Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Sellers of real estate should be required to inform prospective buyers
of the danger of fl ooding of the property and how often it has occurred.
California has had such a requirement since 1997.
New structures on fl oodplains should be required to be as fl ood-
proofed as possible by placing shields around buildings or erecting build-
ings on stilts that raise the bottom fl oor to several feet above ground
level. The required height would be determined by the height of the
greatest recorded fl ood.
The government should stop subsidizing the purchase of insurance
for those who build on fl oodplains. The National Flood Insurance
Program is the only natural hazard for which the federal government
provides insurance. The public should not be required to pay for
the foolishness of those who build in dangerous areas. Those who
take risks should be prepared to cover their losses if they lose their
gamble.
Hurricane Floods Are Worse
The disastrous 1993 fl ooding in the Midwest was caused by the interac-
tion of two contrasting air masses over the land. But as Mother Nature
taught us once again in 2005, even greater disasters can be caused by
hurricanes generated by atmospheric and oceanographic conditions far
out to sea.
Added to the history of calamitous hurricanes is the well-publicized
observation by specialists that climate change over recent decades has
caused a global temperature increase. Hurricane specialists have pointed
out that ocean surface temperatures have increased dramatically since
the 1970s and that increases in ocean surface temperature increase
both the severity of hurricanes and possibly also their frequency (table
3.1).
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The average temperature of waters at ocean surface in July 2009
was the highest ever recorded, at 62.6°F.
Both the number of named storms and the number of hurricanes have
increased over the past twenty years. An atmospheric scientist has cal-
culated that the total power released in hurricanes has increased perhaps
by 50 percent in recent decades.
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In other words, things are getting worse
for residents of the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, the prime locations for
hurricane landfalls (fi gure 3.2). Coastal scientists have determined, to no
one's surprise, that New Orleans is number one on the list of East Coast
and Gulf Coast areas most vulnerable to loss of life and property damage
in hurricanes.
