Global Warming and
The Coast
Carbon dioxide and other gases in the
atmosphere let sunlight penetrate
to the Earth's surface but retain heat
that would otherwise escape into space. This
mechanism is called the "greenhouse effect"
because it is somewhat like the way that the
glass in a greenhouse traps heat.
The atmosphere's greenhouse effect keeps the
Earth 60'Fahrenheit warmer than it would
be otherwise. But human activities, such as
burning oil, coal, and natural gas in every-
thing from power plants to cars and boats, are
increasing the concentration of greenhouse
gases. As a result, the Earth has warmed almost
1'Fahrenheit in the last century.
Warmer temperatures can increase the inten-
sity of severe rainstorms. Higher temperatures
also raise sea level by expanding ocean water
and melting mountain glaciers. Along the
New Jersey shore, rising sea level erodes beach-
es, increases flooding, and threatens coastal
habitat.
Sea Level Trends 1900 - 2000
Sandy Hook, t
Cape May, N|
Atlantic City, N|
Philadelphia, PA
EPA-430-F-02-006
March 2002
For More Information
• See the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency's Global Warming Site at www.
epa.gov/globalwarming/sealevelrise.
• Contact New Jersey's Department
of Environmental Protection at www.
state.nj.us/dep or call them
at 609-292-2885.
• For information on flood insurance, call
800-480-2520 and ask for a booklet titled
"Answers to Questions About the National
Flood Insurance Program."
NEW JERSEY DEPARTMENT OF
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
P.O. Box 402
Trenton, NJ 08625-0402
U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL
PROTECTION AGENCY
Office of Air and Radiation (6205J)
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20460
Printed on paper that contains at
least 30 percent post-consumer fiber.
1940 1960
Year
VANISHING
Are New Jersey's
Beaches Disappearing?
Iost beaches along the Atlantic and
Gulf Coasts of the United States
are eroding a few feet per year. In
some locations, Jetties, storms, seawalls, and
motorboats cause the erosion. But rising sea
level is the primary reason that most shores
erode. Along the New Jersey shore, sea level is
rising 1 inch every 6 years. Both rising global
temperatures and gradually sinking land con-
tribute to the higher water levels—and that
means more erosion.
In some other coastal states, homeowners
are removing their oceanfront houses along
eroding shores. The beach survives, but the
building is lost. And along bay shores, own-
ers often protect their homes from erosion by
replacing the natural beach with wooden walls
(bulkheads) or piles of rock (revetments). The
property survives, but the beach is lost. Other
states have implemented "rolling easements"
that allow long-term maintenance of the pub-
lic shoreline without triggering a public taking.
Here along the New Jersey shore, people want
to keep both the beach and their homes.
Depending on when you visit, you may see
dump trucks releasing sand and bulldozers
spreading it to rebuild a beach. Or a dredge
pumping sand from the sea floor through a
pipe to the beach. Or homeowners putting up
snow fencing and planting grasses to hold the
dunes.
Without these activities, some communities
would lose their beaches, while others would
lose their shorefront homes, condominiums,
hotels, and other buildings.
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BrantBeath, February 9, 1998, Courtesy of NorbertPsuty
Why Care About Erosion?
Most of the Jersey shore is developed. As the sea rises, the beach is
squeezed between the sea and the first row of buildings. Along ocean
shores, this means less room for vacationers and local residents to sun-
bathe, play volleyball, or build sandcastles. Along the bays, there is less
room for sandpipers, horseshoe crabs, and other wildlife that feed or
breed in the sandy habitat.
Along the coast of New Jersey, sea level has risen 12 to 16 inches in the
last century, mostly because the Mid-Atlantic coast is sinking. Rising
global temperatures contributed 2 to 5 inches to sea level in the last
century, but they could raise the sea another 1 to 3 feet in the next
century, in addition to the rise caused by other factors.
Bradley Beach, February 9, 1993, Courtesy of NorbertPsuty
Storms May Do More
Damage
Hurricanes and other storms can raise the sea
temporarily by 5 to 10 feet—or more. Higher
seas bring higher floods.
