The alarm bell on the issue of its flood protection Attica Michalis Diakakis, Assistant Professor, is ringing Extreme phenomena and natural disasters of the University of Athens in an interview with RES-EIA.
As he points out, “Attica’s infrastructure cannot respond to extreme phenomena such as the Daniel storm we saw in our country two years ago or the Valencia flood (November 2024)”. He adds that “if we take into account that in the last decade Attica has lost a very large proportion of forests, we are assessed that flooding is expected to be more strongly in the area in the coming years.”
Asked how much it can help manage Kifissos waters in the event of a flood or construction of a barrier in the Red Mill area from which the waters will be gradually released so as not to flood lower areas, such as Peristeri, Aigaleo, Rentis, tributaries. Most of them can have a positive footprint on the problem of floods. They should be prepared not fragmented but in the context of an integrated intervention. “
The interview of Michalis Diakakis
Mr Professors Why have more and more floods observed in recent years with the subsequent devastating consequences?
The increase in floods has been recorded to our wider region in the last 2 decades. A recent study by the NCA in collaboration with the National Observatory of Athens has shown a very significant increase of 85% of the very extreme flood in the wider eastern Mediterranean region. Indeed, in recent years we have seen events (such as the Daniel storm) that record a record in the natural sizes, the cost of the impact and the number of dead in the wider area. A key element that contributes to this increase is climate change, which has significantly affected the atmosphere in the Mediterranean region which is particularly sensitive leads to phenomena such as increasing air and sea temperature. At the same time the interaction of floods with increasingly critical infrastructure and socio -economic activities, which now have a significant interconnection and interdependence between them, significantly increasing the impact.
How shielded should Attica be considered by floods in the winter? In the areas burned in the summer have some projects have been done?
Attica, and in particular the residential whole of the capital, is an area built and shaped by the needs of a last century, with very poor overall planning and of course very limited care for flood protection. In the last three decades, when the need for flood protection has emerged as an important priority, many projects have progressed that improve the conditions and reduce the risk, but which can respond to medium -intensity phenomena and not all sites. That is, it is an area not formed for the climate of the present and the future, whose infrastructure cannot respond to extreme phenomena such as the Daniel storm we saw in our country 2 years ago or the Valencia flood (November 2024). Indeed, if we take into account that in the last decade Attica has lost a very large proportion of forests, we are assessed that flooding is expected to be more intense in Attica in the coming years.
Various studies have been presented at times to manage Kifissos, even the construction of a lake hack at the height of the Attica Road in the Red Mill. Do you think such a project is possible and necessary to be done or are there other solutions?
Various projects and flood protection studies have been prepared from time to time along Kifissos and tributaries. Most of them can have a positive footprint on the problem of floods. They should be prepared not fragmented but in the context of an integrated intervention where we will use all the tools available to us, combining the flow of water flow to the upstream (in mountainous tumors), citizens’ training, infrastructure and hydraulic projects and gradual water. The last element, though difficult to make, is important to remain our long -term strategic targeting because it is all that can provide meaningful solutions especially to Attica.
Do Municipalities have the financial potential for large -scale flood protection projects? In your opinion, does the state have the necessary funds for flood protection projects?
Flood projects are very expensive infrastructure, which delivers financially on a long -term basis, but require very significant funds to implement themselves in a proper way. But it is imperative to implement for the protection of human life and property, especially because of the climate crisis, always taking into account the potential of the budget.
How much is Attica threatened with the streams that have been closed?
The closure of streams and the impairment of critical cross -sections are one of the most aggravating factors in the issue of floods in our country, and in particular in coastal areas. Smooth drainage of water from the upper basins of the basins, especially during strong thunderstorms and in the presence of loads of materials, is a critical factor in reducing the risk of flooding.