Sea Level Rise
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There will always be beaches, but sea level rise will ensure that they will not be in the same place in the future. The beaches will still exist throughout this change, but many of the buildings may not. Efforts to save development, however do threaten beaches, such as shoreline armoring structures.
Although relative amounts of rise may seem very small, only a few millimeters per year, the cumulative effect of these small rises each year over a long period of time (100+ years) causes major problems. Accelerated rates of erosion are attributed to sea level rise and erosion causes large economic losses around the world each year due to the close proximity of buildings and critical infrastructure. This includes transportation systems, gas and oil lines as well as electricity lines and power plants.
Most developed coasts and beaches have buildings very close to the ocean leaving little room for the ever-expanding ocean. The future effects of sea level rise on coastal civilization over the entire world are of great concern. Over half of the world’s population lives within 100 km of the coast. Over the next 50 years, damage due to coastal development will be devastating, but if the rate of sea level rise increases, the results could be catastrophic. This issue threatens areas from New York City in the United States to the Pearl River Delta in China to the Maldives.
The world map below allows you to see elevations of coastal areas. Areas in red are the lowest in elevation and are most prone to flooding. Check out Manhattan in New York City. If you think the situation there looks dire, be sure to check out the effects of a 2 m rise in sea level on Pearl River Delta in China, home to more than 40 million people. Map courtesy of globalwarmingart.com
Surfing in / Sea Level Rise
Coral Links Ice Sheet Collapse to Ancient ‘Mega Flood’
Coral off Tahiti has linked the collapse of massive ice sheets 14,600 years ago to a dramatic and rapid rise in global sea-levels of around 14 meters.
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Scientists Find Slow Subsidence of Earth’s Crust Beneath the Mississippi Delta
Earth’s crust beneath the Mississippi Delta sinks at a much slower rate than what had been assumed. However, these subsidence rates are small compared to the rate of present-day sea-level rise from the Florida panhandle to east Texas..
New Comparison of Ocean Temperatures Reveals Rise over the Last Century
A new study , by Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, contrasting ocean temperature readings of the 1870s with temperatures of the modern seas, reveals an upward trend of global ocean warming spanning at least 100 years.
In Paradise, and Closer Than Ever to Disaster
For many of us who live in temperate zones, inland regions and the industrialized West, global warming is a source of anxiety, and something of an abstraction. One challenge for Nasheed, former leader of the lowest lying country, was how to communicate the problems currently apparent in the Maldives to countries where the impacts of climate change are not yet as drastic or visible. What will happen once other nations start to feel the pressure of rising sea levels?
Precipitation Impacts Glacial Melt
As glaciers fluctuate, retreating or adding mass, they dramatically affect the water cycle, locking up fresh water as they amass, causing the sea level to rise as they thaw and retreat.
Dredging for sand set to begin in Topsail Beach
Sand that was lost during Hurricane Irene last year is being replaced this week. Officials in Topsail Beach expect that the pumping of sand onto the beach will started on Monday.
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Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation, IPCC
Climate change is amplifying risks from drought, floods, storms and rising seas, threatening all countries, and nations should prepare, an international panel of climate scientists warned in a report issued Wednesday. The report pointed in particular at coastal megacities.
Global Sea Level Likely to Rise as Much as 70 Feet in Future Generations
Even if humankind manages to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit)–as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recommends–future generations will likely have to deal with a completely different world.
Venice hasn’t stopped sinking after all
Sea-level rise isn’t the only thing that has Venice’s famous canals rising ever-so-slightly every year: The city is also sinking, a new study shows, in contrast to previous studies that suggested the city’s subsidence had stabilized.
