Sommerset Levels

Question 1

What year did the flood happen?

Answer 1

2014.

Question 2

Where is Somerset?

Answer 2

South west of the UK in-between Taunton and Glastonbury.

Question 3

What is the height like?

Answer 3

Very low lying and no part is higher than 8m above sea level.

Question 4

What happened to the land in the 17th century?

Answer 4

It was drained causing the land to shrink, floods are common as the river water has nowhere to go except to flood the land.

Question 5

What physical causes, caused the flood?

Answer 5

Jet streams(high level winds at 6-10km altitude), blow across the Atlantic towards the UK, they drive low pressure weather systems with wind and rain. 12 major storms, most rainfall since 1766, 235% of average winter amounts and more rainy days since 1961. More severe gales since 1871.

Question 6

What human causes, caused the flood?

Answer 6

Drainage ditches and rivers were dredged (made deeper) spending cuts resulted in less dredging. Dredging only temporarily increases river capacity, levees can make the problem worse by raising the river bed further, as the river naturally adjusts to its new channel banks.

Question 7

What is the future for the Somerset levels?

Answer 7

Climate change will cause greater storminess with damaging winds, higher, longer lasting floods, higher spring tides and more storm surges.