Major flooding in the east coast states has become more frequent. In 2013, Kuantan (Pahang) and Kemaman (Terengganu) faced their worst floods in 40 years while in 2014, the floods brought on by relentless torrential rain affected 11 states with the hardest hit being Kelantan. Clear river waters that used to flood homes are now replaced by a reddish-orange sludge.

Causes of flood

The fact is that heavy rain over a prolonged period will cause flooding. However, two other environmental factors potentially exacerbate the flooding to the point of an all-out natural disaster.

The first is the shallowing of rivers by upriver mining or logging activities. Trees have roots that firmly hold the soil in upriver areas. Thus when the clearing of land for commodity extraction occurs, loose soils are washed downriver into low-lying delta areas subsequently resulting in shallower riverbeds. And since river deltas often are historically densely populated areas, a huge part of the population will be affected by severe floods.

The second, more abstruse issue at hand is climate change. Climate scientists have predicted that storms will become more severe and unpredictable in the 21^st century. Indeed the 2014 floods were attributed to a warmer South China Sea due the blowing over of the South-east monsoon. Warmer seas lead to an increased evapotranspiration rate which results in increased rainfall.

Precautionary measures

As a sign of the urgency of this issue, the effort to set up the National Disaster Management Agency under the purview of the Prime Minister’s Department has to be lauded. This agency takes over the duties of the National Security Council when natural disasters like floods are concerned. 

So far, the results have been promising. The agency has trained community leaders to be first responders, spread awareness and conducted drills in flood prone areas like Kemaman. According to a StarOnline report, efforts have been put in place to replicate this model nationwide. 

Besides that, Budget 2016 bore more good news. Our prime minister announced the allocation of RM60 million in funds to the development of a National Flood Forecasting and Warning Programme and a further RM730 million to mitigate future floods nationwide. 

It is obvious that the government takes this issue seriously and that Malaysia will be more prepared if history repeats itself in 2016.

A way forward? 

Efforts to quell the effects of flooding, however, can be likened to treating the symptoms of a disease instead of the cause. 

Yes, there is no doubt that the training of first responders and structural reinforcements like embankments or pumps will cushion the blow of upcoming floods. 

But until we prevent the bad practices conducted by logging and mining activities upriver, Malaysia will continue to spend excessive amounts of federal budget annually on rescue and relief measures which could perhaps be channelled for development projects. 

On a global level, Malaysia has to work with the rest of the world to combat climate change. In the recently concluded United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of Parties, there have been positive signs of a deal that aims to keep temperatures from rising to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels by 2100. 

To do that, however, would require Malaysia to live up to its Intended National Determined Contributions (INDC) while slowly phasing out energy generation by fossil fuels.

There is no doubt that floods have always been part and parcel of life on the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia. Nonetheless, the severity and frequency seen today is unprecedented and hence will require unprecedented measures to combat it. 

Hence, it is humbling to remind ourselves that flooding in York occurred despite a sophisticated multi-billion dollar flood defence system. A sign of the times we have ahead perhaps. 

*This is the personal opinion of the columnist.