Example of response: Belarus experience in response to floods

1. Example of response: Belarus experience in response to floods Mikhail KalininWorkshop “Water and Adaptation to Climate Change: Joining Efforts to Adapt” 1-2 July 2008 Amsterdam

2. Flood frequency catastrophic and outstanding floods were observed in Belarus in 1845- in Pripyat river (flood frequency – once in 600 years); in 1931 – in Western Dvina, Dniepr, Berezina and Sozh rivers, (flood frequency – once in 300 years); in 1958 – in Niemen and Schara rivers Outstanding floods took place in: Western Dvina river - in 1878, 1929, 1941, 1951, 1956, Niemen river- in 1886, 1931, Muchavets river - in 1974, 1979, Dniepr, Berezina rivers - in 1908, 1956, 1958, Sozh river – in 1956, 1958, 1962, 1970, Pripyat river – in 1888, 1895, 1900, 1932, 1958, 1974, 1979, 1999.

3. Floods and high waters Floods causing huge damage in Belarus river basins take place once in 4-5 years over the last period. In 1974 direct damage from flood in Polessie region reached the amount of 173 million US dollars. 400 thousand ha of land were covered with water, 640 km of the electric lines were ruined, 674 settlements were left without electricity for a long period, 453 livestock farms, 246 km of the roads were destroyed, 2.8 thousand of houses were ruined Great damage was caused by the summer flood in 1993. 10 thousand of houses were flooded for a long period, around 200 thousand ha of crops, over 30 thousand ha of potatoes were damaged. 10 bridges and 150 sections of the communication lines were destroyed. 400 settlements and 160 livestock farms were left without electricity. Damage constituted 100 billion US dollars. Similar high waters take place regularly especially in floodplains and cause great damage to the economy.

4. Transboundary rivers Flood situation is aggravated in the south of the country by the absence of the schedule of the maximum flow quantity and impossibility to use water reservoirs placed in the Ukraine territory. In the river basin of Goryn and Styr rivers, starting from the Ukraine and going to the River Pripyat in Polessie region, 5 biggest water reservoirs are located with total capacity of 1695 million m3. Water level in these reservoirs fully depends on the water level of the Goryn river in the area of Stolin and David-Gorodok town. To regulate the situation a special schedule for the flood should be developed between 2 countries (Belarus and the Ukraine).

5. Examples of emergency situation liquidation at flood and high water Activities in liquidation of flood consequences are conventionally divided in 3 stages: First stage: - emergency situation forecasting and development of the activities to mitigate them; early warning of the emergency situation units, managers of the establishments, members of the Emergency Situation Commission, officers in the army troops, population; realization of the initial actions to mitigate the losses and damage (reinforcement of the dams and bridges), to put the rescue troops and technical equipment on alert, to define the evacuation routes. Second stage: To carry out actions to the population rescue, evacuation of the medical and children’s establishments, population, livestock, different values; -to provide population with food-staff, restoration of the ruined communications – water, heating, electricity, communication, roads and rail-roads, bridges. Third stage: - restoration of housing; - reestablishment of social sphere objects; heating and electricity lines; harvesting; - reestablishment of roads and bridges.

6. Examples of emergency situation liquidation at floods and high water – continued Common activities of the Ministry for Emergency Situations during last flood: In Drogichin region: - breach of the dam in Zhirovsky canal was liquidated near lake Beloe (settlements Malinovka, Svaryn, Veliki Les were protected from flooding); - 3 dams of the bypass canals from the Ukrainian side were reinforced which prevented from flooding of the 2 settlements; In Luninets region: -reinforcement of the paving of Luban-Ostrovo-Namokrovo road during 6 days provided communication between settlements of Namokrovo and Ostrovo; reinforcement of dams in the area of settlements Grjada, Lachva, Zaproje prevented from flooding of the 7 settlements; reinforcement of the 4 street paving prevented from flooding of the whole settlement (only 79 houses were flooded out of 634). In Stolyn region: 27 settlements were covered with flood but activities of the emergency situation units prevented 15 settlements from flooding; bridges in the settlements of Rubel and Korotichi were protected from destruction by demolition of the ice in the river

7. Lessons learned Designed climate warming and national economic growth in the river valleys will lead to the increase in floods with no doubt. In this regard it is necessary to strengthen the research activities and management towards the flood prevention. Flood prevention actions can reduce the damage cost by 50-70 times. The analysis of the existing flood prevention system in the Pripayt floodplain, the experience of the application of the system, the result of the snow-melt flood in 1999 proved the following: application of pure engineering methods does not ensure sufficient damage reduction. Alongside with engineering methods (flow regulation by constructing of dams, channels etc.) non-engineering ones should be applied. It means to develop economic and legal acts specific for the flood-dangerous areas. This can be: total or partial prohibition to carry out economic activities which can lead to the flood reinforcement or activities which can lead to the flow decrease. Engineering constructions should be effective but should lead to the minimum disturbance of the environment while building.

8. Lessons learned - continued When developing the flood protection actions in the river valleys the whole area should be taken into consideration – not only specific parts, because local flood protection actions without the total flood picture in the river valley may sufficiently deteriorate the situation and cause greater damage. When exploiting the flood-dangerous areas in the river valleys detailed feasibilities should be elaborated to achieve the maximum advantages and sufficient flood decrease. Solution of this problem could not be achieved without further development of the estimation methodology of damage caused by flood. Estimation of the flood damage play am important role. Assessment in the actual and post accidental losses during the flood can promote to choose the optimum variant of actions in prevention and elimination of the flood and damages. Assessment of damage is very important for the environmental expediency and efficiency of the engineering protection systems alongside with insurance of population and enterprises. Efficient flood insurance programme, both obligatory and voluntary forms, can be the best tool in regulating of land use in flood-dangerous areas.

9. Lessons learned - continued It is necessary to register the flow in the large amount of tributaries (from the Ukrainian side). Newly established water stations which were set up after 1999 flood in the rivers of Styr, Tsna, Slovechna can not ensure the requested tasks. Much attention should be paid to the early warning of the population, it is necessary to rise the awareness of the population about the flood, its consequences and prevention actions. In the flood-dangerous regions the public authorities and population should be aware of their activities and responsibilities during the flood period and afterwards. Specific flood-plains maps should be created with flood and high water borders of various water levels. Special attention should be paid to artificial modification of the flow formation conditions which can influence hydrological and hydraulic flow parameters, development of the management strategy which can minimize the negative flood effects and can define the ways of effective use of the floodplains. .

10. Recommendations National strategy on minimizing flood damage under climate change should be based on the world experience. It is necessary to create the following: Develop common state policy in the sphere of flood protection, create mechanism of its implementation, define priorities and responsibilities at all the levels, create common financial state system for flood-protection actions; Develop and reinforce regulatory mechanism for economic use of the flood-dangerous areas; Improve monitoring system of forecasting of floods. Restore the hydro-meteo-observation network; -Develop scientific and information ensuring of the flood-protection actions;

11. Recommendations – continued Improve international cooperation in the transboundary river basins, develop flood-protection actions in cooperation with all relevant water objects. Cooperation should be installed on the ministerial and other administrative levels in agriculture, forestry, transport, environment, public health. Inter-state authorities should develop a joint long-term strategy of flood prevention which would involve all transboundary basin partners. It would lead to the development of a joint Action Plan, minimization of the flood damage, development and improvement of the flood forecasting and early warning systems, improvement in the international cooperation in the basins of the transboundary regions.