Reacción a "A new study concludes that climate change intensified the flooding caused by the dana in Valencia in 2024"

In my view, this is a scientifically robust study that provides relevant evidence on how anthropogenic warming can intensify extreme rainfall events. The authors compare the event with a pre-industrial scenario using high-resolution modelling and conclude that present-day conditions may have increased precipitation intensity by around 20% and substantially expanded the area affected by extreme rainfall. This approach aligns with existing scientific literature on the intensification of the hydrological cycle in a warmer climate. That said, the study itself acknowledges its limitations: it analyses a single event, and its methodology allows for an assessment of how that event would have differed under other climatic conditions, but it does not establish the probability of occurrence nor can its results be automatically extrapolated to all similar cases.

From the perspective of urban planning and spatial governance, this type of research cannot, on its own, attribute a specific disaster to climate change, but it does strengthen the scientific basis for guiding adaptation policies. In my opinion, its main practical relevance lies in emphasising that planning cannot rely solely on historical records if extreme events are becoming more intense. This supports the integration of future climate scenarios into risk maps, the delineation of flood-prone areas, the design of drainage infrastructure, and urban resilience standards. Ultimately, rather than providing definitive answers about a single episode, the study contributes to consolidating a framework of evidence that justifies more prudent and preventive territorial planning in the face of potentially increasing hydrometeorological risk in Mediterranean regions.