Declining vulnerability to river floods and the global benefits of adaptation

• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1414439112
• Publication Date: 2015-04-21T02:51:43Z
• Authors: Brenden Jongman; Hessel C. Winsemius; Jeroen C. J. H. A...; Erin Coughlan de ...; Maarten K. van Aalst; Wolfgang Kron; Philip J. Ward
• Keywords: Vulnerability; Social vulnerability

Significance Understanding the vulnerability of societies around world is crucial for understanding historical trends in flood risk and producing accurate projections fatalities losses. We reproduced river occurrence using daily climate data period 1980–2010 quantified natural socioeconomic contributions to trends. show that losses as a share exposed population gross domestic product are decreasing with rising income. also there tendency convergence levels between low- high-income countries. Projections based on wide range change development scenarios demonstrate amplified adaptation efforts have potential largely contain from future floods.