Abbey Abramson

  Operation and maintenance budgets for flood controls O&M Budgets: the new corruption frontier Well-built assets still fail without operation & maintenance. In drainage systems, annual desilting, trash rack cleaning, weed control, lubricant changes, and electrical checks keep systems alive. When O&M lines are neglected or never maintained, risk accumulates quietly until the first major storm. Global practice recognizes O&M as a distinct contract type (e.g., management/O&M/O&M PPP contracts), with specific deliverables and service-level agreements; however, many adaptation projects celebrate commissioning and overlook the decade that follows (World Bank PPP/O&M notes) (PPP Knowledge Lab). Corruption risks migrate into O&M in three ways: Chronic under-budgeting so emergency direct awards become the norm (see Chapter 4). Ghost maintenance: invoices for pump servicing with no actual work; dredging measured in paperwork, not in cubic meters removed. Co...

Low-lying district swept over by the monsoon A street, a storm, a receipt The monsoon swept over a low-lying district . The Martinez family responded quickly to flood warnings, stacking sandbags around their modest home and climbing to the roof to store vital documents. Despite forecasters’ assurances and a much-praised floodwall, disaster struck. The wall, seemingly as sturdy as the promises it represented, crumbled, allowing floodwater to surge into the streets. Days later, the Martinezes sifted through receipts for tarps and rice by a contractor's sign still claiming 'world-class climate resilience.' The week’s failure did not start with the storm; it was set in motion by decisions—tenders for favorites, skipped lab tests, buried oversight, and missed inspections—that weakened the project long before the river rose. Shortcuts and kickbacks left people vulnerable. This book examines how corruption exacerbates climate-related harms in developing countries. It explains how...