Mitigation and related issues for flood management
Wednesday, 17 October 2007
Dr K. M. Nabiul Islam in the second of his four-part articleHISTORICALLY, water and flood management policies have been dominated by structural measures, as is evident from massive investments particularly in agricultural projects in Bangladesh. Following the factors such as failure of structural measures to provide full security, increased flood losses due to 'false sense of security', inadequate maintenance and increased concern of associated environmental issues over the recent past changes in emphasis towards non-structural measures have been advocated by many studies. The 2007 flood has once again reminded Bangladesh about the importance of non-structural measures, especially in the case of emergency management.
The approach to flood loss reduction thus needs to be based on multi-disciplinary perspectives (e.g. engineering, behavioral and socio-economic), rather than only engineering ones. Reducing vulnerability, or resilience-building, through warnings, emergency preparedness and responses can be regarded as a major non-structural approach of flood loss mitigation.
Response process and warning: Experience shows that lack of emergency preparedness (which needs to exist at local levels), including infrastructural adversities (e.g. power failure and disruptions to roads and communication networks) contribute significantly to the vulnerability during floods.
Warning has enormous damage-reducing effects. An analysis in this context shows that an average household who believed the warning message were able to considerably reduce inventory damage (39%), compared to that who did not believe the message (5%). However, formal warning systems in Bangladesh sometimes do not perform satisfactorily. The warnings in Bangladesh need to be understandable and effective. A 'False' warning can have adverse effects on future warnings. This was the case in a study area where a considerable number of people kept idle without believing the warning message because of a false warning issued few days before in an earlier case which did not actually occur. In another study area, very few people believed the warning while some could not understand the language of the warning signals issued.
Global warming and flood impacts: The potential for a future sea-level rise is of great concern to Bangladesh, a country with vast low-lying, densely populated areas, particularly in coastal zone. In addition, the increased rainfall in the future may be expected to lead to increased surface run-off, resulting in increased frequency and severity of floods in the future. Additionally, it is of great concern that the two important port cities will also be under severe threat due to sea level rise. Thus, climate change may lead to further increase in already rapid rates of urbanisation and the coastal areas will be increasingly under threat especially from tidal floodings, which are most destructive.
A recent climate change impact analysis by Hassan and Conway (2007) reaffirms that there will be uncertain rainfall changes, ranging from large decreases to large increases, as a result of which floodings in Bangladesh will also be extremely uncertain. Extreme peak river-discharges are likely to occur more frequently. For example, the recurrence interval for the devastating 1998 flood will reduce from roughly 50 years to 30 years in the 2020s and 15 years in the 2050s. Drainage congestion is already a growing problem in Bangladesh and is likely to be exacerbated by sea level rise. The study suggests an increase in inundated areas of up to 3.0 per cent in 2030s, and 6.0 per cent in 2050s, with a probable increase in hazard frequency by 2.6 per cent per annum.
Under different climate change scenarios, the cyclone-induced tidal surge height will also increase to 15-25 per cent in the year 2020s. More than 12,000 sq. km. area will be exposed as high risk areas due to tidal surge in coastal areas of Bangladesh and make more than 20 million people vulnerable in 2050s.
The potential increase in flood frequency and severity on the one hand, and faster urbanisation in future (induced by sea-level rise) on the other, need to be taken into account in the long-term flood mitigation planning strategy.
Flood Disaster Management : Findings from a Participatory Research: Flood and disaster management involve activities in three broad stages: (1) Flood prevention (2) Flood preparedness and (3) Emergency management and rehabilitation.
Disaster Prevention: Planning and maintenance of infrastructure; Housing and development works in unplanned way continue to pose serious problem to the currently fragile drainage systems, especially in urban areas. It is imperative to undertake regular maintenance and rehabilitation, plantation, re-excavation works through community participation. There is need for constructing reservoirs down the embankments in hilly areas for water conservation. It is emphasised that the accountability of Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) to local-level institutions are enhanced.
The disaster at Bhabadaha beel areas (southwest region) is a good example of water-logging, caused mainly due to improper planning of the water control infrastructures or lack of proper planning, least consideration to the environmental concerns, and poor operations and maintenances. More than two million people have been living in a permanent flood-situation for a long time, longing for emergency relief from home and abroad. One can cite the case of Dhaka Demra Narayanaganj (DND) project as another example of similar kind.
