2B.10B - Consequences of Coastal Flooding and Storm Surges
Coastal flooding and storm surges can have serious economic and social consequences for coastal communities in both developing and developed countries.
Flooding and storm surges are both one-off events and can occur decades apart. Flooding tends to be larger in areal extent and involves greater losses; it can be classified as a natural disaster in some cases. A storm surge is a temporary rise in sea level produced by very low surface air pressure that leads to short-term coastal flooding, and these tend to be more serious in tropical latitudes.
Many more people are at risk from them than coastal erosion (from which few people are directly at risk), and it has more serious economic and social consequences.
Consequences in Developed Countries
Australia (future flooding)
- The IPCC estimates a sea level rise of 28-98 cm sea level rise by 2100, with the most likely rise being 55 cm
- A 1 m rise would flood:
- 116,000 homes causing property damage of US $72 billion;
- $87 billion worth of commercial property threatened
- $67 billion road and rail infrastructure.
- 5 power stations,
- 258 emergency service stations,
- 75 hospitals and
- 44 water and sewage plants.
- Social costs would include the break up of communities, loss of livelihood, e.g. fishing, tourism, and amenity loss (?)
- Coral reefs forming the Great Barrier Reef will die if they are unable to grow fast enough to keep up with sea level rise, leading to a loss in tourism income.
North Sea Flood, UK, 2013 (Part of the winter storms)
- Storm surges reached heights of more than 5 m (e.g. in Hull)
- On the 5 December 2013 a large storm surge hit the east coast of the UK causing widespread flooding along the coast.
- Low pressure, high winds and high tidal pressures combined
- 2 deaths in the UK
- Hundreds of people were evacuated from Rhyl, in Denbighshire
- Loss of amenity value - nature reserve damaged in Skegness
- Loss of livelihood - businesses affected in Lowestoft, Suffolk as the harbour area, railway station and southern section of the town centre were flooded
- The EA reported 1,400 homes flooded in England and Wales
- Damage of about £1 billion over the course of the winter
- All rail services cancelled in Scotland
- 40,000 homes in Scotland and Northern England lost power
Consequences in Developing Countries
Philippines (Emerging country, effects of flooding)
- IPCC estimates a rise of 60 cm - 1 m by 2100 in the Philippines
- A 1 m rise would cause $6.5 billion of property damage
- San Fernando in the north of Luzon predicted to lose 123,000 m^2 beach with $95,000 p.a. tourism revenue
- Fishing industry losses estimated at $168,000 p.a.
- Much of the threatened area is poor shanty towns, e.g. Cavite City and Las Piñas in Manila, with low property value
- A 1 m rise would affect 2.3 million people, and 62% of Manila in the south of Luzon Island
- Loss of livelihood - fishing, tourism
- Loss of amenity value - San Fernando beach
- Social cost high as alternative employment is difficult to find in the formal sector
Philippines 2013, Typoon Haiyan
- One of the most powerful tropical storms ever with a 4-5 m surge
- Damages of about US $2 billion, centred on the city of Tacloban
- In Tacloban 90% of structures destroyed or damaged
- At least 6,300 deaths
- 30,000 injured
- 1.9 million homeless
- 6 million displaced - 20,000 fled to Manila
(More examples)
Netherlands 1953 (North Sea flood)
UK 2013-14 (Winter Storms)
USA 2012, Hurricane Sandy
- Caused by a mid-latitude depression moving south through the North Sea generating a 5m storm surge.
- Almost 10% of Dutch farmland flooded (e)
- 40,000 buildings damaged (e)
- 10,000 buildings destroyed (e)
- 1800 deaths (s)
UK 2013-14 (Winter Storms)
- Caused by coastal and other flooding from a succession of depressions and their storm surges
- Damage of about £1 billion over the course of the winter (e)
- 17 deaths, from all causes (s)
USA 2012, Hurricane Sandy
- The landfall of hurricane Sandy in New Jersey and other US states with a storm surge of up to 4 m
- US $70 billion in damage (e)
- 6 million people lost power (s)
- 350,000 homes in New Jersey were damaged or destroyed (e)