EPA Report: Coastal Sensitivity to Sea-level Rise (SC)

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a report (784 pages long) that discusses the impacts of sea-level rise in the coastal areas of the Mid-Atlantic Region of the United States. The report includes opportunities for governments and coastal communities to plan for and adapt to rising sea levels. It focuses on eight coastal states, from New York to North Carolina, giving advice on what needs to be done to prepare for potential changes to these vulnerable coastal areas. Local governments are adopting policies that divert new developments away from the coastal regions likely to flood in the future. Areas in Maryland, close to Washington DC are especially prone to flooding and even small rises in ocean levels can cause much land to disappear. Dr. Boesch, an oceanographer from the Maryland Commission on Climate Change and the US Climate Change Science Program, said it's important to address climate change from two directions: we should reduce greenhouse gases that cause global warming and we need to be prepared for the consequences of global warming, such as sea-level rise.