As the floodwaters from Hurricanes Fiona and Ian recede and officials map out recovery plans, many communities worry that the rebuilding efforts will worsen housing inequities and access to electricity. It's the kind of issue Washington will have to address as it responds to crises linked to climate change. A warming world is already reconfiguring the housing market. Insurance rates in areas vulnerable to fires, floods and storms are skyrocketing, with some private companies simply refusing coverage. Early damage assessments in Florida's Cape Coral-Fort Myers area, which took the brunt of Ian, suggest that tens of thousands of properties will need repair, reconstruction or removal. Such investments could raise property values, displacing longtime residents who can no longer afford to live in the area. Meanwhile, the storms' devastation was not borne equally. In Puerto Rico, flooding and mudslides from Fiona inundated roads and swept away bridges, cutting off access to food and water in rural areas facing higher rates of poverty and unstable access to the grid. More than 90,000 homes and businesses remained without electricity as of Tuesday morning. Areas in the southwestern coast of the island were still recovering from a major earthquake that hit in 2020 when Fiona swept through. But analysts and researchers have suggested policies that could lessen the risk that climate change disenfranchises vulnerable populations. In a 2016 study, researchers found that complementing rebuilding efforts with policies to keep housing affordable could be effective. After Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria in 2017, the Center for Progressive Reform published a collection of articles by leading legal scholars offering recommendations for disaster planning, mitigation and recovery with an eye toward equity. The authors stressed the need for the Federal Emergency Management Agency to redraw its flood maps, which would help more people access flood insurance. They also recommend that local planning organizations factor climate change into urban design and governments shore up toxic chemical storage facilities, which are disproportionately located in low-income areas and, if leaked, can poison floodwaters.
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