Why We’re Not Prepared for The Coming Decades of Sea Level Rise

Sea levels rose faster in the 1900s than in any of time over the previous 2,800 years, and will continue to rise at record rates without drastic cuts to carbon emissions, according to new research published in the journal PNAS. Average sea levels around the world rose by 5.5 inches (14 cm) in the 20th century. That’s substantially higher than the maximum 2.8 inches (7 cm) that would have been expected without warming from manmade climate change. The research adds to growing evidence that communities around the world are vastly unprepared to defend against the effects of sea level rise in the coming decades. Rising sea levels erode coasts and place coastal cities in danger. Even areas that may seem safe will be vulnerable to floods that could inundate entire cities and contaminate freshwater supplies. “We’re living in a very unusual time that we have not experience for at least the last 2,800 years,” says study co-author Benjamin Horton, a professor at Rutgers University. Another study released this week that relies on data from the PNAS paper shows just how much humans contributed to the COMING flooding and the other consequences of sea level rise. More than 90% of flood days in the last decade would not have occurred without human contributions to global warming in several key flood-prone regions including Florida’s Atlantic coast and cities along the west coast of the U.S., according to the research published by the group Climate Central. R...
Source: TIME.com: Top Science and Health Stories - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized climate change Source Type: news