Governor Greg Abbott estimates that the damage from Hurricane Harvey will total between $150 billion to $180 billion.
Harvey will be more costly than epic Hurricanes Katrina or Sandy, which devastated New Orleans in 2005 and New York City in 2012.
As global temperatures continue to rise, climate scientists have said this is what we should expect—more huge storms, with drastic impacts.
Though scientists are still wrestling with some of the specifics of how climate change is impacting hurricanes, it is known that hurricane seasons like this one could be the new norm.
Texas needs to decide what to do about it.
Should we rebuild the lost homes and businesses in the same manner and in the same places? Should we realize there will be another Harvey and hurricanes that will be even worse?
The new book “A Texan Plan for the Texas Coast” argues that Texas needs to adopt an aggressive policy that recognizes the population growth on the coast and vulnerabilities of communities, infrastructure and natural areas.
Jim Blackburnis the author – he’s a professor of environmental law in the department of environmental engineering at Rice University. He’s also the co-director of the Severe Storm Prediction Education and Evacuation from Disaster Center at Rice University.