Rate of sea level rise along U.S. East coast highest in 2,000 years

The rate of 20th century sea level rise along the United States East Coast was the highest in the past 2,000 years, according to a new study from Rutgers University.

(AP Photo/Jim Cole)

AP Photo

The combination of meltwater from land-based glaciers and ice sheets along with the thermal expansion of sea water due to the warming of the oceans has caused sea level rise in the 20th century to be more than twice the rate it was between the first and eighteenth centuries.

The research team, led by Jennifer S. Walker, focused on six sites along the East Coast using a sea-level budget. A budget helps better understand the processes driving sea-level change.

Using a statistical model, the researchers developed sea-level budgets for the six sites, dividing sea-level records into global, regional and local components. The team found that regional land subsidence, which is the sinking of the land since the Laurentide ice sheet retreated thousands of years ago, dominates each site's budget over the last 2,000 years, according to Rutgers Today.

The data showed that 20th century sea level rises along the six sites ranged from 2.6-3.6 mm per year or 1-1.4 inches per decade. The highest rate of increase was found along the southern New Jersey shore.

Sea level rise is a huge threat as low-lying islands, cities and lands will be increasingly susceptible to flooding and may eventually become permanently under water. The same type of coastal storms that in the past may have produced localized, minor flooding along the coast will likely cause more widespread, serious flooding on a regular basis.