[...] Some experts estimate that climate change could force between 150 and 300 million people to find a new place to live by the middle of this century, though there is considerable uncertainty about the amount. Finding suitable locations to house them will be a significant impediment. As Michael Gerrard explained, "part of the problem is scale. If we're talking about millions of people having to be on the move, it just doesn't work."
In the U.S., there are very few habitable places that aren't already occupied by homes, businesses, or agriculture, or preserved as park lands or forests. Meanwhile, rural areas would provide few opportunities for migrants to find employment and rebuild their lives.
Instead, Gerrard suggested moving people from high-risk areas to cities whose populations are shrinking, such as Detroit, Michigan. He sees cities' potential for vertical development, energy-efficient buildings, and public transportation as a way to sustainably host climate migrants.
What if refugees from Caribbean islands don't want to live in Detroit?
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 06 2018, @10:18AM (3 children)
Perhaps there is a scheme to trick people into moving towards the poles before a predicted warming, while you move towards the equator. Suddenly there is cooling instead, and your equatorial land is worth more. Then you start extrapolating to catastrophic cooling while you sell your equatorial property move polewards to be ready for the coming warming.
This is run of the mill penny stock type stuff, the timescales and money involved make it kind of unbelievable though.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 06 2018, @11:54AM
Unless you see hordes of climate scientists entering real estate business, this doesn't even rise to the level of unfounded speculation. It's, at best, ramblings of a madman :)
(Score: 2) by legont on Saturday January 06 2018, @07:24PM (1 child)
Well, when authorities wanted to move people to American West, scientists came up with a very convenient theory "Rain follows the plow" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rain_follows_the_plow [wikipedia.org]
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 06 2018, @08:22PM
Wow, I didn't realize climate engineering attempts went so far back.