the scout association of nigeria
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THE SCOUT ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA
NIGERIA NATIONAL SCOUT ORGANIZATION
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION PROGRAMS
FLOOD CONTROLS Compiled for our knowledge by: Olusoga Sofolahan-Atibioke (Olori
Omo-Oba)(LT/MT)
CONVOCATION
A flood is an overflow of water that submerges land which is normally
dry. The European Union (EU) Floods Directive defines a flood as a
covering by water of land not normally covered by water.
In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the
inflow of the tide. Flooding may occur as an overflow of water from
water bodies, such as a river or lake, in which the water overtops or
breaks levees, resulting in some of that water escaping its usual
boundaries, or it may occur due to an accumulation of rainwater on
saturated ground in an areal flood.
While the size of a lake or other body of water will vary with seasonal
changes in precipitation and snow melt, these changes in size are
unlikely to be considered significant unless they flood property or
drown domestic animals.
Floods can also occur in rivers when the flow rate exceeds the
capacity of the river channel, particularly at bends or meanders in the
waterway. Floods often cause damage to homes and businesses if
they are in the natural flood plains of rivers. While riverine flood
damage can be eliminated by moving away from rivers and other
bodies of water, people have traditionally lived and worked by rivers
because the land is usually flat and fertile and because rivers provide
easy travel and access to commerce and industry.
Some Flood Photographs received from Nigeria Television
Authority (NTA) on the 21st
of September 2013, 9:00PM
Network News.
FLOOD CONTROLS & OUR CONTRIBUTIONS AS SCOUTS
In many countries around the world, waterways prone to floods are
often carefully managed. Defenses such as detention basins, levees,
bunds, reservoirs, and weirs are used to prevent waterways from
overflowing their banks. When these defenses fail, emergency
measures such as sandbags or portable inflatable tubes are often
used to try and stem flooding. Coastal flooding has been addressed in
portions of Europe and the Americas with coastal defenses, such as
sea walls, beach nourishment, and barrier islands.
In the near rivers and streams, erosion control measures can be taken
to try and slow down or reverse the natural forces that cause many
waterways to meander over long periods of time. Flood controls, such
as dams, can be built and maintained over time to try and reduce the
occurrence and severity of floods as well.
In areas prone to urban flooding, one solution is the repair and
expansion of man-made sewer systems and storm-water
infrastructure. Another strategy is to reduce impervious surfaces in
streets, parking lots and buildings through natural drainage channels,
porous paving, and wetlands (collectively known as green
infrastructure or sustainable urban drainage system (SUDS).
Areas identified as flood-prone can be converted into parks and
playgrounds that can tolerate occasional flooding. Ordinances can be
adopted to require developers to retain storm-water on site and
require buildings to be elevated, protected by floodwalls and levees,
or designed to withstand temporary inundation. Property owners can
also invest in solutions themselves, such as re-landscaping their
property to take the flow of water away from their building and
installing rain barrels, sump pumps and check valves.
CONTROL OF FLOODS:
Some methods of flood control have been practiced since ancient
times. These methods include planting vegetation to retain extra
water, terracing hillsides to slow flow downhill, and the construction
of floodways (man-made channels to divert floodwater). Other
techniques include the construction of levees, lakes, dams, reservoirs
or retention ponds to hold extra water during times of flooding.
METHODS OF CONTROLS:
1. Temporary Perimeter Barriers: In 1988, a method of using water
to control was discovered. This was accomplished by containing
2 parallel tubes within a third outer tube. When filled, this
structure formed a non-rolling wall of water that can control
75% of its height in external water depth, with dry ground
behind it.
2. Dams: Many dams and their associated reservoirs are designed
completely or partially to aid in flood protection and control.
Many large dams have flood-control reservations in which the
level of a reservoir must be kept below a certain elevation
before the onset of the rainy/summer melt season so as to allow
a certain amount of space in which floodwaters can fill.
3. Self-closing flood barrier: The self-closing flood barrier (SCFB) is
a flood defense system to protect people and property from
inland waterway floods caused by heavy rainfall, gales or rapid
melting snow. The SCFB can be built to protect residential
properties and whole communities, as well as industrial or other
strategic areas.
4. River defenses: In many countries, rivers are prone to floods and
are often carefully managed. Defenses such as levees, bunds,
reservoirs, and weirs are used to prevent rivers from bursting
their banks. When these defenses fail, emergency measures such
as sandbags or portable inflatable tubes are used.
5. Tide gates: Tide gates are used in conjunction with dykes and
culverts. They can be placed at the mouth of streams or small
rivers, where an estuary begins or where tributary streams, or
drainage ditches connect to sloughs. Tide gates close during
incoming tides to prevent tidal waters from moving upland, and
open during outgoing tides to allow waters to drain out via the
culvert and into the estuary side of the dike. The opening and
closing of the gates is driven by a difference in water level on
either side of the gate.
WHAT CAN WE DO AS MEMBERS OF THE SCOUT
ORGANIZATION OF NIGERIA?
According to the Founder of Scouting Movement, Lord Robert
Stephenson Baden Powell (Chief Scout of the World): He defined
“Peace as not only the absence of War, but our relationships
with Nature and our Environment”
Flood eradication project has been identified as one of the numerous
Messengers of Peace Projects.
How do we eradicate Flooding?
1. By Trees planting- Our Goal in the Nigeria NSO will focus at
plating many trees that will serve as Shelter against Ozone layers
that have been depleting years back.
2. Planting Trees within Flood prone areas so as to cushioning the
effect of erosions during rainy season.
3. Clean our various Waterways like Gutters, Under-bridges and
drain ways, so as to allow free flow of Rain water from smaller
canals to bigger channels.
4. Create Awareness on the need to start to prevent Flooding from
happening. The awareness should be done in concert with the
Government of your State Scout Council and other Voluntary
Organizations.
5. Encourage Government to build Drainages and Dams that could
accommodate Flooding Water and for conversions into Water
for Plants irrigations.
6. Campaign against people dumping refuges in drainages so as not
to block the Waterways.
All the above Six Projects could be done under your Districts,
Divisions (Area/Provincial), and States Messengers of Peace (MoP)
Coordination.
Let me conclude by saying:
“PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE”……Equation 1
Mathematically, If Scouting represented with (X) is with the Vision of
Creating Real Contributions towards making this World a better place;
and she is looking at Preventive Solutions against some anti-Peace
issues and concerns.
Equally we have other Organizations (YZ) too that are very good at
providing Support/Solutions when there are Catastrophes.
• If Scouting Organization X is working Preventives…….Equation 2
• Other Organizations YZ are working Curatives………Equation 3
• By factoring in Equation 1 into Equations 2 & 3, we will have:
• Scouting Organization X is better than YZ Organization....Equation 4
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