Adaptation could reduce damage from climate-driven storms by a third

While the push for global action to reduce emissions continues, disaster-prone communities face an expensive decision: Should they spend money on adaptations like seawalls, stilts, storm drains, and windproof garage doors to better withstand climate change? An ASU economics professor shares her opinion.

While the push for global action to reduce emissions continues, disaster-prone communities face an expensive decision: Should they spend money on adaptations like seawalls, stilts, storm drains, and windproof garage doors to better withstand climate change? An ASU economics professor shares her opinion.

In this story published Nov. 30, 2021, in Newsweek:

My research estimated that we have approximately $800 billion worth of storm adaptation infrastructure already in place in the U.S. Assuming incentives for adaptation grow over time to mirror escalating climate threats, adaptation would cut expected storm damage by a third by the end of the century. The overall result, after subtracting out the price of the adaptations, would be an 11% reduction in storm-related costs caused by climate change, compared to doing nothing and simply paying to rebuild after each storm.

– Stephie Fried, assistant professor of economics