Ventura County Climate Action Plan

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Recommended: The effects of sea level rise

Sea levels have been on the rise since 1880, steadily increasing every year, as seen in figure 1 provided by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Globally, sea levels have risen 10-25cm (3.9 - 9.8inches) in the past century due to water input from melting ice caps (Hopkinson et al.). Sea level rise is most prominent on the east and west coast. On the east coast, sea levels have risen anywhere from six inches to over eight inches. Over on the west coast, specifically in the Southern California region, sea levels have risen 0.01 inches up to two inches according to the web article, Climate Indicators in the United States, published by the EPA. This climate change significantly affects the inhabitants of coastal areas being that nearly 53% of the United States population resides there (Crossett et al. 2004).
Increased sea levels can give way to a variety of problems: rapid coastal erosion, shoreline change, loss of natural protective barriers, saltwater intrusion into aquifers and surface water, changes in tidal prisms (volume of water in an inlet between high tide and low tide), and rising water tables ("Climate Change and Impacts of Sea Level Rise"). Ventura County is facing many issues with rapid coastal erosion and loss of natural protective barriers. Beach Erosion Authority for Clean Oceans and Nourishment (BEACON) conducted a study to evaluate the conditions of different beaches along the Ventura County coast (Barlow, "Coastal Erosion Problems Highlighted in New Study"). Port Hueneme’s western beaches (picture to the left) are losing three to five inches per month due to sea level rise pushing beaches farther back.
The California King Tides Initiative is an organization made up of many different environmental groups....

... middle of paper ...

...ns: A Community
Commitment." County of Ventura. County of Ventura, Apr. 2012. Web. 13 Feb. 2014.
Crossett K, Culliton T, Wiely P, Goodspeed T, 2004. Population trends along the coastal United
States: 1980-2008. Silver Spring, MD: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Coast Trends Report Series.

Hopkinson, Charles S., Ariel E. Lugo, Merryl Alber, Alan P. Covich, and Skip J. Van Bloem.
"Forecasting Effects of Sea-Level Rise and Windstorms on Coastal and Inland Ecosystems." Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 6.5 (2008): 255-63. JSTOR. Ecological Society of America, June 2008. Web. 11 Feb. 2014.
"Plans, Actions, and Resources/ Preparing for Sea Level Rise." Surging Seas. Climate Central,
n.d. Web. 11 Feb. 2014.
Thomas, Brian. "Dutch Help Bay Area Plan for Sea Level Rise." Web log post. Carbon-Based:
Blogspot. N.p., 21 Sept. 2009. Web. 13 Feb. 2014.

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