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Climate change is driving flood damage to record levels: study sounds the alarm!
Study shows flood damage in Europe has increased since 1950 due to climate change; Adaptation measures are showing success.
Climate change is driving flood damage to record levels: study sounds the alarm!
On August 16, 2025, numerous studies will report on the effects of climate change on economic damage in Europe. According to a recent study published in the Small newspaper published, economic damage caused by climate change has increased by around 8% since 1950. Overall, economic damage has even doubled in the same period.
While flood damage of 37 billion euros was recorded in the 1950s, this rose to 71 billion euros in the last decade. The PIK study takes numerous complex factors into account, with climate change being only one elementary aspect.
Development of flood damage
Most notably, the financial burden of flooding fell between 1950 and 1970 as economies grew faster than flood damage. In 2020, the burden was only a third of that in 1950. Nevertheless, flood damage has increased in recent decades, which is due to increasing settlement in flood-prone areas.
Improved protective measures were able to limit flood damage in many places. Adaptation measures have reduced economic losses by 63% since 1950, while appropriate measures have reduced the death toll by 52%. However, there are regional differences in adaptability between Western and Eastern Europe.
Limits of adaptation
Study co-author Katja Frieler points out that progress in adaptation measures has increasingly weakened over the last 20 years. There is evidence that conservation measures may not be able to keep up with the ongoing changes caused by climate change. “Adaptation has its limits,” says Frieler.
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