The objectives of flood control projects and polders, which were basically designed for agriculture development, have seriously hampered owing to unplanned shrimp farming through artificial intrusion of saline water, undertaken largely by powerful section of the community, which has created environmental and ecological setback. The shrimp farming should be carried out, through strictly obliging relevant rules and regulations. Immediate implementation of the detailed zoning plan is the demand of the day.
Flood /cyclone shelters: Existing flood and cyclone shelters can serve only a small segment of vulnerable population. Potential reduction of vulnerability through setting up of more flood shelters has no option. However, it is important that the shelter areas are multi-purpose in order to obtain optimal benefits. All new schools should be constructed at least two storied on flood-free high lands. The existing regulation on this has to be enforced. It is essential that well-specified guidelines be formulated, with strict implementation, regarding site selection of new schools and flood shelters.
Provision of basic facilities (e.g., safe drinking water and sanitation) is an urgent need. Construction of community houses would also be a step forward. Network of necessary roads to solve transport problem during floods is but an essential element of flood management. Earthen killas (mounds) should be constructed for poultry and livestock shelter at convenient locations. The shelters should be kept free from the possession of local influential people. It is essential to activate the disaster management committees, and the responsibility of proper maintenance of link roads and shelters should be vested in the local institutions.
Maintenance of dykes and embankments: The maintenance of infrastructure has always been a much-discussed issue in relation to flood management. It is important that the dykes and flood protections are planned and designed through people's participation, and based on appropriate hydrological survey. A monitoring mechanism should be in place, along with a provision of adequate afforestation along the embankments; the construction of the embankments should be well coordinated and it is imperative to promote multipurpose use of the embankments/bundhs. As the investment and maintenance costs of sea dykes are very high, there are few options but to resort to participatory approach of construction and maintenance. Afforestation is also an effective measure to dissipate energy created by flood water.
Flood Preparedness: Warning system; Warning lead-time needs to be long. The warning signals issued are often more technical than operational. It is important that people comprehend the language of the warning and acquire confidence in it.
Coordinated efforts supported by adequate equipment, skilled manpower and satellite technology would be a step forward. Setting up of transmission and broadcasting center in each major flood- prone areas would be a prerequisite to ensuring effective warning and forecasting. Introduction of community radio would help ensure better flood disaster management, through better flow of information and greater people's participation. The potential of the mobile technology can be considered in this context. People, especially in the haor areas, use some indigenous warning signals by showing different colors of flags. Some of these practices can be accommodated in the warning system as the modern system in this respect is expensive for Bangladesh.
In coastal areas, nearly half a million of fishers undertake sea fishing in a very high risk and vulnerable conditions. This community deserves a special attention in receiving weather forecasts timely. The establishment of a fisheries information management will go a long way in ensuring an effective tidal flood management.
Sanitation and safe drinking water: Effective flood disaster preparedness first requires addressing water supply and proper sanitation during flood. Hand tube-wells need to be installed in raised land/killas, with the pump heads sufficiently raised. A large proportion of tube-wells remain out of order so that they need rehabilitation on an urgent basis. As the construction of reservoirs is expensive it is important to excavate new ponds and re-excavate old ponds/canals, which may act as reservoirs at local level for the conservation of water. The khal/canal re-excavation programme would be a step forward towards flood management on the one hand, and water supply for irrigation, conservation of ecosystem and bio-diversity on the other. The promotion of small-scale alternatives such as pond sand filter (PSF) techniques would be useful in dealing with disasters. The arrangement of khas land for community pond in villages, social mobilisation for using community ponds through beneficiary groups are some of the collaborative activities local level institutions, non-governmental agencies and community-based organisations can be vested with.
Awareness building and disaster insurance: Public awareness raising programmes on disasters through involvement of the local government, NGOs, CBOs and religious institutions is but an essential activity towards effective disaster management. Training and demonstration to particularly women, children, elderly and the disabled on disaster preparedness are helpful. Besides, the inclusion of disaster management topic in school syllabus would be a good step. It is learned from a recent study on a disaster management programme (implemented by Islamic Relief and funded by the Europion Commission or(EC) that the local school students and youths can be great mobilizers in terms of disaster-related awareness, advocacy and emergency management.
