What's that Distant Rumble? Oh, It's the Start of America's Climate Migration.

 

If you're poor you have to take your chances of possibly dying in place.

If you're rich, you have options.

Some wealthy Americans are already legging it, migrating away from early onset climate change.  They're looking in a new direction, north.

For those who are already feeling the direct impact of global warming and can afford to relocate, climate change migration has begun.

Nearly half of Americans who plan to move in the next year say natural disasters and extreme temperatures factored into their decision to relocate, according to a survey conducted by Redfin.

One in 5 Americans believe climate change is already negatively impacting home values in their areas, and 35% of homeowners have already spent $5,000 or more protecting their homes against climate risk, according to Redfin. 

Last month, the United Nations' climate panel delivered a dire report calling for immediate action. The agency warned that limiting global warming to close to 1.5 degrees Celsius or even 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels "will be beyond reach" in the next two decades without rapid and large-scale reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. The report said that at 2 degrees Celsius, heat extremes would often reach critical tolerance thresholds for agriculture and health.

Lower income buyers move in to take up the slack - and the bargains.

At the same time, there's no shortage of buyers for the properties that concerned homeowners are abandoning -- in fact, Redfin found that more people are actually moving into areas facing high risk from climate change than out of them, according to an August survey.

Affordability is a major factor. According to Redfin, counties where many homes face high heat risk are less expensive on average.

"Climate change will definitely impact poorer people more than wealthier people," Fairweather said. "Wealthier people can adapt. They can modify their homes to be more resilient … and they can also just pick up and move. You can sell your home and buy another home somewhere else pretty easily."

The CNBC report cites one family who fled Silicon Valley to return to their roots in Massachusetts seeking refuge from the wildfires, heatwaves, sea level rise and, the silent killer, PM 2.5 smoke particulate.

Big Sur washout

Kelly and her husband had grown concerned about the increasing frequency of wildfires surrounding the San Francisco Bay Area and the impact their smoke could have on the long-term health of their 13-year-old daughter.

"We want to make sure she doesn't end up with lung cancer when she's 20 from breathing that kind of air," Kelly said.

Another example is the Romano family who unloaded their property in Key West, Florida for a safer home to the northwest, Seattle. 

NPR reports that some neighbourhoods in Key West already endure floods lasting upwards of three months at a stretch.  The "No Wake" sign above isn't for boaters. It's for cars and trucks driving up residential streets. 

The rich are also more likely to have the sort of careers that allow them to work remotely, greatly increasing their options.  The poor are more apt to be tied by their jobs to a specific location whether it's in the path of climate devastation or not. 

Aside from the problem of climate gentrification America has a clear cut map of the winners and the losers.

The above graphic is five years out of date. Climate change across the United States, particularly the southern states, has worsened considerably since then.  It's telling that the contrarian Slave States/Bible Belt that have made a blood sport out of blocking progress are in the crosshairs of climate devastation.  No reason for schadenfreude. There's only one direction for climate migration - north.