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ABSTRACT
This article is simultaneously interested in the growing vulnerability of France to climate disasters and its origins, both historical and political. To do this, it first establishes a state of risks in France based on the recording of damages and questions their evolution over recent decades. Far from being unpredictable, these extreme climatic events, qualified as disasters when they affect societies, in fact reflect a denial of memory on the part of decision-makers and planners, as evidenced by several dramatic events presented in this article. Taking note of these lessons learned that are too often neglected or despised, the article recommends a certain number of common sense measures based on experience, observation and anticipation.
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Emmanuel Garnier: Research director, exceptional class - Climate and Environmental Sciences Laboratory, CEA-Université Paris-Saclay, France
INTRODUCTION
The latest IFOP survey carried out for the French Association for the Prevention of Natural and Technological Disasters (AFPCNT) in March 2023 had the effect of a bombshell . It shows that the culture of risk is far from being a given in France, with almost half of French people declaring that they are unaware of the risks that threaten them in their daily environment. What's more, they feel that they are not sufficiently informed on the subject, and that prevention counts for little when it comes to the public authorities' ability to intervene quickly, in other words, after a disaster has occurred.
The historian cannot help but notice the extent to which vulnerability has increased over the last few decades, raising people's exposure to climate risks. A major paradox is that vulnerability has increased at the same time as knowledge of climate change and its most extreme risks has spread throughout French society. It is this paradox that this article aims to address, dealing first with the reality of current climate risk, and then with the cost of not taking sufficient account of past experience. However, fixism and descriptiveness are not reasons and results in themselves, which is why it is also intended as a plea for better adaptation at a time of increasing political and financial turbulence in France and Europe.
The article is divided into four major sections, beginning with an overview of climate risk since 1982, followed by a discussion of the price of memorial denial in the face of contemporary disasters. It continues with a plea for better adaptation to climate risks and a conclusion on the need for a paradigm shift in the management of extreme climate risks.
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KEYWORDS
risk | vulnerability | Climate | Disaster | Memory
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Climate risks and vulnerabilities in France
Climate risk in France since 1982
Bibliography
- (1) - IFOP - Enquête de perception sur les freins et leviers du citoyen responsable face aux risques naturels et technologiques - (2023). https://www.ifop.com/publication/enquete-de-perception-sur-les-freins-et-leviers-du-citoyen-responsable-face-aux-risques-naturels-et-technologiques/ ...
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