Land use/Land cover Change and its Impact on Flood Occurrence: A Case Study of Upper Jhelum Floodplain

A flood is a hydrological event characterized by high discharges and/or water levels that can lead to inundation of land adjacent to streams, rivers, lakes, wetlands and other water bodies. Flood, as defined by the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage, is a relatively high flow or stage in a river, markedly higher than the usual; it also includes the inundation of low land which may result therefrom. Floods may be caused by natural events, by human activities, or by combinations of both. Regardless of their cause, floods have a profound effect on people and the economy. On an annual basis floods leave over 3 million people homeless and affect the personal and economic fortunes of another 60 million people (WCD, 2000). Since the dawn of civilization, destructive floods have jeopardized settlements located in river valleys and floodplains. Throughout the history of mankind, floods have brought tremendous wealth and prosperity to civilizations, and yet at the same time, they have caused huge losses and resulted in untold suffering for millions of people. Floods are the most devastating natural hazards in the world causing the largest amount of deaths and property damage (CEOS, 2003). According to the Red Cross, floods between 1971 and 1995 affected more than 1.5 billion people worldwide, including 318,000 persons who were killed and over 81 million left homeless (IFRCRCS, 1997). In 2003, floods accounted for 3,723 fatalities around the world (Munich Re, 2003). A ten-year comparative study of the world’s great flood disasters from 1950 to 1998 showed that the number of flood events increased nearly threefold, while the economic losses of the 1990’s are ten times as high as in the 1950’s, amounting to $250 billion globally (Loster, 1999)