Application Of Geoinformatics Techniques In Controlling Flooding In Vulnerable Roads And Buildings In Nigeria

Application Of Geoinformatics Techniques In Controlling Flooding In Vulnerable Roads And Buildings In Nigeria

Background to the Study

The acronym Civilians stands for geographic information system, it’s a system which allows a prisoner, streamlining and displaying of a number of preliminarily unconnected dataset bringing them into a common reference system for spatial analysis from which relationship can be linked and opinions made( Sowton 1991).

cataracts are presumably the most recreating, wide, disastrous and frequent natural hazards of the world. India is one of the worst flood tide- affected countries, being alternate in the world after Bangladesh and accounts for one fifth of global death count due to cataracts. Nigeria isn’t an exception and indeed the study area as series of flooding have affected occupants and disintegrated socioeconomic conditioning. Flood operation and control are necessary not only because cataracts put a curse on the society, but the optimal exploitation of the land and proper operation and control of water coffers are of vital significance for bringing substance in the generally agrarian grounded frugality of this dissimilarly peopled country. This can not come technically doable without effective flood tide hazard charts( Pradan, 2004)

Flood hazard mapping and flood tide alluvion modeling are the vital factors in flood tide mitigation measures and land use planning. Advances in geospatial technologies( GPS, Remote seeing and Civilians) has enabled the accession of data and analysis of the swash receptacle for flood tide mitigation systems( either structural or non-structural) in a briskly and more accurate manner. Civilians facilitates integration of spatial and non-spatial geographical data similar as downfall and sluice overflows. Other information similar as flood tide charts, architectures and land use, social and profitable information can be inventorized for unborn use. Flood maps prepared using satellite images of real flood tide events and information from the ground are useful for flood tide damage assessment, unborn flood tide mitigation planning. Flood vulnerability maps produced using Civilians enabled effective tools for land use planning, flood tide operation and development control. thus, an attempt has been made to apply ultramodern ways like Geographical Information System( Civilians) for the operation of flood tide in Port Harcourt, the study area, as it has been proved that the use of Geoinformatics to manage the databases, charts, and prints improves the ease of the analysis( Wisner etal., 2004; Noson, 2002).

Statement of Problem

cataracts are among the most destructive acts of nature. World-wide, flood tide damages to husbandry, houses and public serviceability quantum to billions of bones each time in addition to the loss of precious mortal and cattle lives(R.K.Khanna, 1989). In maturity of cases, ‘ submerging ’ is caused by a swashover-spilling its banks. This can be due to inordinate rush, combined with shy channel capacity. Over-spilling can also do due to inhibition in or aggravation of the swash bed.

Flooding can also affect from shy water way at rail and road crossings, or when there are encroachments in the flood tide plain. Flooding can also do at convergences of aqueducts when the main swash is in high stage and backs up into the feeders and areas there about.

Flood threat is among the most severe pitfalls on mortal lives and parcels, and has come more frequent and severe along with original profitable development. As the milepost becomes more advanced, it also becomes further hydrological active, changing the flood tide volume, runoff factors as well as the origin of sluice inflow. In turn, cataracts that formerly passed rarely during pre development ages have now come more frequent and more severe due to the metamorphosis of the milepost from pastoral to civic land uses. The cast and simulation of cataracts is thus essential for planning and operation of civil protection measures and for early flood tide warning. The goods of Global warming has also accelerated the melting of ice, which in turn increased the water position and performing in the circumstance of flooding. Flooding causes a lot of damage, which is generally, characterize by loss of parcels and indeed leaving families homeless.

The 2012 Nigeria cataracts began in early July 2012, and have killed 363 people and displaced over people as of 5th November, 2012. From May to September, Nigeria has a stormy season and suffers from seasonal flash cataracts. These flash foods are occasionally murderous, especially in the pastoral areas or overcrowded slums, where drainage is poor or doesn’t live at all. On 2 July 2012, numerous Nigerian littoral and inland metropolises endured heavy rains, and residers of Lagos were” heaving for breath” due to the flooding. In addition, there was a deadlock on major roads, causing people to cancel or defer movable they may have had. Thousands of stranded commuters had to pay increased fares for the many machine motorists who were willing to risk travelling on the roads, and construction of work by the Nigerian government on the inner Oke- Afa Road took a” heavy risk.”

