Clear-cutting forests doesn’t just raise flood risk — it can supercharge it. UBC researchers found that in certain watersheds, floods became up to 18 times more frequent and over twice as severe after clear-cutting, with these effects lasting more than four decades. The surprise? Terrain details like which direction a slope faces played a huge role in flood behavior. Conventional models miss these dynamics, which could mean we've been underestimating the danger for decades — especially as climate change accelerates extreme weather.

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/24915795

Clear-cutting forests doesn’t just raise flood risk — it can supercharge it. UBC researchers found that in certain watersheds, floods became up to 18 times more frequent and over twice as severe after clear-cutting, with these effects lasting more than four decades. The surprise? Terrain details like which direction a slope faces played a huge role in flood behavior. Conventional models miss these dynamics, which could mean we've been underestimating the danger for decades — especially as climate change accelerates extreme weather.

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  • BarqsHasBite@lemmy.world
    2·
    14 days ago

    In the north-facing watershed, which receives less direct sunlight and retains more moisture, floods became four to 18 times more frequent. Average flood sizes increased by 47 percent compared to pre-treatment levels, and the biggest floods grew by as much as 105 percent.

    In the south-facing watershed, the same treatment had virtually no impact on flood behavior.