Climate (theater of the absurd, part 2)

Posted on September 24, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Sea level rise not a problem in North Carolina, where lawmakers wanted TO say, “No science, no worries”

Rising sea levels are already taking a bite, as erosion increases.

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — Sea levels are rising steadily around the world, and many low-lying countries and regions are taking the threat very seriously, recognizing the potential threats to coastal resources.

But in North Carolina, home to a spectacular stretch of Atlantic coastline, Republican lawmakers wanted magically solved the problem with legislation by simply making it illegal to use the best available science when planning coastal development.

Ultimately, the state adopted a bill that basically says do nothing about rising sea levels until at least 2016, according to Rob Lamme, a lobbyist for the North Carolina Coastal Federation, who described the legislative process in detail in this blog post.

According to Lamme, the final version of the bill “prohibits state agencies from doing much of anything regarding sea level rise until 2016. The final bill does mandate a study but there are no prohibitions or restrictions on the data or science used in that study,” Lamme wrote.

The see-no-evil approach favored by real estate speculators eager to sell a few more parcels of beachfront property before the next major hurricane washes it away, but it’s a step in the wrong direction for a state that once had a reputation for being a leader in coastal ecosystem research. (more…)

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Climate: Current models underestimate coastal erosion impacts from sea level rise

Posted on September 5, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Impacts could be much greater near estuaries, lagoons and river mouths

A pipe snaking across a Florida beach replenishes the eroded strand with material from a nearby inlet. Photo by Bob Berwyn.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — When it comes to sea level rise, not many countries have as much to lose as the Netherlands, so it should be no surprise that Dutch researchers are closely tracking the impacts of coastal erosion.

In one of the latest studies, scientists from UNESCO, the Technical University of Delft and Deltares say the effects of coastline erosion as a result of rising sea-level rise in the vicinity of inlets, such as river estuaries, have been dramatically underestimated.

Using a new model that incorporates input specific to coastal inlets like river estuaries and lagoons, the researchers found that most existing models show only about 25 to 50 percent of the coastal erosion that will occur as the climate warms and sea level continues to rise. (more…)

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Global warming: New study shows even modest temperature increases will raise sea levels by several meters

Posted on June 26, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

1 meter sea level rise would subject New York to severe flooding every 3 years

When the impacts of melting ice sheets are added to thermal expansion, sea level rise from global warming becomes a dicey proposition. Photo by Bob Berwyn.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY —Sea-level increases of several feet are likely in the coming centuries even if global warming is held to two degrees Celsius, the target for current efforts to cap heat-trapping greenhouse gas emissions.

“Due to the long time it takes for the world’s ice and water masses to react to global warming, our emissions today determine sea levels for centuries to come.” said  Michiel Schaeffer, of Climate Analytics and Wageningen University, and the lead author of a new study that tries to pinpoint the long-term outlook for sea levels.

“Sea-level rise is hard to quantify, yet a critical risk of climate change,” Schaeffer said, adding that the results demonstrate the benefits of capping and cutting greenhouse gas emissions. (more…)

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U.S. faces squeeze from bi-coastal sea level rise

Posted on June 25, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Most climate projections call for steep increases in sea level rise during coming decades.

Atlantic Seaboard, Southern California coast to be hit especially hard

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — A pair of new studies released last week suggest that the U.S. could be squeezed in a rising sea level sandwich over the next few decades.

According to a U.S. Geological Survey study, sea level is rising three to four times faster along parts of the East Coast than elsewhere around the globe. A National Research Council study says the same is true for much of the California coast, where sea level will also climb faster than the global average, potentially increasing damage to coastal real estate and natural resources from higher storm surges and storm-driven wave action. (more…)

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Earthquakes destroy, but can also restore ecoysystems

Posted on May 5, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Study in Chile shows importance of protecting sandy beaches as barriers against rising sea level

This March 2010 photograph of the beach at Punta Lavapie reveals the extent of the uplift –– these former subtidal rocky bottoms were completely submerged in water –– at all times –– prior to the Maule earthquake and tsunami.
PHOTO COURTESY EDUARDO JARAMILLO.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — The devastating 2010 earthquake and tsunami in Chile had some unexpected consequences, restoring lost beaches and even entire coastal ecoystems, according to an international team of researchers who had a unique opportunity to take a close before-and-after look at the ecological impact of the 8.8 magnitude temblor.

