Climate change

Climate change: these cities will be under water, according to the ranking

A ranking based on population and elevation places Vancouver in the top 20 when it comes to cities that will be submerged as sea levels rise.

The ranking of coastal towns has been drawn up on the basis of a “conservative estimate” of an elevation of up to 1.5 metres, although project officials say other predictions suggest that sea level will increase to 2.5 meters by 2100, barring intervention.

The 1.5 meter estimate assumes a global temperature rise of 3.5C, according to an infographic published earlier this week.

The list of 36 cities was compiled by fastest insurance providerusing a coastal risk screening tool in central climatean organization of scientists and journalists who research and report on the effects of and solutions to climate change.

The work does not appear to have been peer reviewed.

This puts Vancouver in 19th place, although the authors of the research said they only looked at cities considered to be among the most visited in the world.

A city’s placement on the list is based on population size, not a city’s actual elevation relative to others, although that is how it was determined which cities would be affected by first.

According to the mapping, much of Vancouver’s coastline will be submerged and destinations such as Granville Island and the Vancouver Museum will be submerged at some point if levels reach the estimated 1.5 meter rise.

In Richmond, Steveston Harbor and Vancouver International Airport are also believed to be under water, according to the data.

Other cities on the list include Tokyo, which takes the top spot due to its significantly higher population than Vancouver.

Mumbai, New York, Osaka, Istanbul, Kolkata, Bangkok, Jakarta, London and Dhaka are also in the top. The full list can be viewed in the infographic below.

The Swiftest also ranked top tourist destinations, a list that includes St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice and Miami Beach in Florida.

The site says about 10% of the world’s population lives on the coast, a statistic it attributes to the United Nations.

“Coastal erosion is a major threat without even considering the increased impacts of natural disasters like hurricanes or high tides…While some cities are proactively working on coastal management, others are struggling to s ‘commit to a plan, like Bangkok,’ the authors of the ranking wrote. .

They cited an article published in 2019 in Bangkok Post Officewhich references research suggesting that much of the area could be underwater as early as 2050. This article also mentions data from Climate Central.

In Vancouver, action is being taken to fight climate change.

The city released a report titled Vancouver’s changing shoreline in 2018 on the impacts and how it prepares for sea level rise.

This report included maps that highlighted the city’s coastal floodplain and suggested that Stanley Park, False Creek and other areas could be flooded by 2100.

There was five models released in the city’s coastal flood risk assessment report on what flooding could look like. Data suggests that between 1,700 and 4,800 households would be displaced and between 5,000 and 14,300 people would need shelter.

That year, the city estimated that the cost of the infrastructure needed to protect sections of the coastline would reach $1 billion by 2100.

A B.C. Ministry of Environment assessment 10 years ago suggested sea levels would rise 0.5 meters by 2040 and a full meter by 2100.

(Infographic from TheSwiftest.com)