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Within a public forum Ecumenical Social Week, the Institute of Ecumenical Studies’ project, “Hear the cry of the Earth: an integrated ecology in action” was held an online discussion “When rivers overflow their banks. Reasons and legislative aspects”

2020-07-01 10:45

During the discussion Olha Pylypovych, an associate professor of LNU. I. Franko, a member of the Dniester Basin Council, acquainted the participants with the main causes, features of floods and aspects of reducing the consequences of this phenomenon. Olha stressed that the main causes of floods are a large amount of precipitation in a short period of time, oversaturation of the soil with moisture, lack of ecosystem approach to land management within the river basin, namely continuous deforestation on the hills, excessive plowing in the basin, chaotic construction river valleys, continuous, often unauthorized construction within coastal protection strips along rivers, global climate change, etc.

The speaker also noted that in recent years there has been an increase in the number of cases of heavy rains in a short period of time. Therefore, there is always a risk of dangerous morphs of dynamic processes, which threatens environmental safety. The main measures to reduce risks are the application of an ecosystem approach to nature management within the river basin. This approach consists of land use planning, proper construction and agriculture on the principle of maximum conservation of natural resources, as well as ecological measures (restoration of floodplains and riverbeds, increasing forest cover, etc.).

Sophia Shutiak, a leading Legal Adviser of EPL “Environment. People. Law” focused on the legislative and legal aspects of flood control.

Watch video in Ukrainian here