Life after hurricanes: Expensive, unequal

Presented by Chevron: Your guide to the political forces shaping the energy transformation

Oct 04, 2022 View in browser   By Arianna Skibell Presented by Chevron Family members remove the mud from their home after La Plata River flooded in Puerto Rico following Hurricane Fiona. | Jose Jimenez/Getty Images 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.   It's Tuesday — thank you for tuning in to POLITICO's Power Switch. I'm your host, Arianna Skibell.  Power Switch is brought to you by the journalists behind E&E News and POLITICO Energy. Send your tips, comments, questions to askibell@eenews.net. Listen to today's POLITICO Energy podcast Today in POLITICO Energy's podcast: Gloria Gonzalez breaks down why Puerto Ricans fear being forgotten and the Biden administration's response to Hurricane Fiona so far.   A message from Chevron: At Chevron, we believe the fuels of the future can help power a brighter future. Find out how we're working to increase our hydrogen fuel production to help make heavy-duty transport lower carbon.   Trends U.S. Energy Information Administration Wind and solar generation surged 22 percent through the first nine months of the year, but planet-warming emissions have not budged. POLITICO's E&E News reporter Benjamin Storrow breaks down how emission reductions from a spate of renewable energy installations have been offset by the growth of natural gas generation and the declining output from nuclear facilities. Power Centers Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) at a press conference in Miami. | Rebecca Blackwell/AP Photo Oh, the irony Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis faces mounting criticism for voting against legislation in 2013 that will now help Florida residents collect flood insurance claims worth several billion dollars after Hurricane Ian, writes Thomas Frank. The former congressman was one of 67 House Republicans who opposed the flood insurance measure after Superstorm Sandy. Analysts have estimated property damage from Ian at between $30 billion and $75 billion. Nuclear option In a world of energy insecurity, climate change and skyrocketing energy prices, nuclear energy might be one of the only sectors feeling more bullish than ever, writes Nico Portuondo. Once seen as an energy option on its last legs, the nuclear industry has had several victories lately, including the delay of a number of planned retirements. Winter is coming Germany poured cold water on a proposal by France and Italy's European commissioners to issue new EU-denominated debt to tackle the economic fallout from the energy crisis, write Paola Tamma and Hans von der Burchard. Berlin is in the eye of a growing political storm after it unilaterally announced a cash injection of up to €200 billion into its own economy to help cushion the blow of soaring energy prices on consumers and industry. In Other News Ikea sign. | Bruce Bennett/Getty Images Electric future: IKEA announced its home deliveries will be fully electric by 2025. Move over Muppets: Meet the band of TV animals that's talking to preschoolers about climate change. About face: Florida's leaders opposed climate aid. Now they're depending on it.   A message from Chevron:   Subscriber Zone A showcase of some of our best subscriber content. Dome home off Marco Island, Fla. | Andy Morffew/Flickr Hurricane Ian destroyed dome homes that were built in the 1980s to withstand storms. Their creators failed to factor in sea-level rise. Carbon capture pipeline companies are pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars into their lobbyist budgets. It's early October, and the price of gasoline is beginning to creep up, but for once, don't blame the hurricane that slammed into the Gulf Coast. That's it for today, folks! Thanks for reading.   A message from Chevron: Energy demand is growing. At Chevron, we believe that demand for lower carbon hydrogen fuel could more than triple by 2050. That's why we're working to grow our hydrogen production to 150,000 tonnes per year by 2030 to help make heavy-duty transport lower carbon. Because we believe the future of energy is lower carbon. And it's only human to reach for it.     Follow us on Twitter Arianna Skibell @ariannaskibell   Follow us

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