Assessment of the Socio-Economic Impacts of Extreme Weather Events on the Coast of Southwest Europe during the Period 2009–2020
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MDPI
Materia
Extreme weather events Socio-economic impact Coastal regions Southwest Europe Climate change Geohazards management
Fecha
2023-02-18Referencia bibliográfica
Mateos, R.M.; Sarro, R.; Díez-Herrero, A.; Reyes-Carmona, C.; López-Vinielles, J.; Ezquerro, P.; Martínez-Corbella, M.; Bru, G.; Luque, J.A.; Barra, A.; et al. Assessment of the Socio-Economic Impacts of ExtremeWeather Events on the Coast of Southwest Europe during the Period 2009–2020. Appl. Sci. 2023, 13, 2640. [https://doi.org/10.3390/app13042640]
Patrocinador
the RISKCOAST project (Ref: SOE3/P4/E0868) within the framework of the IV INTERREG SUDOE programResumen
Coastal regions in Southwest Europe have experienced major interventions and transformations
of the territory with unprecedented urban development, primarily related to growing tourism
activity. The coast is the place where marine and terrestrial processes converge, making it highly
vulnerable to the effects of climate change. However, the lack of information on the frequency of
these extreme weather events and their impacts on the coast hampers an accurate analysis of the
consequences of global change. This paper provides a detailed analysis of the extreme weather events
(EWE) that have affected the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of Southwest Europe during the
period from 1 January 2009 to 28 February 2020, as well as a quantification of their impacts: fatalities,
injuries and economic damage. Official sources from France, Portugal and Spain were consulted,
along with technical reports, scientific articles, etc., to generate a unified database. A total of 95 significant
extreme events have caused 168 fatalities, 137 injuries and almost 4000 M in direct economic
losses. Cyclone Xynthia (February 2010) on the French Atlantic coast stands out, having caused
47 fatalities, 79 injuries and substantial economic losses valued at 3000 M. The study shows a slight
upward trend in the number of events recorded, especially during the last three years of the analysis,
as well as in human losses and damages. The results reveal a higher exposure of the Mediterranean
coast of Southwest Europe when compared to the Atlantic, especially the Spanish Mediterranean
coast, with 61% of the fatalities recorded there during the study period. This is primarily due to
a model of exponential tourism growth on the Mediterranean coast, with an enormous urban and
infrastructure development during the last decades. Traditionally, the Mediterranean coast is less
prepared to reduce the effects of marine storms, extreme events that are becoming more frequent
and virulent in the context of climate and global change. This work highlights the need to create a
continuous monitoring system–at the European level–of the impacts of extreme weather events on
the coast, where 40% of the European population is concentrated. This observatory should serve as a
source of information for risk mitigation policies (predictive, preventive and corrective), as well as
for emergency management during disasters.