The narrowing beaches also could enable large
waves to reach oceanfront buildings, roads, and
boardwalks. Along the bays, where land elevations
are lowest, increased rainfall from global warming
could intensify coastal flooding even more.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency esti-
mates that a 1-foot rise in sea level could increase
flood insurance premiums by 35 to 60 percent.
Not only will permanent residents be faced with
higher premiums, hotels and landlords generally
will pass these costs on to visitors.
What About Wetlands?
Coastal marshes and bay beaches provide habitat
for New Jersey's horseshoe crabs, ribbed mussels,
fiddler crabs, seaside sparrows, redwinged black-
birds, osprey, and other species of wildlife.
New Jersey's coastal wetlands are mostly within
2 feet of sea level, and many are eroding already.
Hence even a moderate rise in sea level could
threaten these ecosystems.
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us
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Sea Isle City, February 1998, Courtesy of Mark Mauriello
What Is New Jersey
Doing?
• The state sets aside $15 million per year for
shore protection and sand replenishment.
• All New Jersey coastal communities
participate in the National Flood Insurance
Program, which insures buildings against
flood damages. Approximately 161,000
property owners in New Jersey have federal
flood insurance policies.
• The state's Coastal Area Facilities Review
Act discourages construction that would
later require seawalls.
• The New Jersey Department of
Environmental Protection has called for a
reduction in the state's greenhouse gas emis-
sions to 3.5 percent below 1990 levels by
2005.
• Coastal planners and municipal officials
can now access and share information
about
New Jersey's coastal environment using the
Geographic Information System (CIS).
• Warner-Lambert, a pharmaceutical company
in New Jersey, installed more than 19,000
light bulbs with more efficient bulbs and
saved 1.7 million kilowatt-hours of electric-
ity per year.
What Can You Do?
• When visiting Atlantic City or the North
Jersey Shore, take the train.
• If you own a shorefront home threatened
by erosion, haul in sand or plant vegeta-
tion to hold back the sea rather than build-
ing a seawall.
• Enjoy the sea breeze, listen to the waves,
and turn off the air conditioner.
• When it's time to replace your car, consid-
er one that gets more miles per gallon than
your present vehicle.
• Avoid walking on sand dunes and destroy-
ing their ability to protect the shorelines
from storms and erosion.
• When it's time to replace an appliance,
look for the ENERGY STAR® label identifying
energy-efficient models.
• If your home is at risk, talk to your insur-
ance agent about federal flood insurance.
Home-owners insurance does not cover flood
damages.
• Buy products that feature reusable, recy-
clable, or reduced packaging to save the
energy required to manufacture new con-
tainers.
Long Beach Island, March 1995, Courtesy of Mark Mauriello
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H
Less than 4 feet
above sea level
4-10 feet above
sea level
More than 10 feet
above sea level
Railroads that carry
passengers to the shore
10 miles
Source: Titus, J.G. and C. Richman. 2001. Maps of Lands
Vulnerable to Sea Level Rise: Modeled Elevations along the
U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. Climate Research.
18:205-228. This map is based on modeled elevations, and
it is a fair and unbiased graphical representation of the total
amount of land within 4 and 10 feet of sea level. However,
up to 10 percent of the elevations shown in this map may
differ from the true elevations by more than 5 feet. Those
interested in precise elevations of specific locations should
consult a topographic map or obtain a survey.
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Vulnerability to
Sea Level Rise
ew Jersey has 1,000 square miles
of land within 4 feet of sea level—
an area the size of Rhode Island.
Because the high water mark tends to be about
2 feet above sea level, almost all of this land
would be flooded during high tides if the sea
rises 2 feet during the next century, as expected.
Along Delaware Bay, tidal flooding will convert
some low agricultural lands to marsh. Along the
low bay sides of Long Beach Island and other
barrier islands, flooding will continue to become
more frequent, prompting many people to ele-
vate their yards with additional sand and gravel
and to jack up their homes on pilings. Although
the ocean sides of most barrier islands are high
enough to avoid direct inundation, the rising
sea level increases beach erosion and the cost of
successful beach restoration projects.
Lands between 4 and 10 feet above sea level
are likely to experience increased flooding from
both higher sea level and the increased intensity
of rainstorms.
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