Disaster in Wayanad causes by 10% heavier rainfall: Study

Wayanad: A recent analysis by World Weather Attribution (WWA) claims that climate change is to blame for the devastating landslides that occurred in Kerala's Wayanad on July 30. It claims that a 10% heavier burst of rainfall in the area was brought on by human-caused weather pattern shifts, which ultimately led to landslides.

The WWA, an international partnership of climate scientists that performs rapid assessments of extreme weather events, suggests reducing deforestation and quarrying in addition to enhancing early warning and evacuation systems to lessen the effect of similar natural disasters in the future. The study suggests that in order to lessen the occurrence of one-day burst rainfall-like situations, fossil fuels should be replaced with renewable energy sources, the New Indian Express reported.

A team of climate scientists, researchers, and organisations connected to WWA conducted the study "Landslide-triggering rainfall made more intense by human-induced climate change, devastating highly vulnerable communities in northern Kerala." It mentions that the area received 146 mm of rain in a single day, the third most ever recorded in Kerala.

Vulnerable district

The loose and erodable soils in Kerala's hilly Wayanad district pose a significant risk of landslides during the monsoon season. According to the experts, in order to prevent similar tragedies in the future, development in hillside areas, deforestation, and quarrying must be reduced.

‘Don’t use fossil fuels’

“If the world does not move away from fossil fuels, one-day spells of rainfall in Kerala will become a further 4% heavier, risking even more destructive landslides,” says Mariam Zachariah, researcher, Grantham Institute - Climate Change and the Environment, Imperial College London