SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
More than 300,000 American homes could be at risk of flooding due to rapidly rising sea levels, according to a study by the Union of Concerned Scientists. (Photo: Melissa Emmons Photography/Flickr/cc)
Study Shows 300,000 US Homes at Risk, $1 Trillion Price Tag as Rising Seas Trigger Chronic Flooding
Damage to homes in coastal areas could set off a domino effect—eroding property values, weakening tax bases, and affecting schools and infrastructure
Jun 18, 2018
Driven by the climate crisis and rising seas, coastal flooding could become a common occurrence for the owners of more than 300,000 American homes in the coming decades, according to a new study--and could have a domino effect on surrounding communities, schools, and infrastructure.
The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) released a report (pdf) on Monday showing that as many as 311,000 homes in coastal areas could flood more than 26 times per year over next 30 years--even without major storms taking place.
"Even homes along the Gulf coast that are elevated would be affected, as they'd have to drive through salt water to get to work or face their kids' school being cut off," Kristina Dahl, a senior climate scientist at UCS, told the Guardian. "You can imagine people walking away from mortgages, away from their homes."
Potential chronic flooding is expected to affect homes collectively valued at $117.5 billion and businesses costing more than $18 billion. By the end of the century, more than 2 million homes and commercial properties costing about $1 trillion could be at risk.
As houses become unlivable due to repeated damage, a declining property tax base could mean falling quality in schools, roads, infrastructure, and hospitals for many towns and cities, UCS found.
"For some communities, the potential hit to the local tax base could be staggering," said Dahl. "Some smaller, more rural communities may see 30, 50, or even 70 percent of their property tax revenue at risk due to the number of chronically inundated homes."
More than 10 percent of Florida's homes could be at risk, while hundreds of thousands of residential properties in New Jersey and New York could experience chronic flooding, potentially costing municipalities more than $3.5 billion in lost tax revenue.
Meanwhile, communities with high poverty levels could be all but wiped out by repeated flooding events.
"While wealthier homeowners may risk losing more of their net wealth cumulatively, less-wealthy ones are in jeopardy of losing a greater percentage of what they own," said Rachel Cleetus, a co-author of the report.
"Homes often represent a larger share of total assets for elderly or low-income residents. Renters too might find themselves in a tight market or having to put up with decaying buildings and increased nuisance flooding. Hits to the property tax base in low-income communities, which already experience significant underinvestment in critical services and infrastructure, could prove especially challenging."
The report comes about a year after President Donald Trump's withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement, and as the Trump administration has rolled back regulations aimed at curbing fossil fuel emissions--and gone to great lengths to erase scientifically-backed information about the climate crisis from government documents.
"Actions today, especially the amount of global warming emissions we release, will help determine what our coasts will look like at the end of the century," said Astrid Caldas, a co-author of the report.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Driven by the climate crisis and rising seas, coastal flooding could become a common occurrence for the owners of more than 300,000 American homes in the coming decades, according to a new study--and could have a domino effect on surrounding communities, schools, and infrastructure.
The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) released a report (pdf) on Monday showing that as many as 311,000 homes in coastal areas could flood more than 26 times per year over next 30 years--even without major storms taking place.
"Even homes along the Gulf coast that are elevated would be affected, as they'd have to drive through salt water to get to work or face their kids' school being cut off," Kristina Dahl, a senior climate scientist at UCS, told the Guardian. "You can imagine people walking away from mortgages, away from their homes."
Potential chronic flooding is expected to affect homes collectively valued at $117.5 billion and businesses costing more than $18 billion. By the end of the century, more than 2 million homes and commercial properties costing about $1 trillion could be at risk.
As houses become unlivable due to repeated damage, a declining property tax base could mean falling quality in schools, roads, infrastructure, and hospitals for many towns and cities, UCS found.
"For some communities, the potential hit to the local tax base could be staggering," said Dahl. "Some smaller, more rural communities may see 30, 50, or even 70 percent of their property tax revenue at risk due to the number of chronically inundated homes."
More than 10 percent of Florida's homes could be at risk, while hundreds of thousands of residential properties in New Jersey and New York could experience chronic flooding, potentially costing municipalities more than $3.5 billion in lost tax revenue.
Meanwhile, communities with high poverty levels could be all but wiped out by repeated flooding events.
"While wealthier homeowners may risk losing more of their net wealth cumulatively, less-wealthy ones are in jeopardy of losing a greater percentage of what they own," said Rachel Cleetus, a co-author of the report.
"Homes often represent a larger share of total assets for elderly or low-income residents. Renters too might find themselves in a tight market or having to put up with decaying buildings and increased nuisance flooding. Hits to the property tax base in low-income communities, which already experience significant underinvestment in critical services and infrastructure, could prove especially challenging."
The report comes about a year after President Donald Trump's withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement, and as the Trump administration has rolled back regulations aimed at curbing fossil fuel emissions--and gone to great lengths to erase scientifically-backed information about the climate crisis from government documents.
"Actions today, especially the amount of global warming emissions we release, will help determine what our coasts will look like at the end of the century," said Astrid Caldas, a co-author of the report.
Driven by the climate crisis and rising seas, coastal flooding could become a common occurrence for the owners of more than 300,000 American homes in the coming decades, according to a new study--and could have a domino effect on surrounding communities, schools, and infrastructure.
The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) released a report (pdf) on Monday showing that as many as 311,000 homes in coastal areas could flood more than 26 times per year over next 30 years--even without major storms taking place.
"Even homes along the Gulf coast that are elevated would be affected, as they'd have to drive through salt water to get to work or face their kids' school being cut off," Kristina Dahl, a senior climate scientist at UCS, told the Guardian. "You can imagine people walking away from mortgages, away from their homes."
Potential chronic flooding is expected to affect homes collectively valued at $117.5 billion and businesses costing more than $18 billion. By the end of the century, more than 2 million homes and commercial properties costing about $1 trillion could be at risk.
As houses become unlivable due to repeated damage, a declining property tax base could mean falling quality in schools, roads, infrastructure, and hospitals for many towns and cities, UCS found.
"For some communities, the potential hit to the local tax base could be staggering," said Dahl. "Some smaller, more rural communities may see 30, 50, or even 70 percent of their property tax revenue at risk due to the number of chronically inundated homes."
More than 10 percent of Florida's homes could be at risk, while hundreds of thousands of residential properties in New Jersey and New York could experience chronic flooding, potentially costing municipalities more than $3.5 billion in lost tax revenue.
Meanwhile, communities with high poverty levels could be all but wiped out by repeated flooding events.
"While wealthier homeowners may risk losing more of their net wealth cumulatively, less-wealthy ones are in jeopardy of losing a greater percentage of what they own," said Rachel Cleetus, a co-author of the report.
"Homes often represent a larger share of total assets for elderly or low-income residents. Renters too might find themselves in a tight market or having to put up with decaying buildings and increased nuisance flooding. Hits to the property tax base in low-income communities, which already experience significant underinvestment in critical services and infrastructure, could prove especially challenging."
The report comes about a year after President Donald Trump's withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement, and as the Trump administration has rolled back regulations aimed at curbing fossil fuel emissions--and gone to great lengths to erase scientifically-backed information about the climate crisis from government documents.
"Actions today, especially the amount of global warming emissions we release, will help determine what our coasts will look like at the end of the century," said Astrid Caldas, a co-author of the report.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.