Abstract
One of the consequences of climate change is rising sea levels, and the risk is particularly high for low-lying coastal communities around the world. Meanwhile, attracted by the landscape, habitat, and recreational activities, the population in coastal cities is still growing fast. So there might be a lack of perception of the future risks and challenges caused by climate change. This study aims to understand public concerns and perceptions of sea-level rise and its possible impacts. Using a household survey conducted in Florida, the findings show that coastal residents were divided – almost 50/50 – between “high/moderate concern” and “low/no concern” about the projected impacts of sea-level rise. Florida residents were mostly concerned about higher insurance premiums, followed by increased contaminants in water and destructive storms. In contrast, they were comparatively less concerned about the loss of tourist revenue, private property, and public land. In addition, multivariate regression analyses are used to identify the most important factors that shape heterogeneous risk perceptions. These results are expected to provide useful information to guide the sea-level rise adaptation strategies in the coastal areas.
Presenters
Chang LiuGraduate Student, School of Public Economics, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics , China Sisi Meng
Teaching Assistant Professor, University of Notre Dame, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
2021 Special Focus: Responding to Climate Change as an Emergency
KEYWORDS
Climate Change, Sea Level Rise, Risk Perception, Household Survey
