The Paradox of Change in the American West: Global Climate Destruction and the Reallocation of Urban Space and Priorities

78 pagesIn 2019, the authors published an article that surveyed the response of six urban areas in the western United States to global climate destruction (GCD). Our approach was primarily positive. We selected four markers—transportation, land use planning, infrastructure, and water and energy supply—to measure adaptation to the expected adverse impacts of GCD and to suggest best practices in each area. This Article complements the 2019 article by taking a normative approach. It asks the following question: given the magnitude of the expected adverse impacts, what should urban areas (i.e., states, regions, and cities) be doing to mitigate and adapt themselves to GCD? This Article focuses almost exclusively on urban areas in the American West, realizing that GCD will affect that region more severely than many other areas of the country, particularly with respect to the allocation of water resources