Pamela Cruz. Peninsula 360 Press [P360].
According to models used in the latest California State Sea Level Rise Assessment, the tide in the Bay could rise as much as .58 meters - 1.9 feet - by 2050, and as much as 2.10 meters - 6.9 feet - by the end of the century.
The situation does not look good for several cities located along the Bay Area, which are already anticipating possible flooding in the coming years due to storms that increase in intensity every year, largely as a result of climate change.
According to KQED media, during storms, East Palo Alto and other cities along the Bay shoreline already suffer from flooding and coastal erosion, which will only be exacerbated by expected sea level rise.
"Sea level rise is one of the most certain effects of climate change. We know that much of that is already fixed, and we know that the seas will continue to rise at a steady and perhaps accelerating rate in the coming decades," said Mark Stacey, an environmental engineer with UC Berkeley.
In this sense, he pointed out that there are few differences between the scientific modeling scenarios before the year 2050, however, these change drastically after mid-century according to the trajectory of greenhouse gas emissions, caused by the human race.
Several studies do not differ from this analysis, where they determine that the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets are collapsing.
"But if that happens, the Bay Area could see a sea level rise of more than 10 feet by 2100, what Stacey calls a ?massive acceleration? 30 to 40 times faster than the rate of rise we've seen over the last century," the media outlet said.
"This extends beyond the scope of what we have thought about in our planning horizon in terms of the magnitude of change we will face in this region," he added.
According to a state assessment, aggressive reductions in greenhouse gas emissions can be substantially reduced, but not eliminated, and there is a risk of extreme sea level rise in California due to the loss of Antarctic ice.
This scenario, the study states, occurs in a context in which there are not enough global efforts to limit or reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
