Drowning in Deception

Source: https://www.barrons.com/news/spain-torrential-rain-in-valencia-region-44807b6b

Following the devastating 1957 flood (discussed below), city planners took the bold step to divert the Turia River south of the city, a brilliant structural fix meant to spare the city from future tragedies. But what did they do next? They permitted unchecked development right around this newly created flood channel, directly in harm’s way. Yesterday’s worst flooding was right in these expansion zones (circles on map below). Decades of ignoring the obvious resulted in predictable failure, and no amount of “climate crisis” talk will change that.

Kindly provided by: @alfreedom_dev

Blaming Climate Change Instead of Accountability
There’s a glaring irony here: city planners and politicians, who ignored flood risks in the rush to expand development, are now blaming climate change for a crisis of their own making. Instead of taking responsibility for failing to protect the residents they were entrusted to serve, they’ve found an easy out. The “climate change” narrative diverts attention from their mistakes, and, conveniently, aligns with the agenda that justifies more spending on policies that fail to solve the real issues.

For decades, Valencia’s leaders have ignored the historical context. Paleoclimate data and records show that the region has faced severe flooding for over a millennium, with flood records dating as far back as the 11th century. The infamous 1957 flood remains one of the worst, and it took place during a period when CO2 levels were far lower. Yet, despite abundant evidence that flooding is a historical constant, the MSM and politicians are eager to push a story of “unprecedented” climate disaster.

Source: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1623/hysj.51.5.765

The 1957 Flood and a Misused Solution
The 1957 disaster should have been a lasting lesson. Valencia took immediate action, diverting the Turia River to protect its urban core. But instead of maintaining this safety buffer, politicians and planners exploited the diverted channel as an opportunity for development, treating flood protections as mere guidelines. They built right in the area that was supposed to serve as a safeguard, a move that no competent urban planner would endorse.

Population of Valencia, Spain from 1950-2024. Source: https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/cities/22567/valencia/population

Yesterday’s floods hit hardest in those very developments, where nature’s warning signs were long ignored. It’s a case of irresponsibility masquerading as climate alarm, where political convenience trumps public safety. It’s easier, after all, to talk about carbon emissions than to admit that they let builders turn a floodplain into a residential area.

Media and Political Spin: Selling Fear
The media’s coverage of Valencia’s flooding reveals a clear agenda. The Daily Mail’s report highlights the floods as “catastrophic” due to climate change but completely sidesteps the historical context. There’s no mention of the 1957 floods, no recognition that Valencia’s infrastructure was never designed to handle the scale of development that followed the river diversion. By focusing exclusively on climate change, the media misleads readers into thinking these floods are new, that they’re the product of our “modern” environment, rather than the result of centuries-old natural variability and shortsighted city management.

Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-14019451/Valencia-floods-catastrophic-climate-change.html

It’s far easier for the media and politicians to scare the public with an apocalyptic narrative than to confront the glaring failures in flood planning and infrastructure. They know fear sells and keeps people compliant. And when they sell the idea that only drastic climate policies can “fix” these issues, they’re diverting resources from real solutions, like responsible urban planning and effective flood defenses.

When Wihey Learn?
Valencia’s flooding should be a wake-up call, but not the one politicians and the media are pushing. Instead of blaming every extreme weather event on climate change, we need to demand a focus on accountability and proactive measures. Flooding is a natural occurrence, yet we’re being fed a story that downplays centuries of historical context to fit a climate agenda. Where are the scientists who should be calling out this blatant misrepresentation? Their silence enables this distortion to flourish, allowing politicians to dodge responsibility for neglecting infrastructure while pushing an easy scapegoat narrative.

If we keep ignoring the real causes, Valencia, and cities like it, will continue repeating the same costly mistakes, drowning underwater, the weight of poor planning, and political hypocrisy.

This article was originally published on October 30, 2024 at Irrational Fear, the substack page of Matthew Wielicki. Please subscribe to his substack page to read more articles by him.

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