How will rising sea levels change California? Look at Florida to find out
From the California’s Pacific, to Florida’s Gulf of Mexico, the sea is rising and becoming an increasing threat to communities that have settled along the water’s edge.
From the California’s Pacific, to Florida’s Gulf of Mexico, the sea is rising and becoming an increasing threat to communities that have settled along the water’s edge.
An NOAA report projects an average of 10-12 inches of sea level rise along the U.S. coastline over the next 30 years. If emission trends continue, that number could hover between 3.5 to 7 feet by the end of the century.
Of course, the numbers vary depending on land and ocean height. The West Coast could see between 4 and 8 inches of sea level rise by 2050.
Californians lucked out with a climate pattern called the “Pacific Decadal Oscillation”, which kept the sea tame early on in the state’s development and invited settlement along the state’s seacliffs and bluffs.
But take one look at the Gulf, and you’ll realize Californians would likely have settled the coast regardless.
Davis Islands, an affluent community just south of downtown Tampa, was built on two mudflat islands that were dredged and expanded in the 1920s, turning the archipelago into sought-after, dollar-turning real estate. Tom Brady once called this place home.
Flooding is just something that happens here. Even on sunny days, high-tides can inundate the community, flushing corrosive seawater into the streets.
Couple that with the hurricanes or even the mildest of storm surges that southwest Florida sees and you’ve got an expensive and potentially life-threatening problem.
People have adapted by building houses on stilts and flood insurance rates have spiked. FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program covers about 90% of Floridians with flood insurance, offering discounts to counties that comply with adaptation standards.
The state has responded by investing heavily in flood research, infrastructure upgrades and even wetland restoration. Still, critics worry that flood-defense spending addresses only the consequences rather than causes of a rising sea– namely planet-warming oil and gas pollution, which Florida lawmakers are actively working to protect.
It’s a question that spans the country, with 40% of Americans living along the coast. In California, coastal communities are already struggling between short-term and long-term decisions on adapting to a changing shoreline.
An NOAA report projects an average of 10-12 inches of sea level rise along the U.S. coastline over the next 30 years. If emission trends continue, that number could hover between 3.5 to 7 feet by the end of the century.
Of course, the numbers vary depending on land and ocean height. The West Coast could see between 4 and 8 inches of sea level rise by 2050.
Californians lucked out with a climate pattern called the “Pacific Decadal Oscillation”, which kept the sea tame early on in the state’s development and invited settlement along the state’s seacliffs and bluffs.
But take one look at the Gulf, and you’ll realize Californians would likely have settled the coast regardless.
Davis Islands, an affluent community just south of downtown Tampa, was built on two mudflat islands that were dredged and expanded in the 1920s, turning the archipelago into sought-after, dollar-turning real estate. Tom Brady once called this place home.
Flooding is just something that happens here. Even on sunny days, high-tides can inundate the community, flushing corrosive seawater into the streets.
Couple that with the hurricanes or even the mildest of storm surges that southwest Florida sees and you’ve got an expensive and potentially life-threatening problem.
People have adapted by building houses on stilts and flood insurance rates have spiked. FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program covers about 90% of Floridians with flood insurance, offering discounts to counties that comply with adaptation standards.
The state has responded by investing heavily in flood research, infrastructure upgrades and even wetland restoration. Still, critics worry that flood-defense spending addresses only the consequences rather than causes of a rising sea– namely planet-warming oil and gas pollution, which Florida lawmakers are actively working to protect.
It’s a question that spans the country, with 40% of Americans living along the coast. In California, coastal communities are already struggling between short-term and long-term decisions on adapting to a changing shoreline.
