Sea-level rise and storm surges: a comparative analysis of impacts in developing countries

Susmita Dasgupta (), Benoit Laplante, Siobhan Murray and David Wheeler

No 4901, Policy Research Working Paper Series from The World Bank

Abstract: An increase in sea surface temperature is evident at all latitudes and in all oceans. The current understanding is that ocean warming plays a major role in intensified cyclone activity and heightened storm surges. The vulnerability of coastlines to intensified storm surges can be ascertained by overlaying Geographic Information System information with data on land, population density, agriculture, urban extent, major cities, wetlands, and gross domestic product for inundation zones likely to experience more intense storms and a 1 meter sea-level rise. The results show severe impacts are likely to be limited to a relatively small number of countries and a cluster of large cities at the low end of the international income distribution.

Keywords: Wetlands; Hazard Risk Management; Climate Change; Water Resources Assessment; Population Policies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-dev and nep-env
Date: 2009-04-01
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