U.S. East Coast Sea Level Rise Maps
The most up-to-date scientific research indicates that sea levels around the world are expected to rise much more than previously thought-as much as 1.6 meters (over 5 feet) by 2100, in part as a result of faster melting in the Arctic. This is according to the 2011 Assessment of Snow, Water, Ice, and Permafrost in the Arctic (SWIPA), by the Arctic Council's Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP), released in early May of 2011.
CA-CP is working with coastal communities throughout the Northeast to help them prepare for the environmental changes associated with climate change. CA-CP is also working to encourage the U.S. and the other seven Arctic nations - Canada, Denmark (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, and Sweden, to work together to slow Arctic warming by reducing black carbon and other pollutants, and to cooperate to manage the Arctic so that community life and natural resources there can be sustained as the region's climate changes. We have also organized events with eminent scientists to alert community leaders and the public to the sea-level rise issue in cities throughout the US (see Hipboot Tour - and as part of that effort, have created coastal inundation maps.
The map sets below show areas vulnerable to a rise in sea level in nine U.S. cities along the east coast. To get poster-sized versions of any of the maps, please write to Lynn Sullivan. CA-CP's Gulf Energy Infrastructure maps can be found on a separate page.)
To view/print these PDF maps you need Adobe Reader 8 or newer.
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Portland, MAINE
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Hampton, NEW HAMPSHIRE
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Philadelphia, PENNSYLVANIA
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Chesapeake Bay Region
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Norfolk, VIRGINIA
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Wilmington, NORTH CAROLINA
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Charleston, SOUTH CAROLINA
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Tampa, FLORIDA
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Miami, FLORIDA
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Information Basis for Coastal Inundation Maps
Stratus Consulting Inc. of Boulder, Colorado* prepared the inundation maps for several scenarios (e.g., 50 centimeters, 1 meter, 2 meters). The maps depict the vulnerability to sea level rise for each scenario shown on the map relative to the average spring high water elevation over the tidal epoch (1983-2001).
The sea level rise scenarios shown reflect areas at risk based on modeled elevation alone. They do not take into account adaptation measures such as shoreline armoring that could, in some cases, prevent specific low-lying areas from being flooded. Additionally, the maps do not depict isolated inland areas below modeled sea level, which could become inundated as the water table rises.
Elevation data used in this analysis are from the highest quality data sets that are publicly available from the U.S. Geologic Survey (Gesch, 2007; Gesch et. al., 2002) or U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (Titus and Wang, 2008; Jones and Wang, 2008).
See the entire statement here.
*Stratus Consulting Inc. of Boulder, Colorado is an environmental consulting firm whose clients include federal, state, tribal, and international government agencies, as well as utilities, industries, and law firms.
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