“Dune plants are coming back in places there haven’t been plants, as far as we know, for a very long time. The earthquake created sandy beach habitat where it had been lost. This is not the initial ecological response you might expect from a major earthquake and tsunami,” said Jenifer Dugan, an associate research biologist at UC Santa Barbara’s Marine Science Institute. (more…)

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Climate: Sea level rise linked to Antarctic ice sheet collapse

Posted on April 6, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

New coral study in Tahiti sheds more light on global warming tipping points

Sea ice remnants linger on the shore of Dundee Island, near the Antarctic Peninsula. PHOTO BY BOB BERWYN.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Historically, climate change has generally proceeded on a geologic time scale, with small and incremental changes that would be hard to discern on a year-to-year basis.

But during certain periods of rapid transition — between glacial and interglacial periods, for example, the whole system speeds up. One such event occurred about 14,600 years ago, as the world emerged from an ice age.

After closely studying coral reefs in Tahiti, a team of international researchers say a dramatic rise in sea level during what’s known as the Bølling warming corresponds to a rapid collapse of massive ice sheets. (more…)

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Global warming: New estimates of sea-level rise

Posted on March 15, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Scientists offer a new explanation for why ancient beach deposits on these cliff tops in Eleuthera, Bahamas, are nearly 70 feet above present day sea level.Credit:Paul Hearty

New study accounts for rebound of land masses after recent ice ages

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Rising sea levels could swamp some of the world’s most populated coastal areas during the coming centuries, but scientists are still not sure exactly how high the waters will reach.

Projections for the next 90 years or so range from just a few inches to several feet or more, and pinpointing this significant global warming impact is one of the big challenges for climate scientists.

In a recent study, scientists with Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory estimated that sea level rose 20 to 43 feet during a warm interglacial period about 400,000 years ago — up to about 30 percent less than previous estimates. (more…)

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Global warming: Europeans see serious coastal threats

Posted on September 27, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

86 percent of surveyed coastal residents believe climate change is human-caused

Some beach communties are pumping sand along beaches to try and keep up with coastal erosion and rising sea levels.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Europeans living in coastal areas support government policies to protect marine environments from climate-change impacts and named climate-related issues like coastal erosion and sea-level rise as recognizable threats.

The findings came from an extensive survey on environmental issues. The online sampling of 10,000 residents of 10 European countries — 1,000 from each of Spain, Italy, Germany, France, Czech Republic, Netherlands, Ireland, United Kingdom, Norway and Estonia — revealed widespread concern about climate change, led by worries about sea level rise and coastal erosion.

Eighteen percent of the respondents named climate change as the single most important environmental problem facing the world. By comparison, poverty and lack of food and drinking water was chosen by 31 percent, international terrorism by 16 percent, and a global economic downturn by 12 percent.

Europeans are also much more inclined to recognize that climate change is caused entirely, mainly or in part by human activities, with 86 percent of the respondents holding that belief, while only 8 percent thought that climate change was mainly or entirely caused by natural processes; in the United States, about 32-36 percent hold this view. (more…)

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Global warming: Water-borne diseases on the rise

Posted on September 15, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

Europe facing significant health and economic impacts

A NASA satellite image shows smoke from wildfires in Greece.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Global warming is likely to increase health-related expenses in Europe by millions of dollars, as disease caused by contaminated seafood and ingestion of water-borne pathogens becomes more common.

The findings were part of a far-reaching study that looked at the results of numerous academic papers on climate change published since 1998 under the umbrella of a collaborative of European marine institutes called the Climate Change & European Marine Ecosystem Research.

The research covered topics like chemical and biological marine changes with far-reaching consequences, including sea-level rise, coastal erosion, melting ice, storm frequency and intensity, physical changes including the North Atlantic circulation system, chemical changes such as acidification and deoxygenation, changes in marine life patterns, and the ultimate impacts of all this on humans – both social and economic. (more…)

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Sea level rise to be costly for California

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

New study pinpoints economic impacts to beach communities

Rising sea levels will have huge environmental and economic impacts on seaside communities.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Shrinking beaches could cost California communities more than $1 billion as sea levels rise, according to a team of San Francisco State University researchers. The study tried to pinpoint economic impacts in five seaside communities: Ocean Beach in San Francisco; Venice Beach and Malibu in Los Angeles; Carpinteria in Santa Barbara County; and Torrey Pines State Reserve in San Diego County.

The results suggest that visitor hotspots like Venice Beach could lose up to $440 million in tourism revenue between now and 2100 if sea levels rise by 4.6 feet , a projection specific to the California coast, based on recent scientific studies. At San Francisco’s Ocean Beach, accelerated erosion could cause up to $540 million worth of damage. (more…)

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