Sea Level Rise

It is difficult to understand sea level rise unless we look at the data in detail, see the consequences and compare it with our actions.

Currently the rise in sea level is 3.4mm according to data obtained by satellites such as the recently launched satellite (Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich) an effort that helps us to have a more precise understanding of the subject. This number has been increasing since the 1990s.

However, the problem of sea level rise is different depending on the city or country due to phenomena such as subsidence (the sinking of land), winds and tides.

In countries like Germany, India, Indonesia, Holland, London, Great Britain, Italy and the Netherlands, the sea level is really a serious problem that they have been facing for decades.

Implementing solutions such as barriers, dikes, walls to stop the advance of the sea towards land or gates and channels to contain or divert the rise in sea level permanently or sometimes natural phenomena such as tidal waves, rains, river floods, floods and hurricanes

While in countries like Great Britain, adaptation was simply chosen, moving entire towns to new locations on higher ground since it is less expensive than trying to stop the advance of the sea.

However, none of these definitive solutions, the sea level continues to rise, surpassing or questioning the capabilities of the dikes, barriers, walls or gates. Because these were designed in the 1990s, when the prediction of sea level rise was more optimistic.

It was estimated by then that in the worst case we would have a sea level rise of 1mt by the end of 2100 but the prediction has changed, now an increase of 2mts is mentioned. of sea level, making cities have to reinvent themselves to sustain the problem.

In Antarctica and Greenland there is enough ice to raise the sea level by 66 meters.

If the temperature continues to increase, the melting will continue to increase, even accelerating. Phenomena such as feedback mean that we have to constantly update predictions. An example of this is the sea ice shelves that regulate the advance of ice towards the sea.

If the temperatures increase, the marine platforms recede by the deshielo and the speed at which the hielo moves away from the sea constantly increases, as the sea level rises as a result.

In other parts of West Antarctica, the rock is below sea level due to the weight of the shelf ice. If the temperature continues to rise, the water melts the edge, seeping water below, detaching the platform.

When Larsen B's barrier was breached, the rate of melting behind increased eightfold.

Other feedback phenomena such as Albedo are not far behind, Albedo is the amount of light the icy surface reflects, preventing the Earth's surface from absorbing radiation and raising the temperature.

As the melting increases, the surface that reflects sunlight decreases, causing the temperature to rise faster.

In cities like NY, a sea level rise of 1mt would mean that they would suffer from constant flooding and would have to face problems such as saline intrusion when seawater accesses aquifers.

In Egypt and Bangladesh, a one meter rise in sea level would flood 10% of the crop fields in these countries, forcing millions of farmers to move.

If we do not do something to stop global warming this will be a reality that we will have to face and in fact a reality that we are facing.

If we do not comply with the Paris agreement to keep the global average temperature below 2 degrees Celsius by 2050, these predictions will be a fact and even worse, if we do nothing we will have a global average temperature increase of five degrees Celsius and an increase in the level of the sea of 10 meters by the end of the century.

"This is what sea level is. It’s a global problem for humans but also for everything else – animals, plants. If change happens slowly there’s more of a chance of being able to adapt, but not to a rapid change"

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