Can someone tell me whether sea level rises are still a concern and if so, why no one seems concerned?
When I was a kid that was the big scary climate change thing. I know it’s maybe only 50cm but that’s still problematic for lots of real estate… isn’t it?
Like just the other day I visited an expensive apartment that would’ve been maybe 50cm above sea level.
The rising of the sea is astronomically slow, so there’s a lot of denial about it. It’s already a minor (maybe moderate?) problem here on the east coast of the US. Boston, NYC, and Miami are already seeing more flooding during storms than they saw historically.
But if there’s someone who is willing to pay for a waterfront property despite the risk, then there will always be someone willing to sell it to them.
Regular people don’t seem concerned because of reporting bias. People that continue to live on coastlines aren’t going to be fearful of living on coastlines. Insurance companies are pulling out of Florida for this reason however. Sea level rising is still going to happen.
I guess part of my question was whether it’s progressing more quickly than previously anticipated given that climate change is progressing more quickly than previously anticipated.
My local council has a 100 year plan to mitigate the impact.
The problem isn’t just the level the seas rise to because of melted glaciers; it’s the increase in chaos in weather systems - storm surges like the ones blasting mansions off of cliffsides in cali, crazy flooding, more hurricanes of increased intensity, etc
It’s a concern already for low-lying atoll islands like those in the Maldives and Tuvalu. Half of Tuvalu’s capital city is expected to be flooded by 2050, but they’ve been seeing the effects for years unfortunately.
It really depends where you are though - my town is at around 100 m elevation and about 80 km inland. When I was a kid, my mum used to have nightmares about tidal waves coming over the horizon because she was so scared of sea level rise.
The thing is though… bad things happening to rich people’s money usually means worse things for poor people.
It’s really naive to think that a bunch of expensive property becoming worthless is not a big deal because it only affects poor people.
Suggesting that rich people are the only ones who own low lying property is a flawed premise also. What about low-lying island nations? What about low lying inland areas? There’s plenty of communities in Australia that aren’t necessarily close to the coast but would have an altitude of less than 1 metre.
Can someone tell me whether sea level rises are still a concern and if so, why no one seems concerned?
When I was a kid that was the big scary climate change thing. I know it’s maybe only 50cm but that’s still problematic for lots of real estate… isn’t it?
Like just the other day I visited an expensive apartment that would’ve been maybe 50cm above sea level.
The rising of the sea is astronomically slow, so there’s a lot of denial about it. It’s already a minor (maybe moderate?) problem here on the east coast of the US. Boston, NYC, and Miami are already seeing more flooding during storms than they saw historically.
But if there’s someone who is willing to pay for a waterfront property despite the risk, then there will always be someone willing to sell it to them.
But here in Boston, we’re finally starting to see new construction projects taking future sea level rise into account: https://www.baysideupdate.com/#:~:text=By raising the Project Site,and protect the surrounding neighborhood
Regular people don’t seem concerned because of reporting bias. People that continue to live on coastlines aren’t going to be fearful of living on coastlines. Insurance companies are pulling out of Florida for this reason however. Sea level rising is still going to happen.
It remains a concern; and is proceeding at a few mm per year.
I’m seeing it affect local planning in a meaningful way where I live, and is demonstrably affecting property values in low-lying areas.
I guess part of my question was whether it’s progressing more quickly than previously anticipated given that climate change is progressing more quickly than previously anticipated.
My local council has a 100 year plan to mitigate the impact.
The problem isn’t just the level the seas rise to because of melted glaciers; it’s the increase in chaos in weather systems - storm surges like the ones blasting mansions off of cliffsides in cali, crazy flooding, more hurricanes of increased intensity, etc
It’s a concern already for low-lying atoll islands like those in the Maldives and Tuvalu. Half of Tuvalu’s capital city is expected to be flooded by 2050, but they’ve been seeing the effects for years unfortunately.
It really depends where you are though - my town is at around 100 m elevation and about 80 km inland. When I was a kid, my mum used to have nightmares about tidal waves coming over the horizon because she was so scared of sea level rise.
It only affects rich people who own coastal properties.
These same people also tend to be rich enough to own other properties, so it’s not that big of a deal.
It was a “big deal” a couple decades ago because these people had to realize they need to invest somewhere other than the coast before it’s too late.
Right now it’s too late because everyone knows coastal properties’ days are numbered.
The thing is though… bad things happening to rich people’s money usually means worse things for poor people.
It’s really naive to think that a bunch of expensive property becoming worthless is not a big deal because it only affects poor people.
Suggesting that rich people are the only ones who own low lying property is a flawed premise also. What about low-lying island nations? What about low lying inland areas? There’s plenty of communities in Australia that aren’t necessarily close to the coast but would have an altitude of less than 1 metre.
My point is that nobody really cares these days because the ruling class has already divested.