Maryland shorelines facing sea level rise threatening state’s infrastructure: report
and vertical land movement.
“While there is little we can do now to reduce the amount of sea-level rise by the middle of the century, steps taken over the next thirty years to control greenhouse gas emissions and stabilize global temperatures will largely determine how great the sea level rise challenge will be for coastal residents at the end of this century and beyond,” said Dr. Boesch.
According to Joseph P. Gill, Secretary of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, impacts associated with sea level rise are already being seen along Maryland’s coast, such as the documented loss of islands within the Chesapeake Bay, as well as visible changes to wetland habitats all along Maryland’s low-lying eastern shore.
“Recognizing the importance of building resilience within our natural and built environments,” said Gill, “DNR’s CoastSmart Communities Program is dedicated to offering on-the-ground expertise, planning guidance, training, tools, and financial assistance to help others in state plan, prepare and adapt.”
The release notes that Governor O’Malley established the Maryland Commission on Climate Change on 20 April 2007. The Commission produced a Plan of Action that included a comprehensive climate change impact assessment, a greenhouse gas reduction strategy, and actions for reducing Maryland’s vulnerability to climate change. On 28 December 2012, Governor O’Malley issued an executive order that requires State agencies to consider the risk of coastal flooding and sea level rise to capital projects.
The 21-member panel comprised sea-level rise experts from the Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, reviewed projections from Maryland’s 2008 Climate Action Plan and provided updated recommendations based on new scientific results that can better inform projections of sea level rise for Maryland.
The Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), is updating Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) for communities in Maryland. The revised maps are the first update in the coastal areas of Maryland in twenty-five years and confirm both increases and decreases in the 100-year flood elevations over this period of time.
“MDE is working with seventeen Maryland coastal communities to go through the mapping process, which requires the communities to update their local floodplain management ordinances before the revised maps become effective,” said Maryland Department of the Environment Secretary Robert M. Summers. “Many communities choose to better prepare themselves by adopting higher freeboard elevations or additional safety requirements for new or substantially improved structures, which could lead to reductions in flood insurance.”
See this video produced by Maryland Sea Grant that explores the reasons for sea level rise in Maryland and the conclusions of the expert panel’s report.
The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science operates under a State mandate to conduct a comprehensive scientific program to develop and apply predictive ecology for the improvement and preservation of Maryland’s physical environment.
— Read more in Updating Maryland’s Sea-level Rise Projections (Scientific and Technical Working Group
Maryland Climate Change Commission, 26 June 2013)
