Evaluate the influence of a countrys level of development in determining the impacts of
coastal flooding (12)
Development is all about how the standard of living, wealth and quality of life of people
living on our planet vary from place to place. It is therefore a process of change that affects
people's lives. It may involve an improvement or a reduction in the quality of life as
perceived by the people undergoing the change. It is based on social and economic factors
and is generally linked with globalisation.
Bangladesh, to the east of India on the Bay of Bengal, is a South Asian country. It is
particularly vulnerable to flooding for several reasons. Its high population density, land
height and location all play a role in making this country so vulnerable to flooding.
Bangladesh is the world's most densely populated country. It is also a LIC with lots of
poverty and the quality of life is poor. Due to densely populated villages and towns, the
government has little control over housing regulations as people construct their own. Also,
46% of the country’s population live less than 10m above sea level, meaning that they are
even more vulnerable to floods in these areas and dont have much relief in their flood
season. As poverty is apparent all over the country, people don't have the education or the
money to build houses that are resistant to flooding when storm surges are at their highest.
The government doesn't have that much money in taxes as the citizens don't earn a large
salary. This means that the government doesn't have the money to spend on response to
floods and the destruction that comes with them. The government also doesn't have the
money to invest in coastal defences. In ACs, sea walls are very effective toward storm
surges, but as the Bangladeshi government doesn’t have enough money to build effective
coastal defences, the coasts are left vulnerable to storm surges brought by tropical storms
and cyclones. One coastal defence that Bangladesh has that is naturally occurring is
mangroves. Mangrove forests are found in tropical and sub-tropical places and provide
natural protection against waves and coastal erosion. Bangladesh has the largest remaining
mangrove forest in the world. Their most beneficial attribute to humans is that they provide
protection and shelter against extreme weather events as they absorb and disperse surges
and wave power. They also grow extremely fast so are quick to implement, and if they get
knocked down by waves somehow, they can grow back and keep on protecting the coasts
effectively and efficiently. However, mangroves are being lost due to human actions and
global warming. Satellite studies show that 71% of mangroves are retreating by up to 200m
annually due to coastal erosion, sea levels rising and human actions.
The USA is also a country that is massively affected by coastal flooding, however, while
Bangladesh is a LIC, the USA is one of the richest and most developed countries in the world.
Surprisingly, the US still suffers greatly from coastal flooding, but as they have the funds
from the government they can rebound back from floods very quickly. Since 2000, the US
has experienced some very catastrophic hurricanes that have targeted their east and
southern coasts, 9 being category 5. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina caused the costliest US
disaster in history with over $100 billion in damage and killing approx. 1836 people. This
damage was caused by a 28ft storm surge along the Mississippi coastline in the southeast of
the country and caused levees to burst, flooding the low-lying city of New Orleans. This
hurricane was the most intense to be recorded in the Atlantic basin with its winds reaching
up to 185mph. In the Caribbean, southeast of the US, there was a massive hurricane in 2016
coastal flooding (12)
Development is all about how the standard of living, wealth and quality of life of people
living on our planet vary from place to place. It is therefore a process of change that affects
people's lives. It may involve an improvement or a reduction in the quality of life as
perceived by the people undergoing the change. It is based on social and economic factors
and is generally linked with globalisation.
Bangladesh, to the east of India on the Bay of Bengal, is a South Asian country. It is
particularly vulnerable to flooding for several reasons. Its high population density, land
height and location all play a role in making this country so vulnerable to flooding.
Bangladesh is the world's most densely populated country. It is also a LIC with lots of
poverty and the quality of life is poor. Due to densely populated villages and towns, the
government has little control over housing regulations as people construct their own. Also,
46% of the country’s population live less than 10m above sea level, meaning that they are
even more vulnerable to floods in these areas and dont have much relief in their flood
season. As poverty is apparent all over the country, people don't have the education or the
money to build houses that are resistant to flooding when storm surges are at their highest.
The government doesn't have that much money in taxes as the citizens don't earn a large
salary. This means that the government doesn't have the money to spend on response to
floods and the destruction that comes with them. The government also doesn't have the
money to invest in coastal defences. In ACs, sea walls are very effective toward storm
surges, but as the Bangladeshi government doesn’t have enough money to build effective
coastal defences, the coasts are left vulnerable to storm surges brought by tropical storms
and cyclones. One coastal defence that Bangladesh has that is naturally occurring is
mangroves. Mangrove forests are found in tropical and sub-tropical places and provide
natural protection against waves and coastal erosion. Bangladesh has the largest remaining
mangrove forest in the world. Their most beneficial attribute to humans is that they provide
protection and shelter against extreme weather events as they absorb and disperse surges
and wave power. They also grow extremely fast so are quick to implement, and if they get
knocked down by waves somehow, they can grow back and keep on protecting the coasts
effectively and efficiently. However, mangroves are being lost due to human actions and
global warming. Satellite studies show that 71% of mangroves are retreating by up to 200m
annually due to coastal erosion, sea levels rising and human actions.
The USA is also a country that is massively affected by coastal flooding, however, while
Bangladesh is a LIC, the USA is one of the richest and most developed countries in the world.
Surprisingly, the US still suffers greatly from coastal flooding, but as they have the funds
from the government they can rebound back from floods very quickly. Since 2000, the US
has experienced some very catastrophic hurricanes that have targeted their east and
southern coasts, 9 being category 5. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina caused the costliest US
disaster in history with over $100 billion in damage and killing approx. 1836 people. This
damage was caused by a 28ft storm surge along the Mississippi coastline in the southeast of
the country and caused levees to burst, flooding the low-lying city of New Orleans. This
hurricane was the most intense to be recorded in the Atlantic basin with its winds reaching
up to 185mph. In the Caribbean, southeast of the US, there was a massive hurricane in 2016
