Impacts of green infrastructure on flood risk perceptions in Hong Kong
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Impacts of green infrastructure on flood risk perceptions in Hong Kong Seung Kyum Kim 1
2
3
& Paul Joosse & Mia M. Bennett & Terry van Gevelt
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Received: 20 February 2020 / Accepted: 19 July 2020/ # Springer Nature B.V. 2020
Abstract
To better address climate unpredictability, green infrastructure is increasingly deployed alongside gray infrastructure as an alternative strategy for flood risk mitigation. Previous research has not clearly distinguished the flood-mitigation effects of green infrastructure at the local scale due to its complex range of functions including socioeconomic benefits, ecosystem services, and amenity value. Using data on 3768 housing sales from 2009 to 2019 in Hong Kong, we employ a difference-in-differences framework to examine the effect of green infrastructure on perceptions of flood risk mitigation, with housing prices as a proxy for risk perception. We find a positive effect of green infrastructure on the value of nearby housing. The effect does not exist in apartment units on higher floors, however. This vertical discrepancy further suggests that the observed pricing effects are due to green infrastructure’s capacity to reduce perceptions of flood risk. By contrast, properties near conventional gray infrastructure show no evidence of such effects. The results thus provide quantitative evidence that supports the ongoing shift toward green infrastructure as a form of climate change adaptation. Keywords Green infrastructure . Flood mitigation . Climate change adaptation . Difference-indifferences . Hong Kong . Coastal cities
* Seung Kyum Kim [email protected]
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Faculty of Social Science, University of Hong Kong, 7. 02C, Jockey Club Tower, Centennial Campus, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong SAR
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Department of Sociology, University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong SAR
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Department of Geography and School of Modern Languages and Cultures (China Studies Programme), University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong SAR
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Department of Politics and Public Administration, University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong SAR
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Department of Civil Engineering, University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong SAR
Climatic Change
1 Introduction As coastal urban populations rise and climate change accelerates, the risks of flooding in the world’s coastal cities are increasing (Buurman and Babovic 2016). Urban expansion reduces water-permeable surfaces and increases the prevalence of gray infrastructure, thereby increasing flood risk. Consequently, cities are compelled to build more drainage infrastructure in order to manage concentrated stormwater runoff (Kim et al. 2017). A representative case of a city facing chronic flood risk is Hong Kong, which is subtropical, coastal, and comprised of many low-lying areas. The metropolis of 7.4 million people exemplifies the difficulties associated with flood-mitigation strategies in coastal cities. Despite the government’s continued efforts to reduce flooding over the past two decades (Environment Bureau 2015), massive floods have occurred repeatedly in co
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