Letter: Rates of sea-level rise will accelerate, possibly double

Higher seas also amplify other impacts so rare coastal flooding becomes more common.

Rates of sea-level rise will
accelerate, possibly double

On May 1, we had 13 hours, 44 minutes of daylight. Now, just nine days later, we have an additional 18 minutes. That trend shows by March 4, 2020, we will have 24 hours of daylight.

Of course, that is absurd. We know day length does not change at a constant rate, so projecting forward from current rates makes no sense.

A letter in the Mercury News titled “Average global sea-level rise not so fast, says NOA” (May 10) makes this error with sea-level rise. The rate of our rising seas is about 30 percent faster now than earlier in the 20th century. That acceleration will continue; scientists estimate the rate may double within the lives of our grandchildren.

Higher seas also amplify other impacts so rare coastal flooding becomes more common. New studies document this happening here and around the globe. Planning for this inevitable change is smart; updating our economy to stop burning gas and oil will help lessen the impacts.

Ed Maurer
Santa Clara

 

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