For a long term plan, the development of insurance and redistribution of losses have no option. There is few flood insurance on properties, let alone any subsidies given to them. The introduction of insurance schemes means not only disaster mitigation but also they may help towards increasing general awareness and perception, through educating people on what a natural disaster can do to individuals, enterprises and a community as a whole.
Afforestation and environmental conservation: Forestry resources are being overexploited alarmingly, largely because of a lack of enforcement of the conservation laws, poor performance of local-level institutions and lack of knowledge and awareness. The afforestation program should be implemented through a participatory and partnership approach undertaken by people from the occupation groups dependent on forestry.
Regional cooperation: Bangladesh has 54 common rivers with India and floods do not recognise political boundaries. Particularly the three international river networks have immense bearings on the Bangladesh floods. Over 90 per cent of the total catchments (1.8 million km2) of these rivers are located outside of Bangladesh, and mostly in India. The management of trans-boundary river flows is thus crucially important for Bangladesh's existence.
Besides with more advanced information on rainfalls, feeding Bangladesh with forecast information on flood for longer lead-time will help Bangladesh developing its warning system. Apart from increasing government level regional and international dialogues, public consultation of civil societies of upper and lower riparian countries would be helpful.
During the sudden post-monsoon flood in 2000 over the southwest region, which originated from outside Bangladesh, the nation was completely unprepared to face such an unprecedented flood at regional level. The event lay the importance of regional cooperation in order to ensure an effective early warning system, reminding us of the dire need for exchanging updated scientific data and information (e.g., on rainfalls) among our riparian neighbours.
Selected Adaptation Options: The Bangladesh National Water Management Plan (NWMP) emphasises coping with floods rather than preventing them. In the past, greater reliance has been placed on embankments and drainage schemes, which are primarily designed for agriculture protection. The protection of non-agricultural sectors such as human habitation and infrastructure has received far less attention, despite the significant flood loss potentials caused to such sectors.
With this in context, two adaptation options are discussed in this section. Bangladesh is covered by a large road and highway network, most of it traversing through the flood plains of the country. Flood loss potentials to roads infrastructure have been huge. In the 1998 and 2004 flood, for example, the direct damage to roads sector is estimated at TK 15,272 and TK 10,031 million, accounting for 15 and 9.0 per cent of the total damage respectively. The situation is expected to be deteriorating in the days to come, with the increased extent and intensity of flooding due to potential climate change and sea level rise in the future. Hence, protecting and maintaining nearly 21 thousand kilometers of roads and highways with 15 thousand bridges and culverts is of prime importance for the national economy.
The adaptation option relates to flood proofing by raising road heights to the highest recorded flood level with the provision of adequate cross-drainage facilities. An analysis in this respect shows that flood proofing of roads and highways would be economically efficient. Incorporating future climate change-induced flooding, the best estimate of B-C ratio is found to be 1.7 (at standard discount rate of 12%). The option is also expected to bring other social benefits (which are not factored), in terms of saving human lives/livestock, use as refuge, damage saving of inventory, employment generation and poverty reduction, and facilitation of movement of relief goods during flood emergencies.
The second option relates to flood proofing of individual homesteads by means of constructing raised platforms. The option involves constructing earth platforms on beneficiaries land for the unit of a bari (homestead with four households). Here, again, the best estimate of B-C ratio is as high as 1.9 at 12 per cent discount rate (against a 20-year flood). Apart from flood protection, the option is expected to crate additional employment in earthwork, thereby contributing to poverty reduction in rural areas.
Women involved in homestead raising in the Chars, Courtesy CLP
Apart from the two adaptation options discussed above, a few other options to cope with floods and sea level rise are summarised below:
· Construction of earthen killas for livestock
· Excavation/re-excavation of ponds/canals for water conservation and irrigation
· Conservation of wetlands and other natural water reservoirs
· Undertake sustainable housing in planned way
· Rain water harvesting and Pond Sand Filter (PSF)
· Strengthening and regular maintenance of dykes, polders and embankments
· Designing of soft and less expensive option of plantation with selected species
· Promotion of salt-tolerant crops, trees and fish, including soil-less species of crops (for coastal areas)
· Cultivation of livestock feeds and developing pasture in new Char areas (instead of leasing them out as a preparation to future sea level rise in the future)
Emergency Management: Decentralisation of management; It is important to set up flood and disaster management office in major disaster-prone locality In order to cope with disasters and take timely emergency measures it is essential to decentralise monetary and other management during disasters. Amid abrupt communication disruption, it is not feasible to undertake emergency measures sitting from the capital. The local level disaster management committees (UDMCs) proved to be inefficient in performing their responsibilities due to centralised decision making in emergency management. It is essential to have a provision for generating emergency funds at local levels. The UDMCs should comprise representatives from CBOs, NGOs and the local administration. The quick restoration of roads and provision of emergency fund with the UP, the UDCC and the DDCC are essential elements of flood disaster management.
Distribution of roles and responsibilities: Roles and responsibilities should be more clearly defined and properly disseminated. Information system necessary for emergency management should be reviewed and upgraded. Focal points should be strengthened at field level in respect of contingency planning, damage and needs assessment, beneficiary selection and emergency management coordination. A standard guideline on needs assessment and beneficiary selection should be developed. Clear-cut guidelines need to be in place for ensuring appropriateness of emergency relief packages taking into account of gender, social, region and economic considerations. Standing orders of disaster (SOD) do already exist but it is important that these are properly implemented.
Community based approach in disaster management: The prevailing vulnerability of population was already in crisis level before the onset of the current flood of 2007, compounded by price hikes and high unemployment in rural communities. It is important that the whole community is made involved in the emergency management during floods.
It is also important that reliefs are distributed in a coordinated manner following appropriate rules and regulations. It is also essential to take necessary steps to regulate prices and prevent food crisis through drastic initiative by local administration.
Health care: As regards health care during and in post-flood period, the provision of safe drinking water and health care is a top priority. Emergency treatment (like delivery, water-borne disease) with the supply of emergency medicines and oral salines during disaster and post-disaster period should be ensured. The community clinics that were previously closed should now be reopened.
Rescue and relief operation: Lack of emergency preparedness (which needs to exist at local level) including infrastructural adversities (e.g. lack of power or its failure and lack of transport facilities) contribute significantly to the vulnerability of the population during flood disasters. It is important that the whole community is made involved in the emergency management during floods.
The author is a Senior Research Fellow, Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies.
To be continued
The approach to flood loss reduction thus needs to be based on multi-disciplinary perspectives (e.g. engineering, behavioral and socio-economic), rather than only engineering ones. Reducing vulnerability, or resilience-building, through warnings, emergency preparedness and responses can be regarded as a major non-structural approach of flood loss mitigation.
Response process and warning: Experience shows that lack of emergency preparedness (which needs to exist at local levels), including infrastructural adversities (e.g. power failure and disruptions to roads and communication networks) contribute significantly to the vulnerability during floods.
Warning has enormous damage-reducing effects. An analysis in this context shows that an average household who believed the warning message were able to considerably reduce inventory damage (39%), compared to that who did not believe the message (5%). However, formal warning systems in Bangladesh sometimes do not perform satisfactorily. The warnings in Bangladesh need to be understandable and effective. A 'False' warning can have adverse effects on future warnings. This was the case in a study area where a considerable number of people kept idle without believing the warning message because of a false warning issued few days before in an earlier case which did not actually occur. In another study area, very few people believed the warning while some could not understand the language of the warning signals issued.
Global warming and flood impacts: The potential for a future sea-level rise is of great concern to Bangladesh, a country with vast low-lying, densely populated areas, particularly in coastal zone. In addition, the increased rainfall in the future may be expected to lead to increased surface run-off, resulting in increased frequency and severity of floods in the future. Additionally, it is of great concern that the two important port cities will also be under severe threat due to sea level rise. Thus, climate change may lead to further increase in already rapid rates of urbanisation and the coastal areas will be increasingly under threat especially from tidal floodings, which are most destructive.
