The city of Clearwater just completed a vulnerability assessment, finding that its residents will be impacted by extreme heat, sea level rise and flooding in the years to come, much like all of Florida's coasts.
The city council heard a presentation summarizing the results of this study during a recent public hearing and work session.
The projections looked at 2040, 2070, and 2100, and also identified intermediate-low and intermediate-high for sea level rise and flooding.
By the year 2100, Clearwater residents could possibly endure about 200 days of temperatures over 90 degrees annually, which is a 300% increase.
Plus, the city could see a 24% surge in rain, and sea levels rising to as high as 8 feet above what they were two decades ago.
Clearwater's economy is fueled by tourism, particularly at its beaches, but the recent city analysis shows climate change could impact that economic sector.
"If it's flooded and 100 degrees, then people aren't going to come here for the beaches," said Cassie Cordova, the sustainability division manager for the city.
She said a digital twin of Clearwater was built, so they were able to input commuter data, as well, such as traffic.
“So not only are we looking at how the impact of the flooding and the sea level rise and heat are going to impact the buildings themselves, but we also were able to look at average disrupted trips because if a road is flooded, then people aren't going to be able to get to work that day or get home,” Cordova said.
The assessment was largely paid for through the state's Resilient Florida Grant Program at $197,848 with a local match of $24,000.
The state has required that the public be updated on some of these vulnerabilities through the assessments, so Clearwater plans to finalize its report before submitting it to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and publishing the findings.
Cordova said it's good for leadership to have the data and mapping her team has compiled.
"So that we can look at those for our future capital investments and see where we should be building, where we shouldn't be building, and what we should be hardening to make it more resilient," Cordova said.
In terms of what the city is doing regarding the root-cause of human-driven climate change, Cordova said the city cut down on its planet-warming pollution by 10% in 2020.
Now, it hopes to reach a 25% reduction in the next decade, with a long-term goal of 80% by 2050.
Clearwater is currently working on reducing its energy use at facilities, while transitioning all of the city's light duty vehicles to hybrid or EV by 2035.
