In the last few years, the housing and water nexus has been in the news a lot, but what can we do about the social inequality that is so apparent in this area? The population and the steepness of the streets may be a good place to start, but future research and policies must focus on social justice and equality. The global dream of "water for all" must be a reality in the United States as well.
The first step in solving this problem is to understand what is driving these residents to move away from high ground neighborhoods to low ground areas. While data on the movement of people from high ground neighborhoods to low lying affordable housing is sparse, we can infer that people are moving toward these areas because they are more affordable and more vulnerable to rising sea levels. Here are some trends that have led to this situation: