Flooding triggers climate debate.

THE devastating floods in Boscastle intensified the global warming debate yesterday as experts remained divided as to the cause of freak weather disasters.

Scientists offered differing opinions as to what had caused the torrential downpours.

Dr David Viner, senior scientist at the Climatic Research Unit at the University of East Anglia, was one of those who felt the floods could be attributed, at least in part, to climate change.

``What we are seeing is a big shift in rainfall patterns, '' he said. ``When rainfall happens it will be a lot more intense, a lot heavier. These very extreme rainfall events are going to become more common over the coming decades.

However, Dr Mark Saunders, senior lecturer in climate physics at University College, London, said it was time to ``calm down the hype'' about climate change.

``There is evidence that climate change will make flooding events more common, but there is no way you can link the event in Cornwall to climate change -- you expect these freak weather events, '' he said.

``They have been happening since records began and there have been far worse ones in the last 50 to 100 years. It is not indicative of anything more lasting or of similar events happening more in the future. ''

Dr Saunders said predictions showed rainfall would be 10% higher in 100 years time and that as a consequence flooding would probably increase.

However, he said despite popular perception, rainfall this summer had been fairly average and there was nothing unusual about thunderstorms.