Why a river needs to leave its banks: the role of floods in nature
A river overflowing is usually seen as a disaster, but where an undeveloped floodplain remains, floods are part of the river's normal rhythm.
When a river bursts its banks, it is usually seen as a disaster. Roads, homes and fields are flooded, property is damaged, and people are put at risk. That is the common view of floods.
However, a river leaving its banks is not unnatural in itself. In places where an undeveloped floodplain has been preserved next to the river, floods are part of its usual rhythm of life.
This explanation comes from an analytical piece by the Russian-language service of LSM, Latvia's public media, which asks why floods are needed at all. The opening of the article stresses that whether an overflow is a disaster or a natural process depends largely on whether an undeveloped floodplain remains beside the river.
