EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Blowing dust and wind erosion can be as costly as other natural disasters like hurricanes and other storms, according to a new study that UTEP played a big role in.

A new study in the journal Nature Sustainability, published by researchers at the University of Texas at El Paso, George Mason University, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, estimates that the societal costs of blowing dust and wind erosion total approximately $154 billion per year across the United States.

“It might seem strange to think that tiny specks of dust could add up to such huge consequences,” said study co-author Thomas Gill, Ph.D., professor of earth, environmental and resource sciences at UTEP. “This should be a wake-up call that blowing dust is a major expense and creates great societal harm.”

The new estimate puts the economic impact of dust events on par with some of the most costly and destructive natural disasters, like hurricanes and other storms, and points to the importance of dust mitigation efforts, according to a news release from UTEP highlighting the study.

The study compiled the costs of wind erosion across several sectors of the economy, including health care, transportation, agriculture, renewable energy, and households, to reach the $154 billion total, which is likely an underestimate, Gill said.

The authors based their estimates on data from 2017, the year with the most complete sets of information available and an average level of dust activity.

“This more recent baseline estimate presents an opportunity to both expand data collection and establish a more comprehensive understanding of wind erosion effects in the United States,” explained the study’s lead author, Irene Feng, a doctoral student from George Mason University. “Although our team’s analysis incorporates inflation and was affected by the timing of when all data could be correlated, it clearly demonstrates the extreme multi-billion dollar economic impacts of wind erosion.”