Examining the Influence of Development Patterns on Flood Damages along the Gulf of Mexico Academic Article

abstract

• The rising cost of floods is increasingly attributed to the pattern and form of the built environment. Our study empirically tests this notion by examining the relationship between development intensity and property damage caused by floods. We examine five years of insured flood loss claims across 144 counties and parishes fringing the Gulf of Mexico. Results indicate that clustered, high-intensity development patterns significantly reduce amounts of reported property damage, while increasing percentages of sprawling, low-intensity development involving recent conversion of open space greatly exacerbate flood losses. These findings demonstrate the importance of community development design in fostering flood-resilient communities.

authors

• Brody, Samuel
• Highfield, Wesley
• Peacock, Walter

published proceedings

• JOURNAL OF PLANNING EDUCATION AND RESEARCH

author list (cited authors)

• Brody, S. D., Gunn, J., Peacock, W., & Highfield, W. E.

citation count

• 52

complete list of authors

• Brody, Samuel D||Gunn, Joshua||Peacock, Walter||Highfield, Wesley E

publication date

• December 2011

publisher

• SAGE Publications  Publisher

published in

• Journal of Planning Education and Research  Journal

keywords

• Environment
• Land Use
• Natural Resources
• Sustainability
• Urban Form

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

• 10.1177/0739456X11419515

start page

• 438

end page

• 448

volume

• 31

issue

• 4

URL

• http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0739456x11419515

user-defined tag

• 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities