Populations are Booming in Flood-Prone Areas—Especially in Developing Countries
August 04, 2021 at 09:20PM The number of people living in flood-prone areas is growing faster than in other places, and at a much faster rate than scientists had previously expected, a study published Aug. 4 in the journal Nature finds. It’s a worrying sign that human settlements are not prepared for increased flood risks in the climate crisis. Researchers at Cloud to Street, a flood-tracking platform, used satellite images to estimate the scale of 913 large flood events across 119 countries, and the number of people exposed to them. They found that between 2000 and 2015, the total population living in areas exposed to flooding grew by between 58 and 86 million. That’s a growth rate ten times higher than estimated by previous studies , which relied on modeling rather than satellite imagery to assess the number of people exposed to floods. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Overall, the population of flood-prone areas increased by 34.1% between 2000 and 2015, according to th...