A recent study by NASA reveals that San Francisco and other coastal areas along California’s Northern coast are sinking into the Pacific Ocean due to natural and human-caused factors. The city, already struggling with a high rate of violent crime and homelessness, may face an additional threat in the form of rising flood risks and saltwater intrusion.
According to lead author Marin Govorcin, a remote sensing scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the land is moving down faster than the sea itself is going up. This geological change threatens to increase local flood risk, wave exposure, and saltwater intrusion in years to come.
The study found that parts of the Golden State’s Central Valley, including areas in San Rafael, Corte Madera, and Bay Farm Island, are subsiding at a steady rate of more than 0.4 inch per year due to sediment compaction. This process can lead to increased runoff, potential flooding, and poor plant growth.
In low-lying areas, local sea levels could see a rise of over 17 inches by 2050, more than double the regional estimate of 7.4 inches. The coastal community of Rancho Palos Verdes has been grappling with volatile land movement for six decades, while neighborhoods along Los Angeles County’s Palos Verdes Peninsula are sliding toward the Pacific Ocean at a frightening rate of four inches per week.
The accelerating landslide motion in these areas is a result of unprecedented rainfall in 2023 and 2024. Researchers used radar to assess land movement near the peninsula from September 18 to October 17, 2024, and found that the Portuguese Bend landslide has already forced hundreds of people out of their homes.
As climate change-related factors worsen conditions for coastal neighborhoods, San Francisco and other areas along California’s Northern coast must address these growing concerns. With a high rate of violent crime and homelessness, the city is already facing significant challenges; adding rising flood risks and saltwater intrusion to the list may prove critical to its future.
Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14390863/west-coast-city-list-nasa-warning-sinking-ocean.html