Rising sea levels and the case against federal disaster relief
Government disaster relief and prevention efforts are noble, but they can have unforeseen negative consequences.
Government disaster relief and prevention efforts are noble, but they can have unforeseen negative consequences.
Who knew that Grist has a free markets libertarian streak? 聽This聽piece聽聽by Tom Horton makes 聽a lot of sense. 聽He argues that sea level rise along the Virginia coastline should nudge an organized retreat and the growth of wetlands. 聽But, he notes that government disaster relief efforts offer insurance and will have perverse effects as we adapt to climate change. Here is a quote from the end of his piece.
Ultimately the taxpayers will pick up the bills, bailing out places like Bluff Point as flooding escalates. Taxpayer-supported federal flood insurance programs, beach replenishment programs, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency are all seeing costs soar as coastal flooding escalates. Private insurers have already pulled back from many coastal areas."As you know, I discuss this exact point at length in my "Climatopolis."聽 We need to harness market forces to help us to adapt to climate change. 聽Well meaning government actions often have nasty unintended consequences and this is a classic example. 聽 聽