August 31, 2008

What should America do with all the homes in hurricane and flood zones as climate change just gets worse and worse?


Eventually people living on the coasts, and in homes under sea level, will not be able to get private insurance. That day will come sooner than you think.

Then the question will be - should taxpayers foot the bill for people to live in places where hurricanes and flooding will continue to destroy their homes, year after year after year?

Should New Orleans have been rebuilt? When it gets taken out again, should it be rebuilt (at taxpayer expense) again?

[here's the latest path. good luck and godspeed to the people of Louisiana. and please, please think about moving, will you? it's just gonna keep happening, and the broke US government spent all the money in Iraq and on gambling bankers, and can't afford to take care of you anymore]


30 comments:

Anonymous said...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Category_5_Atlantic_hurricanes

1970s
Edith 1971 140 260 160
Anita 1977 150 280 175
David 1979 150 280 175

1980s
Allen 1980 165 305 190
Gilbert 1988 160 295 185
Hugo 1989 140 260 160

1990s
Andrew 1992 150 280 175
Mitch 1998 155 285 180

2000s
Isabel 2003 145 270 165
Ivan 2004 145 270 165
Emily 2005 140 260 160
Katrina 150 280 175
Rita 155 285 180
Wilma 160 295 185
Dean 2007 150 280 175
Felix 150 280 175

Anonymous said...

NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin ordered a mandatory evacuation of the city beginning 8 a.m. Sunday but urged residents to consider escaping "the mother of all storms" before then.
New Orleans residents leave Friday via Interstate 10 westbound ahead of Hurricane Gustav.

"You need to be scared," Nagin said of the Category 4 hurricane tearing along Cuba's western coast. "You need to be concerned, and you need to get your butts moving out of New Orleans right now. This is the storm of the century."

Anonymous said...

Warmer waters = more powerful hurricanes

Anonymous said...

It's so nice and pleasant until all of the weirdo denialists show up.

We just can't afford to keep subsidizing the gulf states, Keith. I wish it weren't so because NO is such a great historic city. It might be able to support a small population as a tourist town. Residents will be required to self-insure.

Anonymous said...

They never should have built New Orleans in the first place.

They should have handed the 60% of the population a check for $100,000 on their way out the first time as it would have been more money than they have ever seen in their life yet less than we have spent on them over the last 3 years.

The French Quarter should have been "walled off" so that there could be a tourist attraction down there.

Mother nature reclaimed her land and she will reclaim it again.

New Orleans should have juse become the modern day "Atlantis".

Anonymous said...

AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS STORM SURGE OF 18 TO 25 FEET ABOVE NORMAL
TIDAL LEVELS IS EXPECTED NEAR AND TO THE EAST OF WHERE THE CENTER
OF GUSTAV CROSSES THE NORTHERN GULF COAST. A STORM SURGE OF 1 TO
3 FEET ABOVE NORMAL TIDE LEVELS IS POSSIBLE IN THE DRY TORTUGAS AS
GUSTAV PASSES TO ITS WEST.

GUSTAV IS EXPECTED TO PRODUCE TOTAL RAINFALL ACCUMULATIONS OF 6 TO
12 INCHES OVER PORTION OF LOUISIANA...SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI AND
SOUTHERN ARKANSAS...WITH ISOLATED MAXIMUM AMOUNTS OF UP TO 20
INCHES POSSIBLE THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING. ADDITIONAL RAINFALL
AMOUNTS OF ABOUT AN INCH ARE POSSIBLE OVER FLORIDA KEYS AND
SOUTH FLORIDA.

ISOLATED TORNADOES ARE POSSIBLE OVER THE CENTRAL GULF COAST LATER
TODAY.

Anonymous said...

Let me see no major storms say in 1790 or say 1630 what about 1969 that was pretty big so this is just climate change caused by let me guess?

Anonymous said...

Forget houses. LOOP is going to get taken out by the eye

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Offshore_Oil_Port

Fill up now

Anonymous said...

I understand that there are buses this time to evacuate New Orleans residents. Where are the buses taking them? Shelters? Hotels?

How about taking them to the Republican Convention? How far is Crawford, TX from New Orleans?

Anonymous said...

Not a single day in the 90's in CT in August this year, not a one. 13 days in the 50's at night, IN AUGUST! Pretty chilly! Global what?

