(Sea level) 13 million along US coast could see homes swamped by 2100, study finds

[unhappycamper]

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/mar/14/climate-change-us-coast-homes-2100-great-migration

Combination of coastal population growth and rising sea levels could drive a shift comparable to the 20th century’s Great Migration

13 million along US coast could see homes swamped by 2100, study finds
Oliver Milman
Monday 14 March 2016 12.00 EDT

US coastal areas occupied by more than 13 million people will be at risk of being completely swamped by the sea under a worst-case climate change scenario, new research predicts, potentially leading to a population upheaval comparable to the Great Migration of the 20th century.

Population growth in coastal areas over the course of this century, particularly in vulnerable areas of Florida, is likely to collide with the reality of rising seas caused by melting glaciers and thermal expansion as the planet warms.

Research led by the University of Georgia has provided the first glimpse of how demographic changes in America will place greater numbers of people at the frontline of sea level rises. In a severe scenario involving a 6ft (1.8m) rise in sea levels by 2100, fuelled by the gradual collapse of the Antarctic ice sheets, a total of 13.1 million people would risk seeing their homes inundated.

A less dramatic sea level rise of 0.9m, still considered at the upper end of IPCC projections, would risk land occupied by 4.2 million people being claimed by the sea.

[phantom power]

1. It will be more, sooner.

[Herman4747]

2. An Important, noteworthy post.

The structure of the American federal legislative system, alas, acts in a manner to prevent any action that might curtail the deleterious effects of climate change from going into effect. Simply 40 Republican Senators can stop any worthwhile prospective law from being implemented. And the Republicans have far more than that.
We need a more nimble, up-to-date means of passing laws. I say dispense with the Senate entirely, and with regards to the House, make sure that the congressional districts are not gerrymandered. I also favor fewer, but larger districts.
What the Founders did not realize is that inaction could be worse than action (and this is especially true in our age).
Under my proposal, if a bill were to pass the House, and meet with the President's approval, it would become law.
We would be more capable of passing laws curtailing climate change, and just in general, be more able to pass laws period.

[progressoid]

3. Pfft. It's fake. It's just part of a global conspiracy by scientists and politicians.

I know because somebody explained it all to me on Facebook.

[Canoe52]

4. Thank god for Facebook!

People are now only half as ignorant as they were before!