ENVIRONMENTAL CENTS: Increasing Sea Level Rise
By Bruce Saller
COLUMNIST
NASA recently reported that the global sea level rose by 0.23 inches, significantly above the expected rise of 0.17 inches. The average amount of sea level rise had increased from 0.08 inches in 1993 to 0.18 inches in 2023.
There are three main contributors to sea level rise:
Increase in water volume due to increasing water temperature. Water increases in volume as temperature rises, and the amount of increase per degree grows as the temperature rises. This was the largest contributor to the 2024 sea level rise. Historically it has been the second largest contributor, following glacier melt.
Water entering the oceans from melting glaciers and ice sheets. Historically, this has been the leading cause of sea level rise. Greenland and Antarctica are losing a combined 400 billion tons of ice mass per year. The annual amount varies depending upon their local weather.
Changes in lake levels and underground aquifers. The majority of water removed from aquifers and lakes eventually ends up in the oceans. Most aquifers in California are dropping 3 feet a year, and the ones in Texas are dropping 18 inches a year.
Dropping aquifer levels contribute to land subsidence, causing an additional sea level rise along the coasts. Houston is sinking the fastest at a rate of 0.2 to 2 inches per year (locality dependent). Elevation changes are also occurring due to tectonic plate shifts causing land on the West Coast to rise and land on the East Coast to fall.
NASA’s sea level calculations are based on sea levels around the world. There are large variations within the United States, due to the impacts from water temperature and land elevation. The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicts that the average sea level rise by 2050 will be 10 to 12 inches, but by region that means 10 to 14 inches of rise for the East Coast, 14 to 18 inches for the Gulf Coast, and 4 to 8 inches for the continental West Coast.
The largest rise is expected to be in Galveston, Texas at 24 inches, while Anchorage, Alaska could see a sea-level drop of 8 inches since it is rising in elevation.
These sea level rises will be devastating for the Gulf Coast and other areas, and we need to do all we can now to slow down climate change. Here are some things we can do:
Install solar panels.
Buy an electric vehicle for your next car.
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