2024-08-22 19:47:19
“The real disaster is not the hurricane itself, but the way in which it attacks society, politics and infrastructure. A hurricane of a certain strength, speed and rainfall can have drastically different outcomes depending on whether it happens.” When the historian Andy Horowitz wrote his book about “Katrina”, he did not have in mind the heat waves, which are becoming more frequent and intense.
The philosophy however is exactly the same. People go where they can afford housing, and it’s getting more and more dangerous.
A decent home is a safe haven from the volatile, sometimes scary world outside. But millions of Americans are becoming less and less safe in their own homes, and that’s not because of a sudden spike in crime (which is actually down in most places), but in climate and housing policy.
Climate crisis and prohibitive building regulations
Many of America’s cities they are in an advantageous position to withstand the coming decades of the climate crisis.
But since, local laws and residents’ reactions have made it almost impossible to build new homes in these, would-be residents are pushed into more dangerous areas.
Because of the collective refusal to build more housing, the only affordable homes for middle- and working-class households are in disaster-prone areas. Those who move to the high-risk areas are deprived of the safety that everyone should be able to enjoy in their homes.
“Fate to lose their homes – or even their lives”
“Until action is taken, even more of them are destined to lose their homes – or their lives,” the Business Insider article highlights.
To be sure, income and climate risk are not perfectly correlated, several wealthier enclaves are at risk from coastal erosion, for example.
Unevenness in the distribution of risks
Extreme heat “baked” much of the United States this summer. These heat waves have deadly consequences: In 2023 alone, they killed 2,302 Americans.
However, although many parts of the country faced high temperatures, risks were not evenly distributed.
Inland areas, like California’s fast-growing Central Valley, experienced sweltering heat waves.
At the same time, the West Coast, the safest place from heat attacks as it is near the Pacific Ocean, stubbornly refuses to accept new residents.
Thanks to the city’s anemic new housing growth due to strict urban planning regulations, San Francisco’s population has remained stagnant for years, while house prices have skyrocketed.
On the contrary growth was faster in warmer regions where housing is plentiful but deadly heat is much more common
This dividing line is a snapshot of the trend developing across the US: Internal migration pushes more people into danger.
The dangerous Sun Belt
The nation’s fastest-growing states are in the Sun Belt (the broader region of the southern US, ): Texas, Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas are in the part of the country most at risk of extreme heat as the climate crisis worsens.
Last year there were more than 300 heat-related deaths in Texas.
The specific states are also located inat the mercy of hurricanes, which climate change has similarly exacerbated.
And long-term consequences
Even if they manage to avoid sudden disasters, those ‘displaced’ in the periphery may face long-term consequences.
In addition to the dangers of heat, fire and smoke inhalation, there are the everyday consequences of being geographically cut off from the center of a metropolitan area. In 2010, nearly 10% of Americans lived in areas where it would take more than an hour to get to a trauma care center in the event of an emergency. For those who work in the city center, the long commute from the suburbs can be dangerous. Long commutes by car have been associated with higher blood pressure, while increasing the risk of traffic accidents.
The hypocrisy of NIMBYs
“We have a moral imperative to allow more housing to be built in the parts of the country that are already able to accommodate more people,” writes Andy Horowitz, denouncing the hypocrisy of the NIMBYs.
«Supporters of the “Not In My Backyard” trend, reacting to projects or facilities planned to be developed in their nearest geographical zone ethey have cleverly invoked environmental concerns to block residential development in these areas,” he notes.
“But making it possible for more people to live in these areas is essential to the sustainable and safe development of our country for the next generation.”
naftemporiki.gr