Power outage-risk integrated social vulnerability analysis highlights disparities in small residential communities
Abstract Individuals experience varying levels of social vulnerability to power grid outages caused by disasters. Neglecting social vulnerability in energy resilience strategies can lead to uneven recovery, which has become a major concern in the U.S. However, few studies consider environmental and...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Communications Earth & Environment |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02278-1 |
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| author | Farzane Ezzati Qingyang Xiao Zhijie Sasha Dong Junfeng Jiao Alyson Vargas Vincent Yeh Thomas Ptak Kai Pan |
| author_facet | Farzane Ezzati Qingyang Xiao Zhijie Sasha Dong Junfeng Jiao Alyson Vargas Vincent Yeh Thomas Ptak Kai Pan |
| author_sort | Farzane Ezzati |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Individuals experience varying levels of social vulnerability to power grid outages caused by disasters. Neglecting social vulnerability in energy resilience strategies can lead to uneven recovery, which has become a major concern in the U.S. However, few studies consider environmental and infrastructural factors in their social vulnerability analysis. Here we introduce a conceptual Power Outage-Risk integrated Social Vulnerability Index (PO-RSVI) to assess vulnerability of small residential communities to prolonged outages. The proposed index comprises dimensions of prolonged outage susceptibility, community coping capacity, and community accessibility, each with indicators evaluating social hardship during power outages. Additionally, an extensive analysis investigates the relationship between PO-RSVI and willingness to pay for emergency power supplies during such event. Through an extensive analysis of three Texas communities using survey and online datasets, PO-RSVI effectively highlights disparities missed by conventional assessments and provides valuable insights for policymakers and energy resilience planners. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ea61525761aa430e9d08c3a8c0c511cd |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2662-4435 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Communications Earth & Environment |
| spelling | doaj-art-ea61525761aa430e9d08c3a8c0c511cd2025-08-20T03:18:28ZengNature PortfolioCommunications Earth & Environment2662-44352025-04-016111710.1038/s43247-025-02278-1Power outage-risk integrated social vulnerability analysis highlights disparities in small residential communitiesFarzane Ezzati0Qingyang Xiao1Zhijie Sasha Dong2Junfeng Jiao3Alyson Vargas4Vincent Yeh5Thomas Ptak6Kai Pan7University of HoustonUniversity of HoustonSoutheast UniversityUniversity of Texas at AustinUniversity of Texas at AustinUniversity of HoustonTexas State UniversityThe Hong Kong Polytechnic UniversityAbstract Individuals experience varying levels of social vulnerability to power grid outages caused by disasters. Neglecting social vulnerability in energy resilience strategies can lead to uneven recovery, which has become a major concern in the U.S. However, few studies consider environmental and infrastructural factors in their social vulnerability analysis. Here we introduce a conceptual Power Outage-Risk integrated Social Vulnerability Index (PO-RSVI) to assess vulnerability of small residential communities to prolonged outages. The proposed index comprises dimensions of prolonged outage susceptibility, community coping capacity, and community accessibility, each with indicators evaluating social hardship during power outages. Additionally, an extensive analysis investigates the relationship between PO-RSVI and willingness to pay for emergency power supplies during such event. Through an extensive analysis of three Texas communities using survey and online datasets, PO-RSVI effectively highlights disparities missed by conventional assessments and provides valuable insights for policymakers and energy resilience planners.https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02278-1 |
| spellingShingle | Farzane Ezzati Qingyang Xiao Zhijie Sasha Dong Junfeng Jiao Alyson Vargas Vincent Yeh Thomas Ptak Kai Pan Power outage-risk integrated social vulnerability analysis highlights disparities in small residential communities Communications Earth & Environment |
| title | Power outage-risk integrated social vulnerability analysis highlights disparities in small residential communities |
| title_full | Power outage-risk integrated social vulnerability analysis highlights disparities in small residential communities |
| title_fullStr | Power outage-risk integrated social vulnerability analysis highlights disparities in small residential communities |
| title_full_unstemmed | Power outage-risk integrated social vulnerability analysis highlights disparities in small residential communities |
| title_short | Power outage-risk integrated social vulnerability analysis highlights disparities in small residential communities |
| title_sort | power outage risk integrated social vulnerability analysis highlights disparities in small residential communities |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02278-1 |
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