Experts have been warning for years of rising sea levels in different parts of planet Earth due to global warming. It is one of the great risks that threaten the future of humanity in the second half of the 21st century. A few months ago NASA published a report in which it pointed out that in the last 23 years the sea level has risen 8 centimeters, and it is very likely that it will continue to grow faster and faster. Now, a study published in ‘Nature Communications’ warns that in the year 2100 more than 400 million people will have to leave their homes .
Large corporations and governments around the world are working around the clock to counter the effects of climate change . However, scientists believe that there is already some damage that is irreversible, so that by the end of the 21st century life in some places on planet Earth will be very different from today. In others it will be completely impossible because they will surely have disappeared, such as Saint Petersburg, Tokyo or New Orleans.
The effects of sea level rise in the 21st century
According to the study, 267 million people currently live in areas that are less than two meters above sea level . They are the most vulnerable to the rise in sea level that is expected in the coming decades. Taking into account the population increase that is forecast for the 21st century, the number of people at risk could reach 410 million by 2100.
Maarten van Aalst, from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, explained to the newspaper ‘The Guardian’ that these are figures that should generate social awareness about the large number of people who are at risk in areas near the coast , especially in countries from the south.
And he adds that coastal flood risk assessments require very accurate data about land elevation . To do this, experts have used the first global elevation model based on data provided by the LiDAR satellite.
Using these data, researchers have been able to quantify the number of people vulnerable to floods that occur as a result of climate change. Rising sea levels will not only cause millions of people to leave their homes, it will also cause many species to disappear .
But which regions will be most affected? According to this study, most of the risk is concentrated in tropical Asia. Specifically, Indonesia will be the country most affected by rising sea levels .
