|
|
|
|
|
|
|
WHOSE PROBLEM, WHOSE PRICE TAG?
Why are losses from natural disasters in the United States increasing? Because Americans like to build on beaches, in floodplains, atop earthquake faults, and in the middle of forested areas. Natural disasters are not simply random events that occur without warning; they can also reflect the choices we make about where and how we build. We know that certain areas are more prone to natural hazards than others. We know that hurricanes will form in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and that some of these hurricanes will come ashore and cause terrible damage and loss of life in coastal areas, as Hurricane Andrew did in 1992. We know that low-lying areas will flood, that earthquakes will occur along active fault zones, that forests will burn. And yet we continue to build there, and we are doing it with greater frequency as our population grows. How we build our structures is equally important. Hurricane Andrew caused widespread damage to many houses in Florida simply because existing building codes were not enforced. Had they been, many of these homes would have protected the people inside, rather than collapsing when their roofs were blown off. In earthquakes in the San Francisco area in 1989 and Los Angeles in 1994, many older homes collapsed because they hadn’t undergone retrofitting to make them earthquake-resistant. And homes that were flooded during the Great Flood of 1993 along the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers could have been raised to sit above flood level or even relocated to safer places. According to Dr. Dennis Mileti, Director of the Natural Hazards Center at the University of Colorado, the United States averaged 500 million dollars a week in losses from natural disasters between January 1, 1975, and December 31, 1994. These losses cost all citizens money in the form of increased property insurance rates and taxes that pay for disaster relief. Although insurance is the preferred method of covering disaster costs because it creates a sort of “savings account” without using taxpayer dollars, many insurers are cutting back on the coverage they offer, due to fears of catastrophic losses. And when insurance isn’t available, taxpayers often foot the bill for rebuilding. At the same time many homeowners are uninsured for floods and earthquakes, because they believe they can’t afford the premiums. Only one-third of homes in floodplains are insured under the National Flood Insurance Program, and many individuals don’t even realize their homeowner’s policy doesn’t cover flood damage. Natural hazard mitigation should play a major role in the long-term sustainability of every community. We need to make jurisdictions aware of their risk from natural hazards as well as their responsibility to reduce or even prevent disasters by restricting development in unsafe areas and enacting and enforcing adequate building codes.
|
