PARIS: Rising sea levels driven by climate change could upend the lives of more than 13 million Americans by the end of the century, according to a study released Monday.
If global warming lifts oceans 1.8 metres (six feet) by 2100, as some scientists forecast in worst-case scenarios, 13.1 million people living in US coastal areas will become vulnerable to flooding and storm surges, the study said.
In Florida alone, some six million residents could be affected, and one million each in California and Louisiana.
Even if sea levels increase by only half that amount, at least four million Americans will be in harm’s way, forcing them to adapt or find higher ground.
Previous estimates of the number of people in the US who would be disrupted or displaced by rising ocean levels have not taken in account population increases, the researchers said.
