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Environmental information systems
The indicator shows total economic losses from weather- and climate-related extreme events (such as windstorms, flooding, heatwaves, cold spells, droughts or wildfires) per country and per year (since 1980). A moving average for the previous 30 years is added because of the large interannual variability of the losses.
Due to its geographical location, Iceland experiences volatile and extreme weather regularly. Damage from weather-related events is common but irregular, and thus systematic changes in extreme weather are not clearly identifiable, nor is the attribution to climate change of single extreme weather events.
Historically, the most fatal natural events in Iceland have been avalanches, such as in 1995 when two avalanches claimed 34 lives and caused extensive property damage. However, such events are not attributed to climate change, as they have occurred regularly over the centuries.
Since 2010, water and tidal floods have become more frequent, and they can, to a certain extent, be traced to increased precipitation intensity, which may be attributed to climate change. However, no definitive analysis has been published.
An explanation for the low estimation of climate-related economic losses could be that Iceland has not experienced heatwaves or forest fires to any extent. Moreover, the frequency of natural disasters – volcanic activity and extreme weather events – has led to increased resilience in Icelandic society, with infrastructure built to endure extreme natural events.