Cost of Alpine hazards

Cost assessments of damage, prevention and response measures to natural hazards and associated risks supply crucial information to policy development and decision making in the fields of natural hazard and risk management. In times of tightened public funds, economic efficiency and prioritization of measures that reduce risks due to natural hazards is of prime importance. Given that a multiplicity of analyses and case studies exist for assessing costs of alpine hazards, mitigation and adaptation measures as well as their benefits (in terms of avoided costs), the identification, compilation and assessment of such methods is essential as a basis for comprehensive recommendations to end-users. Moreover, a reliable costing approach for the complex hazard situations in alpine regions is desirable and should be part of a comprehensive risk management and adaptation strategy dealing with natural hazards. The report compiles current methods of cost assessments in countries within the European Alps, starting with a general description of Alpine hazards and specific vulnerabilities. Methods for estimating direct, indirect and intangible costs of alpine hazards as well as methods for the cost assessment of mitigation and adaptation are introduced, illustrated by case studies and assessed.

This report is part of the EU project ConHaz. The first objective of ConHaz is to compile state-of-the-art methods and terminology as used in European case studies. This compilation will consider droughts, floods, storms, and alpine hazards, as well as various impacted sectors, such as agriculture, health and nature. It will consider direct, indirect and intangible costs. ConHaz further examines the costs and benefits of risk-prevention and emergency response policies. The second objective of ConHaz is to evaluate the compiled methods by considering theoretical assumptions underlying cost assessment methods and issues appearing in application of the methods, such as availability and quality of data. ConHaz will also assess the reliability of the end results by considering the accuracy of cost predictions and best-practice methods of validation, and will identify relevant gaps in assessment methods. The third objective of ConHaz is to compare available assessment methods with end-user needs and practices, so as to better identify best practice and knowledge gaps in relation to policy-making. A final objective of ConHaz is to give recommendations about best practices and to identify resulting research needs.