Infrastructure protectionFlorida Keys preparing for rising sea levels
The Florida Keys rank third among East Coast communities at risk of “population displacement” due to higher seas which will flood nearby land. Scientists say that if sea levels continue to rise at the current rate, high waters which drowned the Keys during 2005’s Hurricane Wilma could become a normal part of living in Monroe County by 2060. Officials in Monroe County, Florida are putting together a GreenKeys Sustainability Action Plan which will help residents of the Florida Keys maintain a sustainable lifestyle while under threat of sea-level rise due to climate change.
Officials in Monroe County, Florida are putting together a GreenKeys Sustainability Action Plan which will help residents of the Florida Keys maintain a sustainable lifestyle while under threat of sea-level rise due to climate change. “It’s about making lifestyle choices,” said Erin Deady, a Palm Beach County attorney and land planner who focuses on sustainability. Pointing to photographs of an old Stiltsville house elevated on pilings, “this was a lifestyle choice for some.”
According to the Florida Keys Keynoter, the Keys rank third among East Coast communities at risk of “population displacement” due to higher seas which will flood nearby land. Scientists say that if sea levels continue to rise at the current rate, high waters which drowned the Keys during 2005’s Hurricane Wilma could become a normal part of living in Monroe County by 2060. Jason Evans, assistant professor of Environmental Science and Studies at Stetson University, told county leaders at a recent session on sea-level rise, that if the sea level increases by twenty-four inches within the next forty-five years — the higher range of scientific predictions — high spring and fall tides would resemble Wilma’s flooding. “This is something that is alarming,” Evans said.
Though existing utilities and wastewater plants will be relatively unaffected by sea-level rise, roads would be drenched in water. Evans warns that roads are expensive to raise, and doing so requires a wider road base that may intrude onto private property.
Local officials are now asking residents and business leaders to submit their plans to protect their property and the environment. “While we can begin planning to prepare for these types of changes, we want to be inclusive of everyone’s needs. That’s why we will engage our residents and business owners. We need people to tell us what their priorities are for preparing for sea level rise and sustainability,” said Monroe County Sustainability Program Director, Rhonda Haag.
