Rising Sea Levels Threaten 13 Million US Coastal Residents, Study Finds

As many as 13.1 million people residing along coastlines of the United States could be forced to relocate inland by the end of the century due to the rising sea levels caused by the worsening climate change. This is according to a new study that warns that the number of Americans who are at risk of flood by 2100 is larger than early projections.

Los Angeles Times reported that it has been projected that the seas in shoreline communities could rise by more than three feet by the end of the century if the levels of carbon emissions could not be reduced. It is expected to affect 4.2 million Americans.

However, a recent study, published in the peer-reviewed British journal Nature Climate Change on Monday, found that the estimated number of coastal residents who are threatened by the rising sea levels is actually three times higher than early figures. The authors said that previous projections had immensely underestimated the number of people at risk as they do not include population growth. Accounting future population estimates, they found that the sea-level rise could be six feet by 2100 and could affect 13.1 million coastal residents.

The researchers said that a migration, similar to the Great Migration of southern African-Americans to the North during the 20th century, could be expected if there will be no apt implementation of protective measures. This mass relocation could cost $14 trillion.

Florida faces the biggest risk with six million residents who could be affected by the rising sea levels. California and Louisiana could also be impacted with one million residents each.

Commenting on the study, Benjamin H. Strauss, an expert on sea-level rise of climate change research organization "Climate Central," told The New York Times that past estimates were indeed too conservative. He, however, said that the latest study had overstated the number of affected coastal residents.

Strauss stated that the continuation of current development patterns through the rest of the century seems like an unlikely future. He explained that "as sea levels continue to rise and coastal problems become glaringly obvious, coastal development and real estate will have to change."