Los Angeles isn't the only one that is prone to experiencing pain from climate change. The Regional Plan Association is warning that as many as 19,300 homes in New York City could be wiped out as a result of flooding over the next 15 years, according to The City, which saw the forthcoming report.
An additional 24,300 homes in NYC's five boroughs could take substantial damage by 2040 if a major storm hits by then. That only has a one percent chance of happening in each year (as of now) — but Westchester and Long Island could particularly face devastation if that happens. They could collectively lose tens of thousands of housing units by 2040.
But a major storm did hit NYC, Long Island, and suburban areas. That was Hurricane Sandy — which damaged or destroyed 100,000 homes on Long Island and damaged 70,000 housing units in NYC (roughly 20 percent deemed uninhabitable), according to The City. Plus, Hurricane Ida caused $7.5 billion in damage in all of New York state and impacted 33,500 properties in NYC.
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But damage is forecasted to be worse in the future from storms. In NYC, sea levels have risen on average by 1.2 inches per decade, which is double the global rate, according to a report from the New York City Department of Environmental Protection.
“We’re going to experience both a gradual ramping up and a couple of shocks,” said Moses Gates, vice president for housing and neighborhood planning at RPA, told The City.
“We’re going to have Sandy-type events that are going to leave a lot of homes uninhabitable all at once, and we’re going to see a lot of people without other options trying to find housing.”
Apartments on the basement level pose the most risk. More than an estimated 4,000 units, which typically are rented by low-income tenants, are in jeopardy of facing "severe flooding," a study from the New York Federal Reserve Bank finds.
NYC isn't as prone to big storms as a state like Florida thanks to its cooler climate and the Northern location — but two major hurricanes have hit the metro area this century. So it's impossible to rule out possible devastation caused by flooding in the future.
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