A Positive Outlook to Floods

While everybody is lamenting over the negative effects of the #floods in Pakistan, I would like to bring to your notice a ray of #hope. Like everything has pros and cons, so do floods.

Floods have caused the natural filling of underground water, depressions, reservoirs and dams, recharging and reloading underground water stores to meet our needs all year round. Also, flood water is enriched with nutrients and minerals which get deposited in the soil, leaving it rich in nutrients. This natural #fertilization procedure will lead to better agricultural production in the coming years.

Floods drive with them an ecological trigger for both the reproduction and relocation of certain fish species. An abundant supply of fish travels downstream making “fishery” a reliable source of income post flooding. Moreover, the fast-flowing water over the land helps eliminate toxic pollutants and harmful compounds from the soil, rejuvenating it.

It’s not surprising that floods have been an important part of human history as we know people used to live near the river Nile as the soil nearby was good for agriculture. Thou the devastating effects of floods on humans can be large but their positive effects on the natural #ecosystem cannot be overlooked.

At times, branches, stones or certain debris can block the flow of water from a river or stream which causes #droughts in the areas downstream. Due to floods, this blockage gets removed, restoring the flow of water to the dried-up zones.

We all are well aware that floods can only be controlled to a partial extent and absolute safety against floods is a fairytale. All we can do is timely evacuate maximum buildings, provide emergency accommodation for most people, try to provide food and sanitary supplies to everyone along with ensuring appropriate restoration of damaged infrastructure.

Flooding must be regarded as a natural process and not a destructive agent or disorder.?

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Written by: Nashmia Habib