MEGA MONSOON FLOODS OF 2010 IN PAKISTAN: CLIMATE CHANGE ON IT WAY

The human impact of natural disasters in Pakistan can be judged from the fact that 6,037 people lost their lives and about 8,989,631got became vulnerable within a time span of a decade. The country’s economy is heavily dependent on its water resources, 50% of which includes the surface water. With the increasing impacts of global warming and changing climate patterns Pakistan is experiencing a pronounced increase in the intensity of monsoon flooding every year.

The present study aims at studying the contributing factors of the catastrophic monsoon flooding of 2010, particularly in the Kabul River Basin in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and to identify the areas that are vulnerable to the risk of flooding in the future. Hazen’s method suggests that this mega event may happen once in every 80 years time but due to climate change globally it may be expected earlier than its return period.

The output of this data analysis is significant in flood hazard assessment of the area and suggests economical mitigation methods that can be adopted by utilizing the local resources to minimize the extent of devastation along the course of Kabul River.