U.S. report links rise in disaster relief spending to climate change

There is a need to build community resiliency and awareness in light of the apparent link between climate change and the rise in disaster relief spending in the United States, concludes the Washington, D.C.-based Center for American Progress (CAP).

“As extreme weather events due to climate change increase in frequency and/or ferocity, it is critical to get an accurate account of how much disaster relief costs the government and taxpayers, and to plan for the future by building community resiliency,” notes a statement from CAP, an independent, nonpartisan educational institute dedicated to improving the lives of Americans.

CAP reports that beyond Superstorm Sandy – which marks its six-month anniversary this week – the U.S. had 24 floods, storms, droughts, heat waves and wildfires that each caused at least $1 billion in damages in 2011 and 2012. Combined, these extreme weather events were responsible for 1,107 fatalities and as much as $188 billion in economic damages, the center adds.

An analysis conducted by CAP found that the U.S. federal government spent $136 billion for disaster relief and recovery from 2011 to 2013, representing almost $400 per home per year, notes a statement from CAP.

“As climate change accelerates, so will federal spending on disaster relief and recovery, which will ultimately be paid for by taxpayers,” notes the report released yesterday, Disastrous Spending: Federal Disaster-Relief Expenditures Rise Amid More Extreme Weather.

“Currently, public officials lack complete knowledge about annual federal spending on disaster relief and recovery — a major omission at a time when scientists expect that extreme weather will likely increase in frequency and/or severity due to climate change,” notes the CAP statement.

“Calculating the actual cost of disasters to the federal government and taxpayers should strengthen the case for assisting communities with their resilience plans, which will reduce future damages and reduce taxpayer spending for recovery.”

CAP cites the Draft Climate Assessment Report of the National Climate Assessment Development Advisory Committee (NCADAC), which states: “Human-induced climate change has already increased the frequency and intensity of some extremes. Over the last 50 years, much of the U.S. has seen an increase in prolonged stretches of excessively high temperatures, more heavy downpours, and in some regions, more severe droughts.”

The NCADAC draft further notes, “Infrastructure across the U.S. is being adversely affected by phenomena associated with climate change, including sea level rise, storm surge, heavy downpours and extreme heat.”

The CAP report points out that many communities are undertaking efforts to make buildings, shelters, water treatment, electricity, roads and other vital infrastructure more resilient to damage from extreme weather. Although such efforts are expensive, “making these investments can help save money in the future, when storms, floods, heat waves, droughts and wildfires will become more frequent and/or more devastating,” the report adds.

CAP offers a number of recommendations to respond to the potential growth in disaster-relief spending, including developing a federal community-resilience fund to help communities protect themselves from future extreme weather and to pay for the resilience fund by levying a user fee on fossil fuels.