THE heavy rainfall and devastating flooding which have hit Cumbria and other parts of the UK fit with expert predictions for how the country will be affected by climate change.

While scientists will not point to a single event and say it has been caused by global warming, they are clear that human influence on the climate is loading the dice in favour of these extreme events.

We can wring our hands in despair at the flooding that devastates towns, villages and communities, but when it comes to what's largely to blame, it seems we need to look at human greed, consumerism and mass production.

Greenhouse gas emissions from power generation, industry, transport, deforestation and agriculture are pushing up global temperatures, warn scientists. Warmer temperatures mean the atmosphere can hold more water, with humidity increasing around five per cent for every 1C rise, which in turn prompts more intense rainfall and storms.

Heavy rainfall can cause flash flooding, where rain falls too quickly to soak into the ground - especially if it's already saturated from previous storms, or baked hard by previously dry conditions as in the 2007 summer floods. It can also cause river flooding, when rivers are overwhelmed with the amount of water flowing into them.

Increased storminess can batter coasts and cause storm surges which combine with rising sea levels to lead to coastal flooding where defences fail.

One of the predicted consequences for the UK of climate change is an increase in very wet winters, such as the one seen in 2013/2014 - the wettest winter on record for England and Wales - extreme weather and flooding.

In the wake of the 2013/2014 winter, which saw widespread flooding, researchers from Oxford University found climate change was already making this kind of intensely wet winter 25per cent more likely, meaning that what would be a one-in-100-year event has became a one-in-80-year event.

Periods of intense rainfall could increase in frequency by a factor of five this century as global temperatures rise, the Government's advisory Committee on Climate Change has warned.

Defences designed to stand against a one-in-100-year event will provide a lower level of protection and be overwhelmed more frequently. Despite spending on defences, the number of homes and businesses at risk will increase in future decades, the committee says.

But how much worse extreme weather and flooding becomes will depend on efforts the world takes to curb rising temperatures.

If temperature rises are limited to 2C - the threshold beyond which "dangerous" climate change is expected - the UK's flood risk should be manageable, but if global temperatures soar by 4C, flood damage would double even if the Government continues to invest in defences, the CCC warns.

The flooding of the past few days throws into sharp relief the need for countries now meeting at crucial United Nations talks in Paris to secure a new international deal that will avoid dangerous climate change and its impacts.

Environmentalist and Telegraph & Argus columnist Keith Thomson says the increase in flooding is now at "Indian monsoon levels" with more than a foot of rain in a 24-hour period, and he fears it’s too late to do much about reducing it.

With climate change continuing to raise temperatures, he predicts more rain, turbulent storms and flooding. And, he adds, by the end of the century in many areas the mean sea level could be a metre higher - so even without much rain there'll be more flooding.

While it may be too late to prevent future flooding, one way to alleviate the fall-out would be to avoid building on flood plains, which are part of the river channel. Keith says one way of stopping water getting into rivers so quickly is by increasing the ground infiltration in headwater areas, which involves "replacing all the pasture with the trees that we cut down in the past".

Says Keith: "There is very little we can do about the increase in flooding because of the impact of climate change, with rising temperatures and sea levels. Engineering work on the lower reaches of rivers does the opposite of what it’s intended to do, and the only real response for us is not to build on the flood plain, which is part of the river channel, and to reforest the hills where the rivers start to slow down the run off.

"Additionally, of course, we should do all we can to reduce the CO2 emissions that our lifestyles produce."