Climate crisis to put millions of British homes at risk of subsiding

(The Guardian, 19 May 2021) Drier summers mean the ground in vulnerable areas will be more prone to shrink and crack, scientists say.

The climate crisis is very likely to put millions of homes at increased risk of subsidence, according to new data from the British Geological Survey (BGS). The hotter and drier summers being driven by global heating mean the ground under houses will shrink and crack, scientists said.

The key areas affected are London, Essex, Kent, and a swathe of land from Oxford up to the Wash. This is because the clay formations underlying these areas are most vulnerable to losing moisture.

In a medium scenario for future emissions, the area of Great Britain that is highly or extremely likely to see increased risk of clay-related subsidence increases by a third from 2020 to 2030 and triples by 2050.

The projections are similar in a separate high emissions scenario, but this dataset allows the number of homes at risk of subsidence to be calculated. About a million homes were at risk in 1990 and this rises to 2.4m in 2030 and 4m in 2070. London is the most affected, with nearly half of the capital’s homes at increased risk in 2030 and 57% in 2070, according to BGS.

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The Guardian, 19 May 2021: Climate crisis to put millions of British homes at risk of subsiding