CA Ports Not Prepared for Sea Level Rise from Climate Change
A new staff report to the California State Lands Commission reveals that most of the state’s 40 ports and shipping hubs surveyed are not prepared for the rise in sea level expected because of climate change.
The 62-page document, “A Report on Sea Level Rise Preparedness,” cites research that projects sea level to rise 16” by 2050 –and a whopping 55” by 2100.
Obviously, an increase in sea level of this magnitude would have widespread consequences for California, where nearly half a million people, thousands of miles of roads and railways, major ports, airports, power plants and wastewater treatment plants are at risk from a 100-year flood event as a result of a 55” sea level rise, according to the California Climate Change Center.
What can stakeholders do to mitigate their risks?
Step Number One (per usual) is building awareness. Then, this particular report includes 15 specific recommendations for the California State Lands Commission staff, including suggestions such as:
- Give careful consideration to the effects of sea level rise, including impacts to hydrology, soils, geology, transportation, recreation, and other resource categories in all environmental determinations. Direct staff to recommend feasible alternatives, project modifications, mitigation, or a combination of these measures, to avoid or reduce significant impacts.
- Inventory existing leases to identify improvements/infrastructure vulnerable to projected sea level rises of 16” and 55”.
- Evaluate structures (wharves, docks, levees, breakwaters, piers, seawalls, flood control structures, etc.) subject to the ocean environment for structural integrity and potential hazards as sea levels rise.
- Consider amending the Commission’s Application Package to require that all new coastal development projects consider the implications of and include adaptation strategies for projected sea level rises of 16” and 55”, depending on the projected life expectancy of the project.
- Recommend project modifications that would eliminate or reduce potentially adverse impacts from sea level rise, including adverse impacts on public access.
Do these recommendations apply in some way to your organization and its supply chain? It’s time to start having that discussion.
More and more companies are beginning to recognize the business risks associated with climate change –and as this report, and others (see here and here, e.g.) , clearly show, those risks are not limited to GHG emissions.
