Pakistan Floods Flashcards
1
Q
How much damage did the floods cause?
A
> $10bn
2
Q
How much of Pakistan is dependant on agriculture for income?
A
65%
3
Q
How much of Pakistan was submerged?
A
- 1/3
4
Q
What causes heavy and prolonged rainfall?
A
- meandering jet stream
- results in rain events not moving as quickly
- thus more precipitation in one area
5
Q
How much surplus rainfall do monsoons usually bring?
A
- 5.3% more than normal
6
Q
How did pollution contribute to the Pakistan floods?
A
- black pollution particulates settled on glaciers
- reduced albedo effect, more absorption of radiation
- resulting in glaciers warming more, and melting
- 16 instances of glacial lake outburst floods during flooding period
- normal is 5-6
7
Q
How much did ice sheets shrink by during the floods?
A
4.6Gt
8
Q
What caused the Pakistan floods?
A
- increased melting of glaciers
- increased rainfall due to monsoon
- resulting in Indus River filling to capacity and bursting banks
- ground and slopes quickly saturated
9
Q
What did the increased rainfall mean?
A
- Sindh province saw 336% more rainfall in July than usual
- 6* the 30 year annual average
