South Jersey has fastest sea level rise on East Coast, study finds

[DonViejo]

Source: Philadelphia Inquirer



2021/3/27 06:10 (EDT)

PHILADELPHIA — A new study led by Rutgers University that looked at sea level rise at six locations on the East Coast over the last 2,000 years found that levels rose twice as fast in the 20th century compared with previous eras, and that South Jersey experienced the highest rates overall.

The authors concluded in the study published in the journal Nature Communications that global sea rise from melting ice and warming oceans from 1900 to 2000 increased at a rate more than double the average for the previous 1,800 years.

Sea levels don’t rise uniformly like water running into a bathtub, but rather are influenced regionally by local and global factors. The authors took into account a complex array of influences including a natural sinking of the land due to geological reasons, ocean dynamics, and groundwater withdrawal.

The study looked at three locations in New Jersey: Leeds Point in Atlantic County, Cape May Court House in Cape May County, and Cheesequake State Park in Middlesex County. They also looked at East River Marsh in Connecticut, Pelham Bay in the Bronx, and Roanoke Island in North Carolina.

Read more: https://www.rawstory.com/south-jersey-has-fastest-sea-level-rise-on-east-coast-study-finds/

[Deminpenn]

1. Probably pronounced "Chess-a-quake", but

I immediately read "cheesesteak".

[COL Mustard]

9. I Read "Cheesecake"

And immediately thought of "the Big Bang Theory"!!!

[sarcasmo]

2. Climate migration is real.

[IbogaProject]

3. sample bias only the NJ sites are on or very near the ocean.

Looks like some sample bias as I believe only the NJ sites are on or very close to the open ocean.

That said, NJ is right up there with Louisiana and Florida for being in the crosshairs of ocean rise. Much of South Jersey is lowlands. Evan north of Philadelphia along the Delaware river 50 or more miles from the ocean is at risk with low elevations and a long history of flooding. Actually Bucks county PA between Trenton and Philadelphia has a whole region that will continue to sustain heavy frequent flooding and eventual submersions.

[Ford_Prefect]

8. Evidently you have never been to the Outer Banks in North Carolina.

The bit in the middle where the town of Manteo sits is Roanoke Island.





In addition East River Marsh sits on the northern shore of Long Island Sound, while Pelham Bay in the Bronx is at the eastern end of that same body. IMO you can't get meaningfully closer to the Atlantic Ocean shoreline, especially if you are measuring the potential impact on inhabited and developed areas. These are also areas with long term records of tide levels, coastal changes and nearby habitation.

[COL Mustard]

10. OBX Is My Favorite Place On Earth

We're fortunate to have a place down there, and to be able to rent it out all summer. We're closer to the Sound side, but only ~300 yards to the ocean. I love every minute we're able to spend there, even when the weather is crappy (like it was in January & February). I'm concerned about sea level rise, but it would take a lot for us to have a problem.

[IbogaProject]

4. Cheesequake State Park

Cheesequake State Park is up near Staten Island.

[winstars]

5. We went there lots of times as a kid from Staten Island... Fun days!!!

[ancianita]

6. photos of Leeds Point (2) and Cape May (1)

Some call it "nuisance flooding."

[NNadir]

7. Here's a link to the original paper, plus a link to a lecture Bob Kopp, one of the authors, gave...

...a few year back.

Walker, J.S., Kopp, R.E., Shaw, T.A. et al. Common Era sea-level budgets along the U.S. Atlantic coast. Nat Commun 12, 1841 (2021).

Science on Saturday: Managing Coastal Risk in an Age of Sea-level Rise

I was illuminated during the lecture, which I attended, with respect to the role that the depletion of ground water, which is essentially being mined, plays in sea level rise.