Economic costs of wind erosion in the United States

Abstract

Wind erosion and resulting dust negatively impact the environment and society, but there has been no comprehensive assessment of costs to the United States since the 1990s. Climate and society have changed greatly since then, including changing dustiness, spiking Valley fever infections and increased renewable energy use. By adopting published estimates and calculating emerging costs, we estimate that wind erosion and dust in the United States cost $154.4 billion annually (2017 value). This estimate quadruples the previous assessment and is higher than most other US weather and climate disasters. We also discovered many costs associated with wind erosion that are not accounted for. Our estimate, while conservative, reveals that the economic burden of wind erosion is substantial and investment in dust mitigation could yield large economic benefits. Wind erosion and dust transport present challenges to human wellbeing, health and infrastructure. Last estimated for the United States in the 1990s, present economic costs of wind erosion across the United States have nearly quadrupled, and an updated assessment of vulnerable systems is required.