In mid-July 2012, submerging in the Ibadan megalopolis caused some residers at Challenge, Oke- Ayo, and Eleyele to flee from their places and save their lives. The flooding also averted some Christians from attending churches in the morning, while a many islands caved in. In late July 2012, at least 39 people were killed due to flooding in the central Nigerian Plateau state. Heavy downfall caused the Lamingo levee to overflow near Jos, sweeping across a number of neighborhoods in Jos, and roughly 200 homes were submerged or destroyed. In addition, at least 35 people were missing, while Manasie Phampe, the head of the Red Cross in the state, blazoned that relief sweats were ongoing. The cataracts left 3,000 people homeless, numerous of whom are taking exile in government structures in Jos. Inmid-August, submerging killed at least 33 people in central Nigeria’s Plateau state. Over 12,000 people were affected by the flooding in six sections of the state, while hundreds were rendered homeless( Wikipedia).

Port Harcourt wasn’t an exception, as a heavy downfall weekend extorted annihilation in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, destroying property and rendering families homeless( The Vanguard Nigeria). The imperishable flooding has caused a lot of damage and innumerous difficulty to the occupants of the study area. The study thus seeks to assess the vulnerability of the study area to flooding using Geoinformatics ways.

Aim and objects

The end of this exploration is to employ Geoinformatics( Geographical Information System( Civilians), remote seeing and cartographic) ways to induce flood tide vulnerability chart showing structures and roads that are susceptible to flooding in the study area of Port Harcourt at different buffer distances.

The following specific objects were pursued in order to achieve the below end

Conversion of being analogue chart to digital format by digitizing( creating spatial database).

Creating a suitable trait database for the study area.

Link both spatial and attribute database.

To induce structures in the study area to ascertain those that are vulnerable to flooding.

To produce vulnerability charts of the study area.

To identify the impact which cataracts will have on the socio- profitable livelihoods of the people.

Make recommendations grounded on the findings.

Significance of the Study

The recent flooding that passed in colorful part of Nigeria makes this exploration expedient, to allow for action to help similar disaster from being. The significance of this exploration work can not be overemphasized as it has tremendous significance and positve impact on nearly all sectors of the frugality, government departments and the society at large. These significance include;

The exploration work provides information on the flood tide vulnerability of architectures in the study area.

The work provides satellite deduced data of the study area for farther studies and exploration.

The exploration work increases and add to the knowledge of the study area.

It further exposes and prove the eventuality, delicacy and efficiecy of Geoinformatics as a technology for the study of flood tide hazard operation.

Compass of the Study

The compass of the study is limited to Port Harcourt which is the study area and its immediate terrain. The study only took into consideration structures that are vulnerable to submerging at named buffer distances of 20 measures, 30 measures and 50 measures; and roads that are susceptible to submerging at named buffer distances of 60 measures, 80 measures and 100 measures.

Study Area

Position

Port Harcourt( Igbo Diobu, Iguocha or Ugwuocha; Pidgin” Po- ta- kot”) is the capital of Rivers State, Nigeria. It’s positioned in ObioAkp, Rivers, Nigeria, its geographical equals are Latitude 4 ° 47′ 21″ North, and Longitude 6 ° 59′ 55″ East and its original name( with diacritics) is Port Harcourt. It lies along the Bonny River and is located in the Niger Delta. According to the 2006 Nigerian tale Port Harcourt has a population of.

Climate

Port Harcourt features a tropical thunderstorm climate with lengthy and heavy stormy seasons and veritably suddenly dry seasons. Only the months of December and January truly qualifies as dry season months in the megacity. The harmattan, which climatically influences numerous metropolises in West Africa, is less pronounced in Port Harcourt. Port Harcourt’s heaviest rush occurs during September with an normal of 370 mm of rain. December on normal is the driest month of the time, with an average downfall of 20 mm. Temperatures throughout the time in the megacity are fairly constant, showing little variation throughout the course of the time. Average temperatures are generally between 25 °C- 28 °C in the megacity.

Geology/ Soil

Port Harcourt lies on the recent littoral plain of the eastern Niger Delta. Its face geology consists of fluvial sediments. This includes the recent sediments transported by Niger River distributaries and other gutters, similar as Andoni, Bonny and New Calabar. These accoutrements deposited as regolith overburden of 30m consistence are tones, peat, silts, beach and gravels. The depositional sequence exhibits massive international beach monuments overlying an alternation of sandstones and tones of hardly marine origin, but ultimately grading down into marine tones. Sands, by far, form the largest group of gemstone types in Rivers State, while slush constitutes all the weakened brackish waters of the riverine areas. still, peat constitutes the colorful vegetal and beast remains that taradiddle in bogs and shallow recesses. The clay and pebbles form the last unit of the subterranean gemstone type, and are generally set up at the base of the swash channels. There are three major soil groups in Rivers State, videlicet the marine and fluvial marine sediments; the mangrove swamp alluvial soils; and brackish brown loams and flaxen loams. The marine and fluvial marine sediments are set up in the wet littoral region. The soils are organic in nature and basically flaxen in texture. Some correspond of slush mixed with decayed organic matter. The mangrove swamp alluvial soils are set up in the northern part of the littoral sediments zone. They’re brownish on the face, occasionally with an unwelcome and obnoxious odour. The soils of the wetlands are rich in organic matter in the top subcaste, but contain too important swab especially in the dry season. The third soil group, the brown loams and flaxen loams are set up in the fresh water zone of the delta. The levees which form the common land forms of this zone are made up of rich loams at their ridges, changing to further acidic and more clayed soils along their pitches.

Foliage

The” highland” area was firstly enthralled by rainforest which has been drastically modified by mortal conditioning. In utmost places, profitable trees, particularly oil painting win, have been saved and therefore the surname for this foliage as” oil painting win backcountry.” The riverine area is separable into three main hydro- foliage zones videlicet, the sand crest zone, the saltwater zone and the brackish zone. The sand crest zone is vegetated substantially by fresh water swamp trees, triumphs and shrubs on the flaxen crests and mangroves in the intermediating denes or tidal apartments. The saltwater zone is the tidal flat or wetlands vegetated by the red stilts embedded mangrove( Flhizophora racemosa) and two other species of mangrove. The outliers of raised alluvial ground or littoral plain sundeck within the wetlands are vegetated by altitudinous timber tree species and oil painting win. The brackish zone is substantially the Upper and Lower Delta floodplains of the Niger, having fresh water timber trees which are the edaphic variants of the rainforest. The Abura tree, oil painting win, raffia win, shrubs, lianas, ferns and floating meadows and doormats are the typical foliage.

Hydrology

downfall in Port Harcourt is seasonal, variable, and heavy. Port Harcourt is a megacity of physical difficulties, similar as low lying terrain riddled with an intricate system of natural water channels; too important face water and a high downfall; uninhabitable mangrove wetlands and some corridor of the state suffer from attainability due to seasonal flooding.

Socio- economics conditioning

Port Harcourt is the heart of Nigeria’s oil painting assiduity with nearly all major multi-national oil painting companies being represented there until lately owing to security pitfalls from Niger Delta zealots and Zealots. The profitable conditioning of Port Harcourt include manufacturing similar as food processing, auto assembly, manufacture of paper products, maquillages, petroleum products refinery and road construction, essence workshop and cement timber, enamelware, bikes, Cabinetworks, and cleaner timber. Services include legal services, hospitality, medical, Educational and engineering services. Extractive diligence also live similar as mining of coal, drum and petroleum, oil painting and gas liquefaction. Also agrarian and agro grounded businesses live in the megacity some of which are logging and timber processing, tobacco processing and cigarette timber, plastic moulding and the manufacture of rubber grounded products like tyres, bands and tube and glass timber. significances are substantially motorcars, electronics, fabrics and reused food. occasionally rice, millet and meat and other agrarian yield are imported as well. also multitudinous small scale enterprises like consumer merchandising, artisanship and transportation businesses also thrive in the megacity. colorful government organs similar as the Nigerian Anchorages Authority, NNPC and the customs play colorful nonsupervisory places in the original frugality. The main artificial area of the megacity is Trans Amadi. Domestic areas include Port Harcourt Township known locally as” Town”,G.R.A phases 1- 5, Abuloma, Amadi- ama, Amadi Flats, and Borokiri.

Crime rate in Port Harcourt Nigeria is one of the loftiest. The worst cases so far have been crimes committed by felonious gangs disguising their illegality as freedom struggles for the marginalized locals of the oil painting rich Niger Delta Region. Other than these and traffic, Port Harcourt Nigeria is largely a peaceful and sociable megacity. With numerous recreational and delightful spots, Port Harcourt can boast of a number of 5 star hospices similar as the Meridien Hotel, Presidential Hotel among others. Also recently open entertainment centres with playhouses, night clubs, bars and caffs can be set up in the megacity.

Limitations of the Study

This exploration work wasn’t without some limitations. The major limitations of this study was that the study area was veritably wide and so delicate to get all the attributes for roads and structures with available chart not furnishing all the names of the roads and gutters; and the operation of structures.

These limitations still were crushed by proper digitization of the satellite imagery, giving law names to roads and gutters were the names weren’t known and generalizing structures.