The Socio-Economic Effects of Floods and Ways to Prevent Them: A Case Study of the Khazir River Basin, Northern Iraq

Abstract

The current study deals with how floods affect the social and economic lives of villagers in the lower basin of the Khazir River (northern Iraq), where the villages Kazkan, Tal al-Laban, and Wardak are located within active floodplains close to the riverbed. The aim of this paper is to perform both spatial and temporal analysis of floods affecting society and economic activities in the river basin and to assess ways of preventing them. In this study, qualitative and quantitative methods were used to analyze the results, and we relied on hydrological data and field studies that included oral interviews and personal observations on the phenomenon of floods. The first main study findings indicate through a statistical analysis of a sample of 100 people that floods in the study area are an expected and recurring phenomenon; they occur every year, with damage and losses varying from year to year and from one region to another. The second main study findings indicate that frequent flooding in the study area has a negative impact on growth in all economic and social sectors. These floods affect the agricultural sector more than other sectors as a result of agricultural land being located within flat plain areas with little slope. Based on the effects of floods, improved engineering solutions have been suggested to better control floods and handle emergencies. This is done using GIS models (HEC-GeoRAS) and HEC-RAS models to build a number of hydraulic designs on the riverbed according to different scenarios. The findings of this study should serve as an inspiration for water policy makers to make every effort to implement all feasible and effective preventive measures before floods occur as well as to allow rapid reaction, recovery, and reconstruction after a flood.