Rising Sea Levels Threaten Norfolk Broads
by Orlandy - March 10th, 2009.Filed under: environment.
Global warming, and the associated danger of rising sea levels could threaten the Thames Estuary and Norfolk Broads within 100 years.
Climatologists now think that low lying areas of the UK could be at risk quicker than previously thought due to the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets melting faster than previously thought.
Climate change is also likely to lead to super storms battering the coastline and improved defenses will be needed to protect cities such as London, Hull and Portsmouth from severe flooding.
This warning will be given at the Copenhagen climate change conference this week.
Dr David Vaughan of the British Antarctic Survey said “It is now clear that there are going to be massive flooding disasters around the globe. Populations are shifting to the coast, which means that more and more people are going to be threatened by sea level rises.”
It was originally thought that sea levels would rise between 20 and 60cm by 2100, but revised etimates now put it at 1 or 1.5m due to the effect of the melting ice sheets.
The resulting storms could see huge tidal surges putting places such as East Anglia, the Thames Estuary and other low lying sities at risk without major flood defense investment.
Dr Colin Brown, of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers said: “Climate change shows there will be significant increases in storms as global temperatures rise. These will produce much more intense gales and hurricanes and these, in turn, will produce massive storm surges as they pass over the sea.”
In a report published last month, the IMechE warned that the country will face massive disruption to its transport and energy systems. Many rail lines run along valleys which will be flooded.
The IMechE has warned that many areas of the country may have to be abandoned because they are too expensive to protect.
