Morocco, due to its geographic location, high rainfall variability, and topography, is particularly prone to floods. In recent years, the country has experienced a series of exceptional floods, leading to significant human and material losses.
Topography of Morocco
Recent Flood Events and Their Impact
Heavy rain has caused major flood damage in the Moroccan province of Nador. The northeastern coastal city saw 66 millimeters of rain in just 24 hours, leaving streets homes and vehicles underwater. Residents say the damage from rainwater that accumulated in dry valleys and creeks and overflowed.
Over the past few weeks, south-east Morocco has experienced a series of exceptional floods. The human and material toll has been heavy: many people have been killed or reported missing, and houses, oases, and plantations have been swept away by the floods.
Other recent flood events in Morocco include:
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- March 1, 2021: Dramatic flash flooding in the city of Tétouan in northern Morocco.
- August 28, 2019: At least 7 people died in flash floods in Morocco after heavy rain in the south of the country.
- Various reports of deaths and missing persons due to heavy rain and flooding across the country.
These floods have resulted in considerable economic losses, particularly for sensitive crops such as vegetables. According to Mansouri, the toll is heavy: "The damage is considerable, seriously affecting road infrastructures, which have been cut off or destroyed, rendering certain areas inaccessible. Many houses were also damaged or destroyed, displacing populations. Agricultural land, mainly dedicated to crops such as vegetables and fruit trees at this time of year, suffered significant losses due to saturation and soil erosion. The costs involved in repairing infrastructure and assisting disaster victims are high, putting a strain on the response capacities of local authorities and humanitarian organizations. The economic impact is significant, as rural communities depend heavily on agriculture for their livelihoods."
Causes of Flooding
Several factors contribute to the increased risk of flooding in Morocco:
- Climate Change: Climate change is modifying rainfall patterns and increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events in the region.
- Unstable Weather Systems: Torrential rains resulting from unstable weather systems often cause major flooding.
- Desert Soil Vulnerability: Desert soils are particularly vulnerable to flash flooding due to their composition and structure.
- Outdated Infrastructure: Outdated infrastructure, such as dams and roads, is incapable of handling the impact of such disasters.
Flooding kills more than 20 in Morocco and Algeria | BBC News
Mansouri reports: "Recently, the south-eastern region of Morocco has been hit by major flooding, often caused by torrential rains resulting from unstable weather systems, events that have become increasingly frequent due to climate change. These floods caused significant material damage, affecting road infrastructure and submerging farms, resulting in considerable economic losses, particularly for sensitive crops such as vegetables.
As global temperatures rise, sea waters are warming, causing increased evaporation. This boosts the humidity in the atmosphere, creating the conditions necessary for intense, cyclone-like storms.
However, desert floods aren’t tied solely to climate change. The AMO cycle, for example, goes through these phases every 60 to 80 years, and when in its warm phase, can increase the likelihood of extreme weather, such as increased rainfall.
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In its warm phase, the Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation (AMO) can bring more rain to northern Africa, but can intensify droughts in its cool phase.
Impact on Agriculture
Floods have a significant impact on agriculture in Morocco. The most affected crops include date palms, walnuts, apples, almonds, olive trees, and vegetables. These crops, emblematic of the region, are particularly vulnerable to excess water, which can lead to significant crop losses. Soil saturation has severely affected production, compromising local food security and farmers' incomes.
Water Resource Management
Despite the losses, the floods are in their own water resources in a region most severely affected by drought, where rain has not fallen for over six years. Mansouri says, "Recent rainfall in south-east Morocco has enabled significant regeneration of dam reserves, playing a crucial role in the region's water management. Among these dams, the Kadoussa dam, near Boudnib is particularly important, as is the Hassan Addakhil dam in Errachidia, which supplies water for agriculture and domestic needs. The Mansour Eddahbi dam in Ouarzazate and the Abdelmoumen dam, are also essential in helping to regulate water resources. In addition, the Tislit dam, near Tata, plays a key role in this semi-arid region."
The expert concludes: "The rainfall has increased the water levels in these dams, but it has also altered the region's hydrological map. Increased soil saturation can lead to resource management problems, including the risk of overflow and soil erosion. It is therefore essential to adopt an integrated approach to water resource management, considering not only current needs but also the potential impacts of extreme climatic events in the future. This involves strategies for conservation, infrastructure improvement, and community awareness-raising to build resilience in the face of water-related challenges.
World Bank's Involvement
The World Bank is supporting Morocco on both the adaptation/resilience and mitigation fronts. To address water scarcity and its impacts on agriculture, the Bank is accompanying Morocco to increase water productivity (“doing more with less”) for small and medium-sized farmers through the modernization of irrigation systems to drip irrigation and the enhancement of water governance. It has also supported strengthened disaster and climate resilience through structural disaster and climate-related risk reduction investments, financial coverage against catastrophic events and support to the new Blue Economy national program to enhance the resilience of coastal areas. On the mitigation front, the World Bank has supported the emblematic Noor solar power program with financing of over $700 million US. New operations dedicated to climate action will support the country’s implementation of the Nationally Determined Contribution under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the government’s ambitious water emergency plan put in place to respond to the recent series of drastic droughts.About 35 percent of the new financing in Morocco over the past three years has been dedicated to climate action, representing a total of about $1.6 billion US. In addition to financing, the Bank has worked closely with Moroccan institutions to analyze impacts of climate change on various sectors from agriculture to blue economy.
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The Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) identified three priority areas to tackle: 1. water scarcity and droughts, notably through the lens of the water-agriculture nexus; 2: resilience to floods in order to preserve urban and coastal economies and livelihoods; and 3: decarbonizing the economy on a path to zero-net emissions by the 2050s.
Building a Resilient Future
Building a resilient future will require investment in science and technology, along with a reevaluation of how and where communities construct their homes. Policy solutions may include moving people from particularly risk-prone areas and preventing further settlement there.
In terms of infrastructure solutions, a greater use of canals, culverts, flood channels and stormwater retention basins could help to limit the impacts of flash floods when they occur. These solutions will only be effective, however, if local authorities acknowledge that they are vulnerable and commit to proactively addressing the challenge.
The CCDR offers five principles to enable Morocco to reach its carbon neutrality.
- Adopting a whole-of-government approach
- Protecting the most vulnerable
- Establishing a robust system of climate information and analysis
- Unleashing innovation
- Enabling engagement of relevant stakeholders
World Bank CCDR report launch
Recommendations for Project Planning
In areas with medium urban flood hazard, project planning decisions, project design, and construction methods must take into account the level of urban flood hazard. Recommendations include:
- Obtain pre-existing flood hazard information.
- Consider relocation of the project if it is exposed to a high level of flood hazard.
- Identify early warning systems (EWS) in the project area.
- Account for how built infrastructure may alter flood hazard.
Every part of our infrastructure needs to be reassessed based on the new projections of climatic hazards.
There are already a lot of adequate engineering solutions for making our cities more resilient, but the economic and social sides of the equation make implementing these solutions difficult in many places.
"These recent floods are reminders that almost nowhere is immune from flood risk. Regional climates have shifted in previous centuries, but never before has there been such widespread and fast changes to climatic patterns.
“Floods are not going to disappear, and there's nothing we can do about that.
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