e360 digest

15 Feb 2011: Future Effects of Rising Seas
Depicted for U.S. in New Study and Map

Rising sea levels could inundate 9 percent of the land within 180 U.S. cities by 2100, with cities along the Gulf of Mexico and the south Atlantic coast facing the most critical threats, according to a new study. Using elevation data from the U.S. Geological Survey, researchers at the University of Arizona created digital maps of the U.S. coast that delineate the areas that would be affected if seas rise three feet this century and up to 20 feet in subsequent centuries as ice sheets and glaciers melt worldwide. According to the projections, Miami, New Orleans, Tampa, Fla., and Virginia Beach, Va. could lose 10 percent of their land area to rising seas by the end of the century. If sea levels rise 10 feet, more than 20 percent of the land in these cities would be inundated. And if sea levels increase 20 feet in subsequent centuries, about one-third of the land area of U.S. coastal cities will be affected, according to the study, to be published in the journal Climatic Change Letters. As the maps illustrate, not only oceanfront property will be affected by rising waters, but also land connected to the sea by channels, creeks, inlets, and nearby low-lying areas.

Yale Environment 360 is
a publication of the
Yale School of Forestry
& Environmental Studies.

SEARCH e360

CONNECT

Twitter: YaleE360
e360 on Facebook
Donate to e360
View mobile site
Bookmark
Share e360
Email newsletter
Subscribe to our feed:

ABOUT

About e360
Contact
Submission Guidelines
Reprints

e360 PHOTO GALLERY

South African photojournalist Adam Welz documents the harrowing relocation of six white rhinos to a region that has lost all its rhinos to poaching. View the gallery.

DEPARTMENTS

Opinion
Reports
Analysis
Interviews
e360 Digest
Podcasts
Video Reports

TOPICS

Biodiversity
Business & Innovation
Climate
Energy
Forests
Oceans
Policy & Politics
Pollution & Health
Science & Technology
Sustainability
Urbanization
Water

REGIONS

Antarctica and the Arctic
Africa
Asia
Australia
Central & South America
Europe
Middle East
North America

e360 VIDEO

A Yale Environment 360 video explores Ecuador’s threatened Yasuni Biosphere Reserve with scientists inventorying its stunning forests and wildlife. Watch the video.

e360 MOBILE

The latest
from Yale
Environment 360 is now available for mobile devices at e360.yale.edu/mobile.

e360 VIDEO

In a Yale Environment 360 video, photographer Pete McBride documents how increasing water demands have transformed the Colorado River, the lifeblood of the arid Southwest. Watch the video.




Top Image: aerial view of Iceland. © Google & TerraMetrics.

e360 VIDEO

The Warriors of Qiugang, a Yale Environment 360 video that chronicles the story of a Chinese village’s fight against a polluting chemical plant, was nominated for a 2011 Academy Award for Best Documentary (Short Subject). Watch the video.

OF INTEREST