Louisiana’s economy will be among those hardest hit by climate change, which threatens the state’s labor force, energy spending and mortality rates, according to a new study reported by Governing.
East Baton Rouge is at risk of losing nearly 10% of its GDP by the end of the century, the study’s authors find. Governing created a map of the parishes in Louisiana and how climate change will impact each one.
Mortality rates in the parish are expected to increase by 32 deaths per 100,000, and energy expenses will shoot up by roughly 14% as rising temperatures impact labor and health.
The study, which calculated the economic impacts of climate change, finds poorer communities and the south will see the most striking impacts of rising temperatures in the coming decades. The estimates use the median climate change scenario. The study assumes most people will stay put throughout the phenomenon, meaning the numbers could be overstated. Other experts have suggested the study could understate some of the impacts.
The report is the latest warning of dramatic impacts climate change are expected to have in the south, including Louisiana, in the coming decades.
Also threatening the state is coastal erosion, a multibillion-dollar problem state leaders have grappled with over the years as the state’s vital wetlands are eaten up by the Gulf of Mexico.
LSU researchers earlier this year found that the Capital Region, though not on the front lines of coastal erosion, stands to lose billions of dollars over the next 50 years as storms barrel through areas where wetlands used to slow them down.
Check out Governing’s story and interactive map on the impacts of climate change.
