This century has seen the costliest hurricanes in U.S. history―but who bears the brunt of these monster storms?

Consider  this: Five of the most expensive hurricanes in history have made  landfall since 2005: Katrina ($160 billion), Ike ($40 billion), Sandy  ($72 billion), Harvey ($125 billion), and Maria ($90 billion). With more  property than ever in harm’s way, and the planet and oceans warming  dangerously, it won’t be long before we see a $250 billion hurricane.  Why? Because Americans have built $3 trillion worth of property in some  of the riskiest places on earth: barrier islands and coastal  floodplains. And they have been encouraged to do so by what Gilbert M.  Gaul reveals in The Geography of Risk to be a confounding array  of federal subsidies, tax breaks, low-interest loans, grants, and  government flood insurance that shift the risk of life at the beach from  private investors to public taxpayers, radically distorting common  notions of risk.

These federal incentives, Gaul argues, have  resulted in one of the worst planning failures in American history, and  the costs to taxpayers are reaching unsustainable levels. We have become  responsible for a shocking array of coastal amenities: new roads,  bridges, buildings, streetlights, tennis courts, marinas, gazebos, and  even spoiled food after hurricanes. The Geography of Risk  will forever change the way you think about the coasts, from the clash  between economic interests and nature, to the heated politics of  regulators and developers.

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