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Study Sees Climate Change Impact on Alaska
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| Contributor | ArmyDem |
| Last Edited | ArmyDem Jun 28, 2007 02:15pm |
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| Category | News |
| Media | Newspaper - New York Times |
| News Date | Thursday, June 28, 2007 08:00:00 PM UTC0:0 |
| Description | By WILLIAM YARDLEY
Published: June 28, 2007
Many of Alaska’s roads, runways, railroads and water and sewer systems will wear out more quickly and cost more to repair or replace because of climate change, according to a study released yesterday.
Higher temperatures, melting permafrost, a reduction in polar ice and increased flooding are expected to raise the repair and replacement cost of thousands of infrastructure projects as much as $6.1 billion for a total of nearly $40 billion — about a 20 percent increase — from now to 2030, according to the study, by the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Alaska Anchorage.
The cost estimates are based on the needs of nearly 16,000 pieces of public infrastructure, including airports and small segments of roads.
The researchers speculated that in the distant future the costs would level off as the agencies adapted their practices to the warmer climate.
Temperatures have risen by an average of two to five degrees in different parts of the state in recent decades, and the changes have already been linked to problems like coastal erosion in remote Alaskan villages and wildfires. The researchers who wrote the report said their estimates for increased costs were based on “middle-of-the-road” forecasts for warming in a place where projects were designed to endure the cold. |
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