Coastal communities face ‘catastrophic flooding’ from rising sea levels.

Staff Reporter.

Surging sea levels are creating “a rising tide of misery” that threaten the future of nearly a billion people that live in low-lying coastal areas, the UN chief has warned, as they become increasingly vulnerable to storm surges, coastal erosion and flooding.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, the global mean sea level has risen faster than in any prior century over at least the past 3,000 years.

NASA says that as global temperatures have risen about one degree Celsius (1.8F), sea levels have gone up 160 to 210 millimeters (six to eight inches) with about half of that amount occurring since 1993.

“Rising seas mean a rising tide of misery,” said Antonio Guterres, speaking at a summit that placed sea-level rise at the top of the international agenda at the UN General Assembly earlier this week.

Guterres warned of “communities swamped, freshwater contaminated, crops ruined, infrastructure damaged, biodiversity destroyed and economies decimated – with sectors such as fisheries, agriculture and tourism pummeled”.

According to the World Meteorological Organization, the average sea level globally reached a record high last year. The UN reported that the rate of increase over the last decade is more than twice the rate of sea level rise in the first decade of the satellite record, from 1993 to 2002.

Last month, Guterres said “the ocean is overflowing” and it was “a crisis entirely of humanity’s making”.

The UN says one out of every 10 people on earth live close to the sea. It also pointed out that people living near the coast in countries including Bangladesh, China, India, the Netherlands and Pakistan “will be at risk and potentially suffer catastrophic flooding”.

Also at risk are cities like Bangkok, Buenos Aires, Lagos, London, Mumbai, New York and Shanghai.

Pacific islands face growing threats to their economic viability and even existence. Small islands with low-lying land areas are arguably facing the most critical threats. Sea-level rise and other climate effects are already forcing people in such Pacific Ocean nations as Fiji, Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands to relocate.

Source: Fullview and News Agencies.

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