Seven months after Hurricane Sandy, the mayor of New York on Tuesday unveiled an ambitious project to better protect the city and its 800 km of coastline against the effects of climate change.
Scientists estimated that the waters around New York could rise 5 to 12 cm by 2020. They now speak of 10 to 20 cm, and 30 cm to 60 cm in 2050.
Keystone
“Our city will be in the coming years more vulnerable to flooding,” said Michael Bloomberg at a press conference, referring in particular to “the rise in temperatures and the level of the oceans”.
By 2050, 800,000 New Yorkers will live in flood-prone areas, which will cover a quarter of the city’s surface area of 8.3 million people, he said. “Sandy cost $ 19 billion (…) but a similar storm in 2050 could cost $ 90 billion”.
Anti-flood walls
Michael Bloomberg advocated the construction of a series of removable flood walls in lower Manhattan, reinforcement or creation of dunes along the most exposed coasts in Staten Island, Brooklyn and in the Rockaways (Queens) and the creation of dikes and other protective devices in particularly vulnerable places. Some may, according to him, be up to 6 meters high, and fit into elevated projects.
New York has some 835 km of coastline, and Michael Bloomberg has said there is no question of abandoning them, when in recent years millions have been spent on their revitalization. Some 400,000 people already live in risk areas, representing 270,000 jobs, he said.
“Some of the protections for coastal areas may be controversial. Some maybe will block the view, ”he said. But the alternative is to be inundated, or worse. (…) If we want to save lives and protect our communities, we are going to have to live with new realities ”.
Big report
Michael Bloomberg’s recommendations are part of a 438-page report released Tuesday, which includes analyzes by a group of scientists studying for the city the effects of climate change.
In 2009, these scientists estimated that the waters around New York could rise 5 to 12 cm by 2020. They are now talking about 10 to 20 cm, and 30 cm to 60 cm in 2050. 8% of the area coastal could then be regularly inundated, simply by the tide.
The temperature in 2050 could exceed 32 ° C, 57 days a year in New York, against 18 days currently. Some extreme storms could generate a sudden rise in water levels of nearly 6m, surpassing the record of 4.2 meters set by Sandy.
“We are facing a real, immediate threat,” insisted Michael Bloomberg. “This is urgent work, and it must start now,” he said, aware however that the 203 days left as mayor will not be enough.
Anticipate threats
The plan, which he described as “extremely ambitious”, also provides financial incentives to help owners better protect their buildings. “We must anticipate all threats, not only hurricanes (…) but also drought, heavy rainfall and heat waves,” said the mayor. In total, the report details 250 proposals.
Hurricane Sandy, which hit the east coast of the United States at the end of October 2012, killed 43 people in New York. It had flooded part of Manhattan, deprived of electricity for several days the south of the island and several other districts of New York, and destroyed many homes along the coasts. It had also crippled transportation, created a fuel shortage, and rendered telephones inoperative in some areas.
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