3 ms·

Isn’t buying property in coastal cities effectively putting deniers’ money where their mouth is?

klipt 5y ago
Are coastal cities the only places that will become unlivable? Sea level rise gets a lot of attention but I wonder if a lot of the interior US won't just turn into unlivable desert too. San Francisco is coastal for example but a lot of it is actually at high enough elevation to survive sea level rise, and I suspect its proximity to the ocean makes it more likely to weather temperature increases than somewhere like Phoenix (which is totally screwed if its water source dries up).
- hyperman1 5y ago
  In Belgium there was unusually heavy rainfall causing flooding in the inland. Coastal regions were spared. The rainfall has been attributed to climate change by our weather services. https://www.insider.com/floods-belgium-heavy-rain-wreaks-havoc-2021-7 https://www.insider.com/floods-belgium-heavy-rain-wreaks-hav... A few weeks before, a windburst, basically air dropping down from great hight, came from nowhere and destroyed some homes, again in the inland. No direct attribution to climate change, but another weather fenomena so rare they had to explain it to the news readers. https://www.msn.com/nl-be/nieuws/nationaal/beauraing-eerste-analyse-wijst-op-een-tornado/ar-AALfemI https://www.msn.com/nl-be/nieuws/nationaal/beauraing-eerste-... At least the coastal regions have an easy fix: higher dikes.
  - tremon 5y ago
    The inland regions also have an easy fix: uiterwaarden [1]. Basically, accept that the rivers will periodically overflow and designate an area immediately next to the river as a perennial wetland. In NL, they're usually combined with rewilding projects. By allowing the river to overflow in certain areas, downstream cities along the river won't be faced with flash floods (just a prolonged period of higher-than-average water levels). (edit: it seems "wet meadow" [2] is the closest English equivalent, although those seem of natural origin and not specifically intended as a flood-management device) [1] https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uiterwaard https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uiterwaard [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marsh#Wet_meadows https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marsh#Wet_meadows
    - hyperman1 5y ago
      That will help with the flooding but not with the windfall. The only thing I can think of for windfall is living with a much stronger roof over your head.
beckingz 5y ago
Not when the government subsidizes flood insurance.
jacquesm 5y ago
That depends. Coastal cities are going to be fine for many years to come whereas inland areas where the height differences are more pronounced are going to see lots of flooding. Keep in mind that the coastal plain is just that: a plain, there is a lot of space for water to be routed to, whereas in a more accentuated terrain it can only stream through the valleys.

Are coastal cities the only places that will become unlivable? Sea level rise gets a lot of attention but I wonder if a lot of the interior US won't just turn into unlivable desert too. San Francisco is coastal for example but a lot of it is actually at high enough elevation to survive sea level rise, and I suspect its proximity to the ocean makes it more likely to weather temperature increases than somewhere like Phoenix (which is totally screwed if its water source dries up).

hyperman1 5y ago
In Belgium there was unusually heavy rainfall causing flooding in the inland. Coastal regions were spared. The rainfall has been attributed to climate change by our weather services. https://www.insider.com/floods-belgium-heavy-rain-wreaks-havoc-2021-7 https://www.insider.com/floods-belgium-heavy-rain-wreaks-hav... A few weeks before, a windburst, basically air dropping down from great hight, came from nowhere and destroyed some homes, again in the inland. No direct attribution to climate change, but another weather fenomena so rare they had to explain it to the news readers. https://www.msn.com/nl-be/nieuws/nationaal/beauraing-eerste-analyse-wijst-op-een-tornado/ar-AALfemI https://www.msn.com/nl-be/nieuws/nationaal/beauraing-eerste-... At least the coastal regions have an easy fix: higher dikes.
- tremon 5y ago
  The inland regions also have an easy fix: uiterwaarden [1]. Basically, accept that the rivers will periodically overflow and designate an area immediately next to the river as a perennial wetland. In NL, they're usually combined with rewilding projects. By allowing the river to overflow in certain areas, downstream cities along the river won't be faced with flash floods (just a prolonged period of higher-than-average water levels). (edit: it seems "wet meadow" [2] is the closest English equivalent, although those seem of natural origin and not specifically intended as a flood-management device) [1] https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uiterwaard https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uiterwaard [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marsh#Wet_meadows https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marsh#Wet_meadows
  - hyperman1 5y ago
    That will help with the flooding but not with the windfall. The only thing I can think of for windfall is living with a much stronger roof over your head.

beckingz 5y ago

Not when the government subsidizes flood insurance.

jacquesm 5y ago

That depends. Coastal cities are going to be fine for many years to come whereas inland areas where the height differences are more pronounced are going to see lots of flooding. Keep in mind that the coastal plain is just that: a plain, there is a lot of space for water to be routed to, whereas in a more accentuated terrain it can only stream through the valleys.