Anonymous said...

The worst possible scenario is now upon us

http://blogs.chron.com/sciguy/archives/2008/08/gustav_potentia.html

Anonymous said...

A $15 billion upgrade to the hurricane-protection system designed to protect the area, scheduled for completion in 2011, is only 20 percent complete, and there are significant gaps that make New Orleans residents nervous as they contemplate Gustav's possible arrival.

Anonymous said...

This article on the worst case scenario was published before Katrina

http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?articleId=10180

A direct hit from a powerful hurricane on New Orleans could furnish perhaps the largest natural catastrophe ever experienced on U.S. soil. Some estimates suggest that well over 25,000 non-evacuees could die. Many more would be stranded, and successful evacuees would have nowhere to return to. Damages could run as high as $100 billion. In the wake of such a tragedy, some may even question the wisdom of trying to rebuild the city at all. And to hear hurricane experts like Louisiana State University's Ivor van Heerden tell it, it's only a matter of time before the "big one" hits.

Anonymous said...

Fill up, stock up on food, get ready for gas rationing

Gustav May Hit Gulf Platforms Harder Than Katrina (Update3)

By Jim Polson

Aug. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Hurricane Gustav threatens to hurt U.S. oil and natural-gas production and refining more severely than hurricanes Katrina and Rita did three years ago.

Gustav, downgraded to a Category 3 storm by the National Hurricane Center in Miami this morning, may strengthen to Category 4 later today and will make landfall as a ``major'' hurricane. The storm shut three-quarters of oil output in the region and refineries operated by Valero Energy Corp., the largest U.S. refiner, ConocoPhillips, Marathon Oil Corp. and Exxon Mobil Corp. There will be a special trading session today at the New York Mercantile Exchange.

``This storm will prove to be a worst-case scenario for the production region,'' Jim Rouiller, senior energy meteorologist for Planalytics.com, said yesterday in an e-mailed message. ``This storm will be more dangerous than Katrina.''

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aAwvbB.INIFU&refer=home

Anonymous said...

This is not about climate change.It is a hurricane.don't they occur quite often out there.How come all of our problems are from climate change all of a sudden.When the fires hit california I heard a bunch of dumbsh@ts say they were from climate change. Get over it.do not buy a house on the coast if you are that afraid.

Anonymous said...

Keith, here is video/song, that me and my friends made in a tokyo park. "protect the bubble"..

this is what one of the early HPer is doing after getting out in 3/05,
roaming the world and enjoying life.

http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=MrEx5_TlTQ0

feel free to use it, if you want to credit the song, Artist name is Were.
Panicearly is making the bubbles

Mark in San Diego said...

The "safe" parts of New Orleans (higher elevation - French Quarter and Garden District should be saved for historic reasons, but the rest should be returned to a bird sanctuary swampland - which it was in the first place. . .move the people north of the lake or out to Slidel, etc. If the government can bail out Countrywide, GM, WaMu, etc. etc. then give each homeowner 500K to move!! It would be cheaper in the long run.

FlyingMonkeyWarrior said...

I have been in eight hurricanes and they were not so bad. Well, that is until the last few years.

Mitch was a real SCARE and so was Katrina. Both threated Orlando, but we dodged those deadly bullets.

Now, I am pretty sick of them.
Fay made me stir crazy. The Faux Hurricane that just would not end.

Now they are lined up in the Atlantic like airplanes waiting to take off at the Orlando International Airport. Good Grief.

Insurance coverage doesn't matter, they don't pay you anyway, from my experience.

FMW

Anonymous said...

I believe many insurance companies have already stopped insuring homes in the hurricane zone. The state of Florida has an insurance fund for those who can not get insurance from private companies because of where their homes are located. Originally set up as an insurance of last resort, its quickly becoming one of the largest insurers in the state.

Anonymous said...

My dream come true.

Go Gustav GO!

Panic, Fear and Loathing for Monday.

DIE

Anonymous said...

I don't know if they'll be anything to save.... If the surge is high enough Lake Pontchartrain could merge with Lake Borgne of Mexico, a big chunk of the delta / shore barrier between NOLO and the Gulf could be washed away.

Gas could be $8.00 by the end of the day.....

