Linking extreme climate events and economic impacts: Examples from the Swiss Alps

Abstract

This paper focuses upon topics related to current and possible future extreme weather events in order to highlight the links between climatic change and its economic impacts. Most of the examples given here are drawn from observations in Switzerland and the Alpine region that have a wealth of climatic, environmental and socio-economic data. These enable detailed studies to be undertaken on trends in mean and extreme climates and their impacts. Model simulations for a “greenhouse climate” suggest that risks associated with various forms of extreme events that affect the Alps may increase in the future, which could lead to high damage costs. In addition to the direct impacts of extremes, it is also necessary to take into account the increasing economic value of infrastructure located in zones potentially at risk. The final part of the paper addresses some of the issues that are related to fully integrated modeling approaches that are aimed at assessing the costs of damage in the wake of an extreme event.