A recent climate change impact analysis by Hassan and Conway (2007) reaffirms that there will be uncertain rainfall changes, ranging from large decreases to large increases, as a result of which floodings in Bangladesh will also be extremely uncertain. Extreme peak river-discharges are likely to occur more frequently. For example, the recurrence interval for the devastating 1998 flood will reduce from roughly 50 years to 30 years in the 2020s and 15 years in the 2050s. Drainage congestion is already a growing problem in Bangladesh and is likely to be exacerbated by sea level rise. The study suggests an increase in inundated areas of up to 3.0 per cent in 2030s, and 6.0 per cent in 2050s, with a probable increase in hazard frequency by 2.6 per cent per annum.
Under different climate change scenarios, the cyclone-induced tidal surge height will also increase to 15-25 per cent in the year 2020s. More than 12,000 sq. km. area will be exposed as high risk areas due to tidal surge in coastal areas of Bangladesh and make more than 20 million people vulnerable in 2050s.
The potential increase in flood frequency and severity on the one hand, and faster urbanisation in future (induced by sea-level rise) on the other, need to be taken into account in the long-term flood mitigation planning strategy.
Flood Disaster Management : Findings from a Participatory Research: Flood and disaster management involve activities in three broad stages: (1) Flood prevention (2) Flood preparedness and (3) Emergency management and rehabilitation.
Disaster Prevention: Planning and maintenance of infrastructure; Housing and development works in unplanned way continue to pose serious problem to the currently fragile drainage systems, especially in urban areas. It is imperative to undertake regular maintenance and rehabilitation, plantation, re-excavation works through community participation. There is need for constructing reservoirs down the embankments in hilly areas for water conservation. It is emphasised that the accountability of Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) to local-level institutions are enhanced.
The disaster at Bhabadaha beel areas (southwest region) is a good example of water-logging, caused mainly due to improper planning of the water control infrastructures or lack of proper planning, least consideration to the environmental concerns, and poor operations and maintenances. More than two million people have been living in a permanent flood-situation for a long time, longing for emergency relief from home and abroad. One can cite the case of Dhaka Demra Narayanaganj (DND) project as another example of similar kind.
The objectives of flood control projects and polders, which were basically designed for agriculture development, have seriously hampered owing to unplanned shrimp farming through artificial intrusion of saline water, undertaken largely by powerful section of the community, which has created environmental and ecological setback. The shrimp farming should be carried out, through strictly obliging relevant rules and regulations. Immediate implementation of the detailed zoning plan is the demand of the day.
Flood /cyclone shelters: Existing flood and cyclone shelters can serve only a small segment of vulnerable population. Potential reduction of vulnerability through setting up of more flood shelters has no option. However, it is important that the shelter areas are multi-purpose in order to obtain optimal benefits. All new schools should be constructed at least two storied on flood-free high lands. The existing regulation on this has to be enforced. It is essential that well-specified guidelines be formulated, with strict implementation, regarding site selection of new schools and flood shelters.
Provision of basic facilities (e.g., safe drinking water and sanitation) is an urgent need. Construction of community houses would also be a step forward. Network of necessary roads to solve transport problem during floods is but an essential element of flood management. Earthen killas (mounds) should be constructed for poultry and livestock shelter at convenient locations. The shelters should be kept free from the possession of local influential people. It is essential to activate the disaster management committees, and the responsibility of proper maintenance of link roads and shelters should be vested in the local institutions.
Maintenance of dykes and embankments: The maintenance of infrastructure has always been a much-discussed issue in relation to flood management. It is important that the dykes and flood protections are planned and designed through people's participation, and based on appropriate hydrological survey. A monitoring mechanism should be in place, along with a provision of adequate afforestation along the embankments; the construction of the embankments should be well coordinated and it is imperative to promote multipurpose use of the embankments/bundhs. As the investment and maintenance costs of sea dykes are very high, there are few options but to resort to participatory approach of construction and maintenance. Afforestation is also an effective measure to dissipate energy created by flood water.
Flood Preparedness: Warning system; Warning lead-time needs to be long. The warning signals issued are often more technical than operational. It is important that people comprehend the language of the warning and acquire confidence in it.
