Top Of Mind With Julie Rose

Floods are the most common of all weather-related disasters in America. They cause more damage and kill more people than any other type of severe weather. Flood risk is rising all over the country—rainstorms are more intense and flash floods are happening more frequently. The communities facing the greatest risk in the coming decades are disproportionately poor and Black. But here’s the thing: damage from flooding is the most preventable of all natural disasters: moving to higher ground is a proven solution to flood damage. But a lot of factors, like money, history and human nature, make relocation complicated. On this podcast episode, we explore why flooding is such a challenging problem and how cities are adapting. A climate scientist explains how warmer temperatures increase extreme flood risk (it’s the atmospheric sponge effect!) We’ll learn why America’s approach to preventing flooding has backfired and how Tulsa, Oklahoma has bucked the trend – going from one of the most flood prone cities in the countr