FLORIDA AND CLIMATE CHANGE

The report argues that the cost of inaction regarding climate change for Florida is immense, projecting annual costs of $345 billion by 2100 across four major categories: tourism, hurricane damages, residential real estate, and electricity. Under a 'business-as-usual' scenario, Florida faces a 10°F temperature increase and 45 inches of sea-level rise by 2100, which would inundate 9% of its land area and severely disrupt key industries like agriculture and fisheries. The authors contrast this with a 'rapid stabilization' case, where immediate global emissions reductions limit warming to 2°F and sea-level rise to 7 inches by 2100.

• The annual costs of inaction for four primary categories—tourism revenue, hurricane damages, residential real estate, and electricity costs—are projected to reach $92 billion by 2050 and $345 billion by 2100, representing 2.8% and 5.0% of the state's projected Gross State Product, respectively.
• In the 'business-as-usual' scenario, Florida's average annual temperature is projected to increase by 5°F by 2050 and 10°F by 2100, while sea levels are projected to rise by 23 inches by 2050 and 45 inches by 2100.
• A sea-level rise of 27 inches, projected to occur around 2060 under the business-as-usual case, would create a 'vulnerable zone' covering 9% of Florida's land area (approximately 4,700 square miles), affecting 1.5 million people.
• The 'vulnerable zone' associated with 27 inches of sea-level rise includes residential real estate valued at over $130 billion, as well as critical infrastructure such as 2 nuclear reactors, 68 hospitals, 74 airports, and 334 public schools.
• Under the business-as-usual scenario, tourism revenue losses are projected to be $40 billion annually by 2050 and $167 billion annually by 2100 compared to the rapid stabilization case.
• Hurricane damages are expected to increase significantly in the business-as-usual case due to higher storm intensity and sea-level rise, with the annual cost of inaction reaching $25 billion by 2050 and $104 billion by 2100.
• The business-as-usual scenario is projected to cause an average of 19 additional hurricane-related deaths per year by 2050 and 37 additional deaths per year by 2100 compared to the rapid stabilization case.
• Electricity costs will rise due to increased air-conditioning demand and reduced efficiency of power plants and transmission lines in higher temperatures; the annual cost of inaction is estimated at $5 billion in 2050 and $18 billion in 2100.
• Agriculture faces severe threats from saltwater intrusion, increased irrigation needs, and temperature shifts; for example, citrus and sugarcane require approximately 5% and 7% more water, respectively, for each degree Fahrenheit of mean temperature increase.
• The Everglades are particularly vulnerable, with sea-level rise potentially causing water to encroach 12 to 24 miles inland, which would inundate the lower Everglades and destroy critical nurseries for fish and wildlife.
• Ocean acidification and warming are projected to cause widespread coral bleaching and reduce calcification rates, threatening the marine ecosystems that support Florida's fisheries and diving tourism.
• The 'rapid stabilization' scenario requires global emissions to be reduced by half by 2050 and to one-quarter by 2100, with U.S. emissions specifically needing to decline by 80% by 2050 to keep global warming below 2°F.

APA

STANTON, E. A., & KERMAN, F. (2007). FLORIDA AND CLIMATE CHANGE. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/inaction_florida.pdf

Chicago

STANTON, ELIZABETH A., and FRANKA KERMAN. FLORIDA AND CLIMATE CHANGE. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2007. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/inaction_florida.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=STANTON |first1=ELIZABETH A. |last2=KERMAN |first2=FRANKA |title=FLORIDA AND CLIMATE CHANGE |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=November 2007 |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/inaction_florida.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stanton2007florida, author = {STANTON, ELIZABETH A. and KERMAN, FRANKA}, title = {{FLORIDA AND CLIMATE CHANGE}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2007}, month = nov, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/inaction_florida.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }