2008Dec31: 2008 was the third most expensive year on record in terms of natural catastrophe insurance claims, according to Munich Re. “Climate change has already started and is very probably contributing to increasingly frequent weather extremes and ensuing natural catastrophes. These, in turn, generate greater and greater losses because the concentration of values in exposed areas, like regions on the coast, is also increasing further throughout the world,” said Torsten Jeworrek, a member of the board of management at Munich Re. 2008 was exceeded only by 2005, the year of Hurricane Katrina, and by 1995, the year of the Kobe earthquake (New York Times).
Reference: New York Times http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/12/31/german-insurance-giant-cites-role-of-climate-change-in-record-payouts/
Image Description: Landsat image of Galveston, Texas, captured Sept. 28, 2008. Credit: NASA/Landsat/USGS/Mike Taylor. http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hurricanes/archives/2008/h2008_ike.html Image Permission: This file is in the public domain because it was created by NASA. NASA copyright policy states that “NASA material is not protected by copyright unless noted”.
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This post is tagged 2000s Climate Change Events, 21st Century and Climate Change, Atlantic Hurricanes, Climate Change Effects, Insurance and Climate Change, Precipitation, Tropical Storms, Weather Extremes
