Are the floods in Iowa caused by global warming? Do sand bags really hold back flood waters?

Question

Before answering these questions, please read this very interesting article on these topics and see if you agree: http://garyganu.blogspot.com/2008/06/floods-tornadoes-and-sandbags.html

Answer 1

There isn't much evidence linking global warming to natural disasters, save droughts and the such. Of course, droughts are the opposite of floods, so I'm going to say no on this one.

Answer 2

no they are caused by the Jet stream lingering over the same area for weeks on end. Storms usually happen along this area as cold and warm air collide at the jetstream and create all kinds of instability, sandbags only help if you have powerful pumps to pump out the water, water still comes in but at a slower pace

Answer 3

The floods in Iowa are not caused by global warming.  They are caused by weather patterns, nothing more.

Answer 4

until people are able to visualize an ice cube melting in a glass they will never wake up to the fact that global warming IS happening. Did we have floods this large within the past? I am going to go out on a limb and say no.

if you would look at the concentration of tornadoes (we have more this year than ever recorded throughout history). the fact that the polar ice caps have been melting and now that we have floods should be PROOF enough.

And any one who gives a thumbs down is just looking the other way because if it doesn't happen soon it will happen within our life time. (catastrophic climate)..

I have asked my parents even memories of myself of the climate change (I'm 21 years old by the way my parents are almost 60 years old) the weather is bizarre as opposed to just 10-15-20-30 years time frame it has changed drastically due to our use of car emissions and other chemicals. The list goes on and on bottom line..

If you melt an ice cube the cold gets absorbed into living things (if anything is alive that is) and condensation and evaporation are the main forms of climate change - guaranteed..

If you don't agree well don't say I didn't tell you so when it happens.

People have had psychic visions of the US flooding under. Ranging from average people to indians who dreamed.

Answer 5

No. To get rain and thunderstorms you need a massive COLD front to collide with warm moist air. The key there is COLD front.

Answer 6

There is no way to prove that localized weather is a result of global warming, but many people do believe that overall global shifts and extremes in weather events are symptoms of it.

I don't agree with the sandbag blog or the comparison with welfare, liberals, etc, that's just partisan politics reaching out to inject itself into a current event and it is drawing parallels that are inaccurate in many ways.  First of all, sandbagging can help during flooding to prevent the breaching of levees; once water starts pouring over them wholesale the water pressure tends to erode natural earth levees, so if you can slow it down long enough for the flooding to recede you can preserve the levees.  Second, slowing down the influx of water pouring into any given area gives pumps time to work more effectively.  Draw your own political conclusions from that.

However, the effort often fails, from what I have read and seen.  Whether or not that equates with political haymaking...ehh.  The choir is listening with rapt attention, anyway.  It's just political nursery ryhming to me...

Answer 7

It's unwise to draw conclusions from any single weather event. But the latest climate assessment from the US Climate Change Science Program (released May 29, 2008) says (in part) the following about floods:

"In the United States, precipitation intensity will increase across the country, particularly at middle and high latitudes where mean precipitation also increases. This will affect the risk of flash flooding and urban flooding in these regions "

"Projections of global precipitation extremes and droughts show that the intensity of precipitation events is projected to increase"

"Some studies project widespread increases in extreme precipitation with greater risks of not only flooding"

"Recent studies indicate that climate change scenarios that include increased frequency of heat stress, droughts and flooding events reduce crop yields and livestock productivity beyond the impacts due to changes in mean variables alone, creating the possibility for surprises"

"Globally, increased intensity and variability of precipitation is projected to increase the risks of flooding and drought in many areas (high confidence)"

Answer 8

Global warming is not responsible for the recent Iowa floods.  They have had to deal with them in the past, as is evidenced by levee systems put in place years ago.  Unfortunately, their last round of rains exceeded the levee capacity.  Mother nature can be unpredictable.

I've personally been involved with sandbagging and as a previous poster stated, pumps are necessary.... the size of which is determined by the area being bagged.

Answer 9

First question    no .  Next   often but not always