This report employs an innovative methodology that geolocates more than 30,000 transport and energy infrastructure assets in the Asia and Pacific region and then individually evaluates them for the degree and characteristics of existing and future exposure to extreme heat, water stress, floods, extreme precipitation, sea level rise, cyclones, and earthquakes. It aims to contribute to a better understanding of the region’s exposure to climate change and earthquake hazards and to raise awareness of the need to consider resilience measures in infrastructure planning.

This report is not intended to be a comprehensive analysis of climate change and earthquake hazards in the region. The distribution of assets across the region and economies together with limitations in the data available constrain the comparability of the results. Despite these limitations, the report makes an important contribution to understanding the extent of the exposure of the region’s infrastructure to these hazards. In addition, an exposure assessment such as the one presented here is only a first step in understanding the risk to these assets. With appropriate additional information that can be obtained at the national and local levels, a vulnerability assessment should be conducted to complement the exposure assessment. Together, these assessments will help guide efforts to build resilience in the region.

The report provides two central messages that are relevant to policy makers in the Asia and Pacific region. First, transport and energy infrastructure in the region is exposed to significant climate change and earthquake hazards. About 62% and 44% of transport assets included in the study are rated red flag or high (the two highest exposure categories in this report) for floods and extreme heat, respectively. Water stress accounts for the largest proportion of energy assets evaluated that are rated red flag or high (45.1%). A significant share of assets included in this analysis are exposed to earthquakes (72.4%), cyclones (22.4%), and sea level rise (8.3%). The seemingly low share of assets exposed to sea level rise and cyclones does not imply that sea level rise and cyclones are not significant hazards in the region. The results are influenced by the nature of these hazards; sea level rise and cyclones are only relevant to a subset of assets in coastal areas. Projected sea level rise and the increases in intense tropical cyclones will have severe effects on some subregions of the Asia and Pacific region. Of the assets included in the study, 2.5% are rated red flag (none are rated high) for exposure to sea level rise and 2.2% are rated red flag or high for exposure to cyclones. Of the regions studied, the Pacific region has the highest share of assets exposed to sea level rise at 39.8%, followed by Southeast Asia at 17.5%. At the same time, exposure to cyclones is most significant in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific with more than 50% of analyzed assets exposed.