Rising Seas Could Threaten Eastern Shore, Bay Islands

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Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, May 22, 2008; 10:12 AM

 

Rising sea levels could swamp sections of the Eastern Shore, eat away islands in the Chesapeake Bay and submerge long stretches of Atlantic Ocean beach by 2100, according to a report released today by the National Wildlife Federation.

The report used a computer model to simulate the impact of a 27.2-inch rise in sea levels, triggered by global climate change. It said that kind of a rise was at the upper end of scenarios forecast by the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a conference of scientists from around the world.

Using this model, the report presented a more detailed picture of a problem that others had already sketched. The Chesapeake region, rimmed with marshes and other low-lying land, would be one of the most hard-hit areas in the country if warmer temperatures drive water levels up, the federation said.

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