Abstract:
The New Orleans region of Louisiana has been at the front of coastal hazard and climate change research in recent years because of its high social vulnerability, influenced by its location on the Gulf of Mexico, socioeconomic profile, and general location below sea level. Municipal hazard mitigation must be sufficient not only in its coverage of the hazards that pose a threat to the region but also of the hazards that residents of this region are most concerned about. Resident perception of risk is a vital component of social vulnerability and can be utilized by residents and their municipality to increase resiliency against hazards. Because climate change is expected to intensify these threats, it becomes important to ensure that resident perceptions of risk are considered when developing municipal plans to maximize regional resiliency against major events. This research aims to identify a gap in the hazard mitigation process that can be closed to better prepare the community to handle coastal hazards. To achieve this, an online survey is distributed to the New Orleans metropolitan area to determine risk perceptions and expectations of the local government’s action in response to coastal hazards and climate change. Policy analysis is conducted to identify the priorities held by municipal planners in these issues. Through research, it is found that, although there is no gap in the perception of risk and municipal mitigation of current coastal hazards that threaten New Orleans, there is a substantial gap between the municipal approach to climate change mitigation and the worry and expectation of action the residents hold regarding the future effects of climate change on the region. It is recommended that the approach to climate change is reconsidered on a municipal level and that new small-scale personal resiliency incentives are promoted to maximize resiliency toward coastal hazards in the future for New Orleans.
