A view of the flooded settlement of Pokrovka, some 90 km from the city of Petropavl, in northern Kazakhstan close to the border with Russia on Monday. AFP

The spring flooding due to the melting of snows at the end of winter are considered to be normal in Russian Siberia and in Kazakhstan across the border in Asia. But this year the flooding took a disastrous turn with many of the rivers in Russia flowing into Kazakhstan and rivers from Kazakhstan flowing north into Russia overflowed their banks, and thousands of homes were destroyed in the two countries, and many thousands of people have become homeless.

According to a Reuters report quoting Russian news agencies, 97,000 people in Kazakhstan were evacuated and in Russia 12,000 were evacuated, while more than 10,000 homes were flooded on the Russian side and more than 3,000 on the Kazakh side. The concern is greater because the Russian territory which is flooded is the wheat bowl of Russia, and Russia’s wheat exports are crucial for many countries in the Middle East and in Africa.

It is being said that the reason for flooding on a such large scale could be due to the rising spring temperatures that led to a swift melting of the snows, and also the land was already soggy because of rains in winter which then solidified as snow as temperatures dropped. The experts are as yet hesitating to link this event to climate change. But they are referring to the fact that a research team of the United States’ National Intelligence Council had commissioned research on the impact of climate change on Russia by 2030. The report that was based on the research indicated that there would be extreme weather events, which in would cause forest fires, floods and rise in temperatures.

The area affected by the floods in Russia includes the Ural mountain region, Siberia. In Kazakhstan, areas in the north and east were affected. The Ural River which rises in the Ural Mountains, flows through Kazakhstan’s industrial hub and joins the Caspian Sea. A Russian official in the region blamed the Kazakhs for not releasing the water from the reservoirs of dams built along the rivers. The Russian region of Western Siberia, which is one of the areas inundated by the floods, is home to the largest hydrocarbon basin, and Russia is one of the largest oil exporters to the world. The oil refinery at Orsk in the region has been closed. It processed 90,000 barrels per day of oil last year. There are indeed strategic implications of the flood situation in the area.

Not much attention has been paid on the impact of climate change in Russia, especially in the Ural region, in Siberia, and the Central Asian republics like Kazakhstan bordering Russia. Many of the climate experts have noticed the drying up of the Aral Sea in Uzbekistan at a rapid rate. But flooding has not been reckoned as a possible extreme weather event in the region. Regional authorities in Russia and Kazakhstan affected by the floods are responding with the rescue measures.

Perhaps it would be hasty to connect the issue of climate change with the flooding in Russia and Kazakhstan. This could be a one-off event, which could occur at infrequent times. But there is no denying the fact that Russia would be affected by the rapid melting of the Arctic ice to its north, and this would impact not just the polar regions of Russia, but the rest of the country in the southern part, especially on the Asian and European sides. This would require in the climate change programmes, the participation of Russia becomes crucial because it would impact the lives and economies of people in other parts of the world. Geopolitical rivalries could prove to be counterproductive.