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The accumulation of scientific evidence over the past several decades unequivocally demonstrates that the global climate is changing, largely due to carbon dioxide emissions from human activities (IPCC, 2001; 2007). Sea-level rise is one effect of climate warming that will have profound impacts on a...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Text |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2008
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.226.2785 http://www.climatescience.gov/Library/sap/sap4-1/public-review-draft/sap4-1-prd-context.pdf |
| Summary: | The accumulation of scientific evidence over the past several decades unequivocally demonstrates that the global climate is changing, largely due to carbon dioxide emissions from human activities (IPCC, 2001; 2007). Sea-level rise is one effect of climate warming that will have profound impacts on all coastal regions of the United States and around the world. The geologic record shows that sea level and the global climate have been relatively stable over the past 10,000 years and this stability is a significant factor in enabling the development of human civilizations. The significant changes over the past 200 years in atmospheric carbon dioxide, temperature, ecosystems, and ice-sheet melting follow a six-fold increase in global population (Zalasiewicz et al., 2008). Along the ocean and estuarine coasts of most of the United States, sea level has risen over the last century and will continue to do so in the future. The effects are evident in many areas, as shores erode and move landward and formerly dry areas become submerged, more frequently flooded by high tides and storm surges. People are responding to these impacts by taking measures to protect threatened property or by relocating development inland to higher ground. The intent of this report is to assess the potential effects and risks of sea-level |
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