They must think it'll be a serious hit to the petrochemical industry, they are opening elctronic trading on the NYMEX, CME, CBOT starting at 2:30pm today....

Sorry, tinyurl doesn't work with this link..

http://cmegroup.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=2700

"All other CME, CBOT and NYMEX products retain previously announced hours

PRNewswire-FirstCall
NEW YORK and CHICAGO
(:CME)

NEW YORK and CHICAGO, Aug. 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- In response to concerns about Hurricane Gustav, CME Group, the world's largest and most diverse derivatives exchange, today announced that it has revised its Labor Day holiday trading schedule (all times are Eastern time) for NYMEX energy products. On Sunday, August 31, all NYMEX energy products trading on the CME Globex® electronic trading platform will open for trading at 2:30 p.m. (Eastern), with a 2:00 p.m. (Eastern) pre-opening, for a September 2, 2008, trade date. NYMEX ClearPort® Clearing and NYMEX ClearPort® Trading will also now re-open for trading on this schedule on Sunday, August 31.

"We wanted to provide our customers with the opportunity to respond to the storm's potential impact to energy markets as quickly as possible," said CME Group Chief Operating Officer Bryan Durkin. "The ability to trade both our exchange-listed and over-the-counter energy products during this period will be a significant benefit for global energy market participants.""

Anonymous said...

I will give you guys the real scoop on Gustav & New Orleans. Hurricanes move counter clockwise and Gustav is moving from the south towards New Orleans. Lake Ponchatrain sits directly north of NO. What flooded NO was the fact that Katrina hit it from the near-east side thus dumping LP into the bowl.
So, if Gus hits anywhere west of NO, it will survive. If Gus hits more than 30 miles east of NO, it will survive. If Gus hits between 0-30 miles east of NO, NO will probably be no more and hopefully, the last person will turn off the lights.
That's my take, let's see what happens. I've had light sleep for 4 nights, sorry if I'm rambling.

Anonymous said...

My 72 year old dad is running a shelter right in the middle of this mess. I begged him to wait his arrival until after the storm, but duty called. He spent a lot of time there after Katrina.

Hoping this storm fizzles out...

Anonymous said...

I suggest people listen to one of my favorite groups, Spirit's, song 'Natures Way'. "It's nature's way of telling you ...something's wrong." Randy California was a brilliant songwriter and guitarist and the new Clooney, Pitt movie uses their song 'I Got A Line On You.' in it. Go to YouTube and listen to the original version.....one of the best songs ever!

You guys are right on, no one should be able to build anything in a flood zone, End of story.

Frank R said...

Keith,

Even the radical and biased UN Council on Climate Change has admitted that "rising sea levels" is a junk science myth and has dismissed it as false.

Accept it and move on.

Anonymous said...

Plow them under for fill.

Relocate residents to Arizona.

McCain will need something to do soon.

You're Welcome.

Anonymous said...

No taxpayers' money should be used to support people who build in flood planes and other location that were deemed dangerous IN ADVANCE. There is plenty of other land left to settle on. Let those who want to live in dangerous places raise their property tax to deal with the forces of nature, to pay mor levees and to pump the water out.

Anonymous said...

When exactly WASN'T there any climate change?

The argument among anthropogenic global warming skeptics isn't that the earth is not warming or that carbon dioxide is not a greenhouse gas. It is that global warming is not a crisis. And that the fear-mongering among alarmists fuels the cash cow for research communities that would otherwise be quite poorly funded.

Let's talk about how Climate Stagnation is impossible.

Let's talk about how the human race has stopped adapting to its environment and begun trying to change its environment to suit itself.

Let's talk about how modern miracle fertilizers rich in Nitrogen compounds are 200 times more potent as a greenhouse gas than C02. And how those same fertilizers would feed the hungry in Africa if they weren't taboo to AGW community.

I'm thrilled to hear you're shutting down the blog. Less internet drivel to wade through.

Anonymous said...

Should New Orleans have been rebuilt? When it gets taken out again, should it be rebuilt (at taxpayer expense) again?

Your answer Keith is the same to the answer to this question :

DID THE TAX PAYERS GET TO USE THEIR PRIVATE BEACHES BEFORE THE HURRICANES?

Anonymous said...

According to Jimmy Carter, America should give all those homes to the entire island of Cuba. Oops, he already did.