The Latest Trending Economic, Environmental and Infrastructure News Curated for You by The Balmoral Group
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Happy Friday!
Welcome back to this week's Economic Perspective! This week, we are still shocked and saddened by the devastating impacts of Hurricane Helene, which made landfall last week as a Category 4 storm in the Big Bend area of the Florida Gulf Coast. Early estimates of insurance losses from Gallagher Re (re-insurer, courtesy their Chief Science Officer Steve Bowen) include $5 - 10 billion for the private market, $3 - 5 billion for the public market, $35 billion in economic losses. These estimates reported the same week as published research estimating an average U.S. tropical cyclone indirectly causes 7,000 to 11,000 excess deaths in the following decade. Sobering news.
Another major economic event this week is the Middle East conflict, with oil prices spiking after Iran and Israel exchanged fire. While prices jumped 5%, the market has shown little ability to sustain high prices even when OPEC has constrained supply to try to force prices up. Global oil demand is well below historical averages, the U.S. continues to be a net exporter of energy, and if Iranian exports were taken offline, primarily China would be impacted as they purchase more than 90% of Iran's exported energy. China purchases most of its oil from Russia and Saudi Arabia, which is unlikely to change.
This week, we bring stories about a new Florida law requiring property flood risk disclosures, new Everglades restoration funding, forestry and clean energy initiatives in Washington State, and more! We hope you enjoy the read and let us know what you think! Please feel free to forward this to anyone you think would be interested. If you’d like to view previous editions please click here, or to subscribe please click here!
Have a great weekend!
Army Corps Awarded Three Vital Contracts for Restoring Florida's Ecosystems
As part of a $1.1 billion investment through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in partnership with the South Florida Water Management District were awarded three new contracts to restore America’s Everglades. The three projects include the Broward County Water Preserve Areas project for reducing Everglades water loss; the Indian River Lagoon enhancing water reservoirs and treatment areas projects; and the Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP) and Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) in Palm Beach County for enhancing reservoir embankment and spillway projects. These projects will eventually improve 2.4 million acres of south Florida’s aquatic ecosystem. Read more on USACE.
New Florida Law Mandates Property Sellers to Disclose Flood Risk
In the wake of recent flooding from Hurricane Helene, a new Florida law has gone into effect as of Tuesday, mandating that sellers disclose a property’s flood risk to buyers, addressing a previous lack of transparency in real estate transactions. Under Chapter 2024-215, Laws of Florida, sellers must inform buyers about any past insurance claims for flood damage and any federal assistance received due to flooding, while the law also clarifies the definition of a flood. Although the law does not require disclosure of past flood damages specifically, it fosters necessary discussions between buyers and sellers about the importance of flood insurance, particularly in lower-risk flood zones where flooding can still occur. Read more about the new law here.
Historic Ship Could Soon Become the World's Largest Artificial Reef
A historic ocean liner, the SS United States, will be turned into the world’s largest artificial reef in the Gulf of Mexico after Okaloosa County approved a contract to sink it. This plan would be a solution to finding a new home for this historic ship that once broke the record for fastest transatlantic crossing by a passenger liner in 1952. This artificial reef could generate millions in local tourism, fishing, and diving for the county while also ensuring the ship is not completely scrapped. The President of the SS United States Conservancy Group, Susan Gibbs, has supported this project stating it will become a unique historic attraction. Read more here.
Washington Launches New Evergreen Community Recognition Program
This week the Washington State Department of Natural Resources launched a statewide initiative to celebrate the importance of urban tree inventories, forest management plants, and commitment to vulnerable populations. As Washington’s population increases, successful management and enhancement of public trees and green spaces is vital. As part of this initiative, participants can apply for one of two tiers of Evergreen Community Status and meet various requirements including enacting a public tree care ordinance and spending a minimum of $2 per capita on urban forests. Entities with this status will be provided increased preferences for several state grant programs. The application process will start in December 2024. This proclamation comes just in time for October’s Urban and Community Forestry Month in Washington state. Read more at WA DNR.
Washington State University Unveils New Clean Energy Research Center
This week, Washington State University launched what has been called a “clean energy headquarters”, the Institute for Northwest Energy Futures or INEF. The 19,000 square foot facility, located in Richland, Washington, aims to be a virtual hub for clean energy solutions. The center is located near Washington’s only nuclear power plant, Hanford, and was partially funded by one of Hanford’s top physicists and professor at Washington State University, the late Bob Ferguson. Though the amount was only $500,000, the project received crucial support by Governor Jay Inslee, leading the facility to receive $7.7 million in allocation from the state budget in 2023. Read more here.
Global Debt Hits a Massive $312 Trillion
According to the Institute of International Finance, global debt rose by $2.1 trillion in the first half of 2024 to $312 trillion, making it the largest global debt on record. This rise in global debt has been exacerbated by ever-increasing government borrowing. Global government borrowing is expected to skyrocket from its current $92 trillion to $440 trillion by 2050. A significant portion of this borrowing is expected to be channeled towards energy transition in the face of climate change. Besides China and the U.S, other countries such as Russia, India and Sweden saw their debt rise, while Japan and other European countries saw a notable decline. Read more here.
Data Visualization of the Week
September Job Creation in the U.S.
In September, the U.S. economy exceeded expectations for the creation of jobs within the country. The total non-farm payroll increased 254,000 and the unemployment rate fell by 4.1%, a 0.1 percentage point decrease. The increase in job creation for the month concurrently saw a 0.4% increase in average hourly earnings, up 4% from a year ago. Health care, which is a usual leader in job growth, increase slightly (45,000) while government positions also grew by 31,000. To view the graph, click on the visual; to read more on the story, click here
Click the visual below for more information.
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