Coordinated efforts supported by adequate equipment, skilled manpower and satellite technology would be a step forward. Setting up of transmission and broadcasting center in each major flood- prone areas would be a prerequisite to ensuring effective warning and forecasting. Introduction of community radio would help ensure better flood disaster management, through better flow of information and greater people's participation. The potential of the mobile technology can be considered in this context. People, especially in the haor areas, use some indigenous warning signals by showing different colors of flags. Some of these practices can be accommodated in the warning system as the modern system in this respect is expensive for Bangladesh.
In coastal areas, nearly half a million of fishers undertake sea fishing in a very high risk and vulnerable conditions. This community deserves a special attention in receiving weather forecasts timely. The establishment of a fisheries information management will go a long way in ensuring an effective tidal flood management.
Sanitation and safe drinking water: Effective flood disaster preparedness first requires addressing water supply and proper sanitation during flood. Hand tube-wells need to be installed in raised land/killas, with the pump heads sufficiently raised. A large proportion of tube-wells remain out of order so that they need rehabilitation on an urgent basis. As the construction of reservoirs is expensive it is important to excavate new ponds and re-excavate old ponds/canals, which may act as reservoirs at local level for the conservation of water. The khal/canal re-excavation programme would be a step forward towards flood management on the one hand, and water supply for irrigation, conservation of ecosystem and bio-diversity on the other. The promotion of small-scale alternatives such as pond sand filter (PSF) techniques would be useful in dealing with disasters. The arrangement of khas land for community pond in villages, social mobilisation for using community ponds through beneficiary groups are some of the collaborative activities local level institutions, non-governmental agencies and community-based organisations can be vested with.
Awareness building and disaster insurance: Public awareness raising programmes on disasters through involvement of the local government, NGOs, CBOs and religious institutions is but an essential activity towards effective disaster management. Training and demonstration to particularly women, children, elderly and the disabled on disaster preparedness are helpful. Besides, the inclusion of disaster management topic in school syllabus would be a good step. It is learned from a recent study on a disaster management programme (implemented by Islamic Relief and funded by the Europion Commission or(EC) that the local school students and youths can be great mobilizers in terms of disaster-related awareness, advocacy and emergency management.
For a long term plan, the development of insurance and redistribution of losses have no option. There is few flood insurance on properties, let alone any subsidies given to them. The introduction of insurance schemes means not only disaster mitigation but also they may help towards increasing general awareness and perception, through educating people on what a natural disaster can do to individuals, enterprises and a community as a whole.
Afforestation and environmental conservation: Forestry resources are being overexploited alarmingly, largely because of a lack of enforcement of the conservation laws, poor performance of local-level institutions and lack of knowledge and awareness. The afforestation program should be implemented through a participatory and partnership approach undertaken by people from the occupation groups dependent on forestry.
Regional cooperation: Bangladesh has 54 common rivers with India and floods do not recognise political boundaries. Particularly the three international river networks have immense bearings on the Bangladesh floods. Over 90 per cent of the total catchments (1.8 million km2) of these rivers are located outside of Bangladesh, and mostly in India. The management of trans-boundary river flows is thus crucially important for Bangladesh's existence.
Besides with more advanced information on rainfalls, feeding Bangladesh with forecast information on flood for longer lead-time will help Bangladesh developing its warning system. Apart from increasing government level regional and international dialogues, public consultation of civil societies of upper and lower riparian countries would be helpful.
During the sudden post-monsoon flood in 2000 over the southwest region, which originated from outside Bangladesh, the nation was completely unprepared to face such an unprecedented flood at regional level. The event lay the importance of regional cooperation in order to ensure an effective early warning system, reminding us of the dire need for exchanging updated scientific data and information (e.g., on rainfalls) among our riparian neighbours.
Selected Adaptation Options: The Bangladesh National Water Management Plan (NWMP) emphasises coping with floods rather than preventing them. In the past, greater reliance has been placed on embankments and drainage schemes, which are primarily designed for agriculture protection. The protection of non-agricultural sectors such as human habitation and infrastructure has received far less attention, despite the significant flood loss potentials caused to such sectors.
With this in context, two adaptation options are discussed in this section. Bangladesh is covered by a large road and highway network, most of it traversing through the flood plains of the country. Flood loss potentials to roads infrastructure have been huge. In the 1998 and 2004 flood, for example, the direct damage to roads sector is estimated at TK 15,272 and TK 10,031 million, accounting for 15 and 9.0 per cent of the total damage respectively. The situation is expected to be deteriorating in the days to come, with the increased extent and intensity of flooding due to potential climate change and sea level rise in the future. Hence, protecting and maintaining nearly 21 thousand kilometers of roads and highways with 15 thousand bridges and culverts is of prime importance for the national economy.
