Search USGS⌕ Search
Home/Archive/USGS

USGS · 70198784

Reply to ‘Marsh vulnerability to sea-level rise’

Matthew L. Kirwan·Stijn Temmerman·Glenn R. Guntenspergen·Sergio Fagherazzi
View original source ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

Response to Parkinson et al. Rebuttal of Kirwan, M. L., Temmerman, S., Skeehan, E. E., Guntenspergen, G. R.,& Fagherazzi, S. (2016). Overestimation of marsh vulnerability to sea level rise. Nature Climate Change, 6(3):253-2601.

Explore related subjects

Nature Climate ChangeArticle

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

Matthew L. Kirwan, Stijn Temmerman, Glenn R. Guntenspergen, Sergio Fagherazzi. 2017-11-01. Reply to ‘Marsh vulnerability to sea-level rise’. https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate3425

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related USGS reports

USGS2025

Observations reveal changing coastal storm extremes around the United States

Understanding extreme storm surge events that threaten low-lying coastal communities is key to effective flood mitigation/adaptation measures. However, observational estimates are sparse and highly uncertain along most coastal regions with a lack of observational evidence about long-term underlying trends and their contribution to overall extreme sea-level changes. Here, using a spatiotemporal Bayesian hierarchical framework, we analyse US tide gauge record for 1950–2020 and find that observational estimates have underestimated likelihoods of storm surge extremes at 85% of tide gauge sites nationwide. Additionally, and contrary to prevailing beliefs, storm surge extremes show spatially coherent trends along many widespread coastal areas, providing evidence of changing coastal storm intensity in the historical monitoring period. Several hotspots exist with regionally significant storm surge trends that are comparable to trends in mean sea-level rise and its key components. Our findings challenge traditional coastal design/planning practices that rely on estimates from discrete observations and assume stationarity in surge extremes.

Nature Climate Change↗
USGS2024

Predicted exposure of communities in southeastern United States to climate-related coastal hazards

A rigorous analysis of 21st Century multi-hazard exposure for U.S. Southeast Atlantic coastal communities indicates that up to 70% of residents will be exposed daily to shallow and emerging groundwater by ~2100, 15 times higher than from surficial flooding alone. This threat further exacerbates other coastal stressors, such as flooding, subsidence, and beach erosion, that impact these vulnerable coastal communities and ecosystems under expected future climate change scenarios.

Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, ↗
USGS2024

Projections of multiple climate-related coastal hazards for the US Southeast Atlantic

Faced with accelerating sea level rise and changing ocean storm conditions, coastal communities require comprehensive assessments of climate-driven hazard impacts to inform adaptation measures. Previous studies have focused on flooding but rarely on other climate-related coastal hazards, such as subsidence, beach erosion and groundwater. Here, we project societal exposure to multiple hazards along the Southeast Atlantic coast of the United States. Assuming 1 m of sea level rise, more than 70% of the coastal residents and US \ $ 1 trillion in property are in areas projected to experience shallow and emerging groundwater, 15 times higher than daily flooding. Storms increase flooding exposure by an order of magnitude over daily flooding, which could impact up to ~50% of all coastal residents and US \ $ 770 billion in property value. The loss of up to ~80% of present-day beaches and high subsidence rates that currently affect over 1 million residents will exacerbate flooding and groundwater hazard risks.

Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, ↗