Social Vulnerability to Coastal and Inland Flood Hazards: A Comparison of GIS-Based Spatial Interpolation Methods

Previous research on exposure to flood hazards suggests that individuals characterized by low social vulnerability are more likely to reside in coastal flood hazard zones than individuals of higher social vulnerability, but few studies have examined if similar exposure patterns can be observed in inland flood hazard zones. This paper examines differences in environmental justice implications between coastal and inland flood hazard zones in Tampa Bay, Florida, based on implementation and comparison of five different GIS-based interpolation methods. The results of the authors’ study indicate that individuals with traits of low social vulnerability are more likely to reside within either coastal or inland flood hazard zones than areas outside flood zones, and socially vulnerable individuals are more likely to reside within inland flood zones than coastal. They also observe that choice of spatial interpolation method does not significantly affect which socio-demographic groups are most exposed to coastal and inland flood hazards.