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I realize the news cycle has already moved on, but the floods in central Europe have not only scarred communities, they will come back sooner and harder than most politicians would like to admit.
A thread:
The risk of floods of such magnitude really is nothing new – scientists, experts and civil society have long warned this kind of disasters is but one ramification of societies’ continued dependence on fossil fuels. "Floods act as reminders that the risk is there and even if there is a long period with no flooding, one day a flood will come," a Polish scientist and IPCC contributor told me in 2013. https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/assessing-flood-risk-inside-europe/37306582
No, it’s not some misfortune. Seeing ‘flood of the century’ repeating at least three times in the span of three decades is no statistical outlier. And neither should this be normalized.
Past experience has helped mitigate the damage and fatalities. But no amount of emergency response can cover up for reckless policymakers and the #FossilFuels business in many of the countries hardest hit who keep societies in coal, oil and gas’s stranglehold.
In fact, scientists have already revealed the fingerprints of the #ClimateCrisis on the devastating #floods that hit central Europe earlier this month.
Storm Boris brought 20% more precipitation than it would have were it not for rising greenhouse gas emissions, according to ClimaMeter’s assessment: https://www.climameter.org/20240913-15-storm-boris
The #climate crisis has made this heavy four-day rainfall “about twice as likely and 10% more intense”, as per World Weather Attribution: https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/climate-change-and-high-exposure-increased-costs-and-disruption-to-lives-and-livelihoods-from-flooding-associated-with-exceptionally-heavy-rainfall-in-central-europe/
But for Poland’s primer minister, it’s the beavers’ fault. 
https://www.politico.eu/article/poland-donald-tusk-declare-war-beaver-flood/
The resilience of these communities and the financial support from the EU are no excuse for decision makers to pretend we’re back to business as usual, but rather compel them to tackle the actual root causes – poor urban planning and the climate crisis.
If anything, this tragedy should compel governments, not only to invest in climate adaptation, but to step up the energy transition.
The thing is, the devastation and suffering wrought by the floods alone won't be enough for them to actually act. They will start moving once folks across Czechia, Romania, Hungary, Austria and Poland come together to demand our governments change course.
#powódz #powodź2024