The adaptation option relates to flood proofing by raising road heights to the highest recorded flood level with the provision of adequate cross-drainage facilities. An analysis in this respect shows that flood proofing of roads and highways would be economically efficient. Incorporating future climate change-induced flooding, the best estimate of B-C ratio is found to be 1.7 (at standard discount rate of 12%). The option is also expected to bring other social benefits (which are not factored), in terms of saving human lives/livestock, use as refuge, damage saving of inventory, employment generation and poverty reduction, and facilitation of movement of relief goods during flood emergencies.
The second option relates to flood proofing of individual homesteads by means of constructing raised platforms. The option involves constructing earth platforms on beneficiaries land for the unit of a bari (homestead with four households). Here, again, the best estimate of B-C ratio is as high as 1.9 at 12 per cent discount rate (against a 20-year flood). Apart from flood protection, the option is expected to crate additional employment in earthwork, thereby contributing to poverty reduction in rural areas.
Women involved in homestead raising in the Chars, Courtesy CLP
Apart from the two adaptation options discussed above, a few other options to cope with floods and sea level rise are summarised below:
· Construction of earthen killas for livestock
· Excavation/re-excavation of ponds/canals for water conservation and irrigation
· Conservation of wetlands and other natural water reservoirs
· Undertake sustainable housing in planned way
· Rain water harvesting and Pond Sand Filter (PSF)
· Strengthening and regular maintenance of dykes, polders and embankments
· Designing of soft and less expensive option of plantation with selected species
· Promotion of salt-tolerant crops, trees and fish, including soil-less species of crops (for coastal areas)
· Cultivation of livestock feeds and developing pasture in new Char areas (instead of leasing them out as a preparation to future sea level rise in the future)
Emergency Management: Decentralisation of management; It is important to set up flood and disaster management office in major disaster-prone locality In order to cope with disasters and take timely emergency measures it is essential to decentralise monetary and other management during disasters. Amid abrupt communication disruption, it is not feasible to undertake emergency measures sitting from the capital. The local level disaster management committees (UDMCs) proved to be inefficient in performing their responsibilities due to centralised decision making in emergency management. It is essential to have a provision for generating emergency funds at local levels. The UDMCs should comprise representatives from CBOs, NGOs and the local administration. The quick restoration of roads and provision of emergency fund with the UP, the UDCC and the DDCC are essential elements of flood disaster management.
Distribution of roles and responsibilities: Roles and responsibilities should be more clearly defined and properly disseminated. Information system necessary for emergency management should be reviewed and upgraded. Focal points should be strengthened at field level in respect of contingency planning, damage and needs assessment, beneficiary selection and emergency management coordination. A standard guideline on needs assessment and beneficiary selection should be developed. Clear-cut guidelines need to be in place for ensuring appropriateness of emergency relief packages taking into account of gender, social, region and economic considerations. Standing orders of disaster (SOD) do already exist but it is important that these are properly implemented.
Community based approach in disaster management: The prevailing vulnerability of population was already in crisis level before the onset of the current flood of 2007, compounded by price hikes and high unemployment in rural communities. It is important that the whole community is made involved in the emergency management during floods.
It is also important that reliefs are distributed in a coordinated manner following appropriate rules and regulations. It is also essential to take necessary steps to regulate prices and prevent food crisis through drastic initiative by local administration.
Health care: As regards health care during and in post-flood period, the provision of safe drinking water and health care is a top priority. Emergency treatment (like delivery, water-borne disease) with the supply of emergency medicines and oral salines during disaster and post-disaster period should be ensured. The community clinics that were previously closed should now be reopened.
Rescue and relief operation: Lack of emergency preparedness (which needs to exist at local level) including infrastructural adversities (e.g. lack of power or its failure and lack of transport facilities) contribute significantly to the vulnerability of the population during flood disasters. It is important that the whole community is made involved in the emergency management during floods.
The author is a Senior Research Fellow, Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies.
To be continued