Climate change-induced natural disasters represent an additional stress on a country’s infrastructure. In India, investments of US$ 120 billion have been planned for infrastructure asset creation during 2011–2012. This article highlights some crucial reverse impacts of environment on the energy, aviation, water supply and irrigation, road, communications, posts, health and housing, and railway infrastructure assets. The critical climate parameters of temperature, precipitation, sea level rise and extreme events pose direct and indirect impacts on infrastructure assets. The risks could be physical, technological change, supply chain and regulatory in nature. The risk management framework presented shows the need for an integrated and planned approach towards the problem. Although both adaptation and mitigation are needed for managing risks, lack of information about the costs and benefits of adaptation hinders the decision-making process.

Therefore, the framework also highlights the need for assessment of risks through damage functions, which will help in understanding the level of adaptation. Many financial risk management processes are a way to ensure monetary compensation in the case of an adverse event, but risk reduction must ideally be achieved by giving cues to the state and market to incorporate risk management in policy making. It also presents research gaps in terms of practically implementing appropriate adaptation strategies based on these damage assessments for specific infrastructure assets in developing countries.

For full text: http://www.ias.ac.in/currsci/10aug2011/395.pdf