As we witness the tragic flooding from Hurricane Florence along the Southeast Coast, we are reminded of the devastation in Houston caused by Hurricane Harvey and the repeated spring flooding along some American Rivers (the Red River of the Northern Plains comes immediately to mind).
Having decided that flood insurance is a money losing proposition, private insurance companies have backed away from such coverage, donating that option to the Federal Government. As is often the case, the U.S. Government accepted the challenge and is now billions of dollars in the red (even before the devastation caused by Hurricane Florence).
One wonders whether Federal dollars would be better spent buying up properties on floodplains and barrier islands and assisting with local engineering efforts rather than encouraging insurance holders to rebuild in those flood-prone areas. After all, global warming is threatening coastal communities as sea levels rise and will likely intensify the power of tropical storms and hurricanes. We cannot expect leadership from the current Administration but both the financial and climate realities will eventually force the Federal Government to take a more intelligent approach to this recurrent and worsening problem.
Having decided that flood insurance is a money losing proposition, private insurance companies have backed away from such coverage, donating that option to the Federal Government. As is often the case, the U.S. Government accepted the challenge and is now billions of dollars in the red (even before the devastation caused by Hurricane Florence).
One wonders whether Federal dollars would be better spent buying up properties on floodplains and barrier islands and assisting with local engineering efforts rather than encouraging insurance holders to rebuild in those flood-prone areas. After all, global warming is threatening coastal communities as sea levels rise and will likely intensify the power of tropical storms and hurricanes. We cannot expect leadership from the current Administration but both the financial and climate realities will eventually force the Federal Government to take a more intelligent approach to this recurrent and worsening problem.
