Sea Level Rise

Sea level rise

As the climate changes, it is likely that we will continue to experience sea level rise, the result of the ocean expanding due to warming and melting of glaciers. Coastal transportation may be affected in low-lying areas, as will natural systems in close proximity to the infrastructure. It is likely that the best way to protect natural and transportation systems from the effects of sea level is to plan for them together where roads and highways abut coastal bluffs, marshes, estuaries, and beaches. We are developing tools to record the change in coastal systems at fine spatial and temporal scales to inform short and long-term planning for important and imperiled coastal systems.