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Economic damages from Hurricane Sandy attributable to sea level rise caused by anthropogenic climate change

Author

Listed:
  • Benjamin H. Strauss

    (Climate Central)

  • Philip M. Orton

    (Stevens Institute of Technology)

  • Klaus Bittermann

    (Tufts University
    Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research)

  • Maya K. Buchanan

    (Climate Central)

  • Daniel M. Gilford

    (Climate Central
    Rutgers University)

  • Robert E. Kopp

    (Rutgers University)

  • Scott Kulp

    (Climate Central)

  • Chris Massey

    (US Army Corps of Engineers)

  • Hans de Moel

    (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)

  • Sergey Vinogradov

    (Stevens Institute of Technology
    Binera, Inc.)

Abstract

In 2012, Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast of the United States, creating widespread coastal flooding and over $60 billion in reported economic damage. The potential influence of climate change on the storm itself has been debated, but sea level rise driven by anthropogenic climate change more clearly contributed to damages. To quantify this effect, here we simulate water levels and damage both as they occurred and as they would have occurred across a range of lower sea levels corresponding to different estimates of attributable sea level rise. We find that approximately $8.1B ($4.7B–$14.0B, 5th–95th percentiles) of Sandy’s damages are attributable to climate-mediated anthropogenic sea level rise, as is extension of the flood area to affect 71 (40–131) thousand additional people. The same general approach demonstrated here may be applied to impact assessments for other past and future coastal storms.

Suggested Citation

  • Benjamin H. Strauss & Philip M. Orton & Klaus Bittermann & Maya K. Buchanan & Daniel M. Gilford & Robert E. Kopp & Scott Kulp & Chris Massey & Hans de Moel & Sergey Vinogradov, 2021. "Economic damages from Hurricane Sandy attributable to sea level rise caused by anthropogenic climate change," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-9, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-22838-1
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-22838-1
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    Cited by:

    1. Kevin T. Smiley & Ilan Noy & Michael F. Wehner & Dave Frame & Christopher C. Sampson & Oliver E. J. Wing, 2022. "Social inequalities in climate change-attributed impacts of Hurricane Harvey," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-10, December.
    2. Sönke Dangendorf & Noah Hendricks & Qiang Sun & John Klinck & Tal Ezer & Thomas Frederikse & Francisco M. Calafat & Thomas Wahl & Torbjörn E. Törnqvist, 2023. "Acceleration of U.S. Southeast and Gulf coast sea-level rise amplified by internal climate variability," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-11, December.
    3. Jhantu Dey & Sayani Mazumder, 2023. "Development of an integrated coastal vulnerability index and its application to the low-lying Mandarmani–Dadanpatrabar coastal sector, India," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 116(3), pages 3243-3273, April.
    4. Apurba Roy & Ilan Noy, 2023. "Impact of extratropical cyclones, floods, and wildfires on firms’ financial performance in New Zealand," Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Springer;Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - SEEPS, vol. 25(4), pages 493-574, October.
    5. Simone Lucatello & Roberto Sánchez, 2022. "Climate Change in North America: Risks, Impacts, and Adaptation. A Reflection Based on the IPCC Report AR6 - 2022," Remef - Revista Mexicana de Economía y Finanzas Nueva Época REMEF (The Mexican Journal of Economics and Finance), Instituto Mexicano de Ejecutivos de Finanzas, IMEF, vol. 17(4), pages 1-18, Octubre -.
    6. Nwani, Chinazaekpere & Usman, Ojonugwa & Okere, Kingsley Ikechukwu & Bekun, Festus Victor, 2023. "Technological pathways to decarbonisation and the role of renewable energy: A study of European countries using consumption-based metrics," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    7. Hou, Wenjuan & Zhang, Xueliang & Wu, Maowei & Yuxin Feng, & Yang, Linsheng, 2022. "Integrating stability and complementarity to assess the accommodable generation potential of multiscale solar and wind resources: A case study in a resource-based area in China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 261(PB).
    8. Ben Clarke & Friederike Otto & Richard Jones, 2023. "When don’t we need a new extreme event attribution study?," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 176(5), pages 1-19, May.

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