Weather Risk

John R. Coomber, a Swiss Re director who has consistently identified climate change as a significant risk, will become the new chairman of ClimateWise, the global insurance industrys leadership group formed to reduce the risks of climate change.

With the global climate expected to rise 4 degrees Celsius rather than the projected 2, adaptation and resiliency are mandatory for the survival of vulnerable populations, according to experts here.

Insurer Steadfast does not have a duty to defend AES Corp. in a climate change case alleging that AES emissions have contributed to rising sea levels threatening the village of Kivalina, Alaska.

Despite a broad consensus among insurers that climate change will have an impact on extreme weather events, few companies can outline their plan to manage the risks and opportunities associated with the risk, according to a report on a National Association of Insurance Commissioners survey.

The damage from Irene and other disasters means that property insurance premiums will likely rise across the board into 2012, says one research analyst.

In American Electric Power Co. v. Connecticut, the U.S. Supreme Court held in an 8-0 decision that the Clean Air Act displaced any federal common-law right to seek abatement of carbon-dioxide emissions from fossil-fuel-fired power plants.