![]() ![]() ![]() Warm air is also better at holding moisture, which can make storms produce more precipitation, and can cause surface flooding. The oceans have absorbed up to 90% of the excess heat generated by climate change and global heating warm ocean waters are the ‘batteries’ that power storms like hurricanes. ![]() NYC is also the most densely-populated city in the USA, meaning that a storm that only floods a small area can still impact a lot of people.Īt the same time, climate change is making storms stronger. As sea levels rise, the base water level gets higher, so storms that previously wouldn’t have caused major problems in the city will start to cause major flooding. Compounding the problem is the fact that the New York Harbor creates a funnel that encourages storm surge to build up around the city, which is populated across several islands and peninsulas. Since 1970, 26 hurricanes have hit the New York region. People generally don’t think of NYC as a place that is vulnerable to hurricanes, but hurricanes, post-tropical cyclones, and major coastal storms occur frequently around the region. The city’s waterfront propelled it to its modern position as one of the most influential and wealthy urban centres in the world, yet is it this same waterfront that is the city’s most existential threat. The second was that colonial-era city planners assumed that the NYC region was not at risk from things like hurricanes, and tsunamis, and so placed most critical infrastructure in close proximity to its 2,400-kilometre-long waterfront. The city was developed with two underlying principles, the first was the presumption of a stable shoreline that did not shift and change with tidal forces like other coastal cities in the US like New Orleans. New York City is uniquely vulnerable to sea level rise and flooding from weather events. At the same time, it gave New Yorkers a terrifying glimpse into the future, as the sea level in NYC is projected to rise 40 centimetres by 2050 and between 2-5 metres by 2100. Hurricane Sandy was a devastating and unprecedented disaster. Water levels topped 3.9 metres at their highest, a metre higher than is required to flood the city’s extensive subway network. Hurricane Sandy produced a 2.7-metre storm surge, which coincided with a high tide. Never before had New York City’s vulnerabilities to sea level rise and flood inundation been laid so bare. On October 30th, 2012, New Yorkers woke up to a city devastated by Hurricane Sandy. Earth.Org is powered by over 150 contributing writers ![]()
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