Impact of Climate Change on the Floods in Bulgaria

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<p>In the Republic of Bulgaria, floods caused by natural phenomena or human activity may have adverse effects. Therefore, reducing the risk of disasters is of primary importance for the sustainable development of the country. The impact of climate change is expected to rise in the coming decades and to lead to increase in the frequency and magnitude of disasters. More frequent and stronger storms and floods, as well as long-lasting droughts and devastation forest fires can have particularly harmful effect on existing opportunities for society after such dangerous events. For this reason, and because of the complexity and extent of the disasters, unification of the efforts of all responsible institutions and their active inclusion in disaster risk reduction activities is necessary. These measures are expected to lead to a significant reduction in human, social, economic and natural damage and losses. This paper presents a descriptive analysis of the floods in Bulgaria for the time period 2010 &ndash; 2017. The study is based on precipitation in Bulgaria reflecting climate change. Existing statistical data is reviewed and analyzed and, based on that, recommendations are formulated.</p><p>This paper is included in the program of <a href="https://digilience.org">DIGILIENCE 2019</a> and will be published in the post-conference volume.</p>