Alaska Faces Up to $5.5 Billion in Climate Damage by 2100 - Scientific American

Spending money to adapt will likely be a good investment in Alaska and other states facing sea-level rise and shifting precipitation patterns

Climate change will cause billions of dollars in damage to roads, buildings, airports, railroads and pipeline infrastructure in Alaska, particularly if greenhouse gas emissions continue unabated, a new study found.

The findings suggest it would be prudent for local, state and federal governments and businesses to adapt infrastructure or design new infrastructure with climate change considerations in mind.

“We know that these changes can come with increased societal risks and may also have economic implications,” the lead author of the study, April Melvin said in an email.  Melvin wrote the paper for U.S. EPA as a science and technology policy fellow with the American Association for the Advancement of Science.  It appeared last week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

To date, few studies have focused specifically on the economic impacts of such changes in Alaska, Melvin said.  It will be expensive to adapt to the changes, the research found, but spending money to save money will likely be a good investment in Alaska and other states facing sea-level rise and shifting precipitation patterns.
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Melville's research found that depending on the emissions scenario, Alaska could see climate-related damage ranging from $4.2 billion to $5.5 billion through the end of the century.  Costs drop to an estimated $2.3 billion to $2.9 billion if adaptation measures are factored in.

Alaska already has seen some of the most dramatic changes in the U.S. from global warming, the National Climate Assessment notes.  They include earlier spring snow melt, reduced sea ice, widespread glacier retreat, warmer permafrost, drier landscapes, and more extensive insect outbreaks and wildfires.

Read more at Alaska Faces Up to $5.5 Billion in Climate Damage by 2100 - Scientific American