Talkback

The mega floods which hit Penang, Kedah and parts of Perlis over the weekend were a cause of consternation for many Malaysians.

Apart from concerns about alleged over-development, observers have also noted that climate change is a major factor that needs to be addressed by state governments, and on a micro level, city and town planners.

Experts believe that the authorities need to plan ahead and take into account weather pattern changes to minimise tragedies such as these.

What are your views?

The facts are there. Global weather patterns are changing. What we used to take for granted are also slowly changing. Our usual rainy season has also shifted slightly and no longer follows what was previously though.

This means that when building new cities and towns, all these factors need to be taken into consideration. We cannot afford to stick our heads in the sand and hope that this will pass.

JB KHOO

I don’t get it. Extreme weather aside, we also need to acknowledge that bad, and a lack of planning are to be blamed as well. Look at the Netherlands, for example. The country is technically located below sea level, and yet, very rarely do you hear of floods engulfing the country. What did they do differently from us? I’m no expert but I suspect that they plan well ahead for the worst, and as such, are prepared.

GHAZ DAUD

I don’t know how long we can keep blaming the weather before we reach a point where we have to shoulder some of the responsibility ourselves. We know that climate change is real. We know that weather patterns are changing. So what are we doing about it? Where are the plans to tackle these changes and act accordingly? Surely we don’t need seven more people to die before we act.

TEH SU LYN

During my childhood, I used to view floods as a fun experience. My family used to go back to Dungun during the year-end school holidays, which always coincided with the monsoon season. The kampung would flood, of course, and I wouldn’t care because it meant that I got to wade out in the largest swimming pool I could imagine. But now, as I grow older, I begin to understand the cost we have to pay each time floods strike.

WAN KHALIMI WAN AHMAD