Climate Change is Affecting the Way Europe Floods, Experts Warn

Climate ​change is ​disrupting the ​rhythms of ​spring growing ​and river ​flooding across ​Europe, which ​could pose new ​problems for ​biodiversity ​and food ​security in ​floodplains, ​scientists say. ​ 

New analysis ​of five decades ​of European ​flood and ​temperature ​data, published ​in the ​journal  ​ Geophysical ​Research ​Letters,  ​ demonstrates ​for the first ​time an ​increasing ​overlap between ​the onset of ​spring and the ​highest points ​of seasonal ​flooding. ​

Researchers from the University of Glasgow in Scotland and Umeå University in Sweden ​performed a ​detailed ​analysis of ​data collected ​since the 1960s ​on flood peaks ​and daily ​temperature in ​locations ​across Europe. ​

They found ​the thermal ​growing season ​– defined ​as periods ​where the ​temperature ​rose consistently ​above 5°C, ​encouraging ​plants and ​trees to begin ​to grow – ​has been ​consistently ​starting ​earlier in the ​year, bringing ​it closer to ​the periods ​where the ​highest river ​floods occur, ​which have ​begun to happen ​later in the ​year in Central ​and Eastern ​Europe.  ​