Vulnerability and risks related to climatic events in urban coastal environments: Overview of actuality and challenges of methodologies and approaches

Abstract

International-renowned forecasting of urban development in coastal environments indicates an increased exposure to the risks of climatic events by way of natural hazards. This indication indirectly exacerbates the vulnerability of relating coastal communities. Using this viewpoint, a decade long study between 2000-2010 conceptualises a considerable volume of research in the area of vulnerability to urban environmental change due to disasters in relation to climatic events. In particular, several studies have attempted to present a discourse on the vulnerability of social ecological systems to hazards or risk occurrence within urban coastal environments in order to improve understanding and support for the assessment of impacts and risks related to such change and, by definition, its associating adaptive measures. This overview takes into account disparate opinions, approaches and methodologies applied by different scientific viewpoints and research studies, and highlights salient and vantage aspects. The research is organised in three key methodological sections: (1) urban coastal vulnerability and risk assessment; (2) vulnerability assessment of urban coastal ecosystems; and (3) ecosystem-based approaches for urban coastal risk assessment. Vulnerability and risk assessment are anchored via exposure, susceptibility and resilience, and are must-do activities when addressing a system.