Rising sea level could impact Del. infrastructure

Thursday, March 15, 2012 - 7:50am
Rising sea level could impact Del. infrastructure
By Associated Press

http://www.wdel.com/story.php?id=41462

State officials say the rising sea level is a problem for Delaware - and not only for Rehoboth and Dewey Beach residents.

The News Journal reports that two reports released Wednesday find that rising sea levels could mean damaging storms could strike the Delmarva peninsula more often. It could also force changes in state and federal policies regulating coastal development and flood zones.

Susan Love, a resource planner with Delaware Coastal Programs says everyone in the state will be affected by rising sea levels. That’s because so many of the state’s factories, bridges, roads and wastewater treatment plants are located in low-lying, flood-prone areas.

Sea level in Delaware has risen by about a foot over the last 100 years. That rate appears to be accelerating.

we will have to raise the sewer and storm drain lines. lest they start backing up. oh and then raise all the houses and streets too to keep things flowing the right direction.

Couple of hundred years and I’ll own beach front property!!! YahoO YahoO YahoO YahoO YahoO YahoO YahoO YahoO YahoO YahoO YahoO YahoO YahoO YahoO

Hopefully it’s a couple of hundred… <

Naw, it may not take as long as you think. we will see some in our lifetimes, and surely the kids will see much more. there are lots of interactive sea level rise maps available. here’s one I found with DOGPILE.com, my favorite meta search engine, in just less than a minute. you can change the rise to more than 1 foot. in increments.

all sea level rise is not created equal. it’s relative effect also depends on what the shoreline land is doing. some areas are rising, and some are sinking. not all are stable. i believe our area is sinking at a small rate. which adds to the relative sea level rise . Or are we rising? can’t remember right now for sure. perhaps someone can find some current research info on that. you know , stuff like plate techtonics, earthquakes, glacial rebound and such have an effect.

Good thing DELDOT spent 200 million on a new IR bridge…