2023’s costliest climate disasters show poor lose out in ‘global postcode lottery’ | Climate crisis

A list of the 20 costliest climate disasters of 2023 has revealed a “global postcode lottery stacked against the poor”, according to an analysis.

The research by the charity Christian Aid found that devastating wildfires and floods hit those who can least afford to rebuild, and the countries that have contributed least to the climate crisis by burning far fewer fossil fuels than rich nations, which experience fewer climate disasters. faced. .

The costs range from more than $4,000 (£3,155) per person due to a wildfire in Hawaii to $9 (£7) per person due to floods in Peru.

The research examined 20 natural disasters exacerbated by climate collapse that hit 14 countries in the past year. The highest cost per capita was the wildfires in Hawaii in August, far surpassing the second costliest, which was Guam’s storms in May at a cost of almost $1,500 (£1,182) per person.

The analysis published on Wednesday highlights that countries with weaker infrastructure and weaker homes face greater costs after a climate disaster as their inhabited areas are more easily destroyed. In the areas where people have faced the highest costs, many are employed in agriculture, which is vulnerable to extreme weather, and the government is less likely to invest in prevention or reconstruction.

Patrick Watt, chief executive of Christian Aid, said: “When it comes to the climate crisis, there is a global postcode lottery stacked against the poor. In poorer countries, people are often less prepared for climate-related disasters and have fewer resources to bounce back with. The result is that more people die, and recovery is slower and more uneven. There is a double injustice in the fact that the communities most affected by global warming have contributed little to the problem.

“Governments urgently need to take further action at home and internationally to reduce emissions and adapt to the effects of climate change. And where the impact goes beyond what people can adapt to, the loss and damage fund should be used to compensate the poorest countries for the consequences of a crisis that was not of their making.”

Loss and damage, which refers to payments from wealthier, more polluting countries to those that emit fewer fossil fuels but bear the brunt of climate collapse, has become part of climate negotiations in recent years. Developing countries demanded climate justice after facing disasters that were extremely expensive to solve. At the Cop28 climate summit in Dubai this year, rich countries were most responsible for the climate emergency pledged a combined total of just over $700m (£556m) to the loss and damage fund – the equivalent of less than 0.2% of the irreversible economic and non-economic losses that developing countries face every year due to global warming.

The top 20 climate disasters in 2023 by cost per capita

1 Hawaii, USA, wildfire – $4,161
2 Guam, storm – $1,455
3 Vanuatu, storm – $947
4 New Zealand, storm – $468
5 New Zealand, flood – $371
6 Italy, Flood – $164
7 Libya, flood – $105
8 Peru, Flood – $66
9 Spain, Drought – $50
10 Myanmar, storm – $41
11 Chili, flood – $39
12 Haiti, flood – $36
13 Mexico, storm – $35
14 Chili, wildfire – $30
15 USA, storm – $25
16 China, Flood – $23
17 Peru, storm – $20
18 Malawi, storm – $17
19 USA, Storm – $16
20 Peru, Flood – $9