Vermont Floods Highlight America’s Adaptation Efforts’ Limits to Climate Change
Vermont Floods Highlight America’s Adaptation Efforts’ Limits to Climate Change
The flooding that occurred in Vermont last week as a result of severe rainfall, which caused havoc in areas that were not near rivers or coastlines, is proof of an exceptionally dangerous climate threat: Flooding of catastrophic proportions is becoming more likely to take place unexpectedly and in any location.
Experts warn that the United States of America is not even close to being prepared for that threat.
The concept that flooding can occur anyplace that it is possible for rain to fall is not a new one. However, rising temperatures make the situation even more severe since they make it possible for the air to contain more moisture, which ultimately results in more violent and unexpected downpours that appear out of nowhere. In addition, this transition has extremely significant repercussions.
Rachel Cleetus, policy director for the climate and energy programme at the Union of Concerned Scientists, stated that it is getting harder and harder to adapt to the changing conditions. “It’s getting harder and harder to adapt to these changing conditions,” “It’s just happening all the time and everywhere.”
It is already a challenge for the federal government to get cities in the United States ready for extreme flooding by improving storm drains and pumps, constructing levees and sea walls, elevating roads and other essential infrastructure, and providing more funds for these projects. It is possible that the most flood-prone locations of the country, such as New Orleans, Miami, Houston, Charleston, or even areas of New York City, may quickly devour the whole funding allocated by the government for climate resilience, without providing a solution to any of their individual problems. This is because sea levels are rising and storms are becoming more intense.
It is expected that the federal flood maps, which are used by governments as a reference to select where to build houses and infrastructure, will be updated on a regular basis. However, they frequently fall short of accurately assessing the whole risk. This is typically due to a lack of resources, but it can also be the consequence of resistance from local politicians who are opposed to imposing new constraints on development.
In addition
the flooding that occurred in Vermont indicates that the government cannot concentrate its efforts solely on the apparent places, such as those located near rivers or coasts.
However, the United States does not have a comprehensive national precipitation database that is kept up to date and that may assist in informing homes, communities, and the government about the growing dangers posed by severe rains.
According to statistics provided by the First Street Foundation, a nonprofit research organisation based in New York City, the number of homes in Vermont that are actually at risk from flooding is three times as high as what is depicted on government flood maps.
This so-called “hidden risk” is at an alarmingly high level not only in one region of the country but throughout the whole country. According to First Street, the number of properties that are at risk in Utah due to rainfall is eight times higher than what is depicted on the government flood maps. This is the case in Utah. In Pennsylvania, the danger is five and a half times as great as it is in Montana, where it is only four times as dangerous. About 16 million homes and businesses across the country are vulnerable to flooding, compared to the 7.5 million that are located in federally designated flood zones.
As a direct consequence of this, regions that, at first glance, may not seem at risk, such as Vermont, have been hit by severe flooding. Storms that occurred during the summer prior forced visitors to leave Yellowstone National Park since certain areas were closed. In the month of March, severe rainfall in Nevada, the driest state in the US, resulted in the declaration of a federal disaster in six of the state’s counties.
According to Mathew Sanders, who heads up the state resilience initiatives for the Pew Charitable Trusts, the recent flooding in Vermont emphasises the need to invest more money on modelling and planning for future flood disasters. “You have to look at how the water is going to flow,” he stated to her. “It’s almost like we need to reimagine what the most strategic interventions will be.”
The abundance of water almost always brings catastrophe to areas that are least equipped to deal with it.
The previous year, a torrent of rain caused flash floods that swept across the hollows in the eastern part of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The force of the water ripped apart some of the homes, damaged some of the trucks, and filled the surviving structures with mud and debris. There were more than 35 fatalities.
Flooding is a common occurrence for the settlements that can be found dispersed throughout the Appalachian Mountains. This is caused by water overflowing from the creeks that run through the region. However, the severity of that flood caused long-established families to be perplexed. Gary Moore, whose home was damaged just outside of Fleming-Neon, Kentucky, said in the days after the storm, “We went from laying in bed to homeless in less than two hours.” Moore’s home was in the path of the river.
The floods that were made worse by climate change were also made worse by the residual consequences of coal mining. As the industry that previously powered cities began to decline, it left behind barren hillsides and mountains with their summits blasted off. This resulted in an increase in the frequency and severity of floods. The rate and amount of runoff caused by rain became significantly worse with the destruction of trees.
In Houston, catastrophic and disastrous floods have been a frequent threat for a long time, to the point where the deadliest storms have become a shorthand for marking time: Tropical Storm Beta (2020), Tropical Storm Imelda (2019), Hurricane Harvey (2017), and the Tax Day deluge (2016).
However
in recent years, floodwaters have broken into as many as half of the residences that were located outside of the recognised flood danger zones. Because of rising water in the creeks and bayous that run through the area, an investigation conducted by the Harris County Flood Control District discovered that 68 percent of the properties that were flooded as a result of Hurricane Harvey were located in areas that were not inside the 100-year floodplain.
After a rainfall caused by the leftovers of Tropical Storm Claudette in 2021, a flash flood submerged homes and businesses in the city of Summerville, Georgia, which is nestled in the hills in the northwest portion of the state. The city has a population of approximately 4,400 people. A significant portion of Summerville is located outside the area that is considered to be at risk of flooding once every 100 years; yet, the devastation that occurred and the cleanup that followed overwhelmed the town.
