{"id":291966,"date":"2023-12-19T20:06:45","date_gmt":"2023-12-19T19:06:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=291966"},"modified":"2023-12-19T20:06:48","modified_gmt":"2023-12-19T19:06:48","slug":"art-activism-right-action-wrong-reason","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=291966","title":{"rendered":"Art + Activism: Right Action, Wrong Reason"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"723\" height=\"482\" data-attachment-id=\"291979\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=291979\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0998803d7-b594-4416-8800-8d73cb4e1985.jpg?fit=1600%2C1066&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1600,1066\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"0998803d7-b594-4416-8800-8d73cb4e1985\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0998803d7-b594-4416-8800-8d73cb4e1985.jpg?fit=723%2C482&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0998803d7-b594-4416-8800-8d73cb4e1985.jpg?resize=723%2C482&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-291979\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0998803d7-b594-4416-8800-8d73cb4e1985.jpg?resize=1024%2C682&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0998803d7-b594-4416-8800-8d73cb4e1985.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0998803d7-b594-4416-8800-8d73cb4e1985.jpg?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0998803d7-b594-4416-8800-8d73cb4e1985.jpg?resize=1536%2C1023&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0998803d7-b594-4416-8800-8d73cb4e1985.jpg?resize=1200%2C800&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0998803d7-b594-4416-8800-8d73cb4e1985.jpg?w=1600&amp;ssl=1 1600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0998803d7-b594-4416-8800-8d73cb4e1985.jpg?w=1446&amp;ssl=1 1446w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 723px) 100vw, 723px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From <a href=\"http:\/\/Watts Up With That?\">Watts Up With That?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Guest Essay by Kip Hansen \u2014 19 December 2023 \u2014 1300 words\/10 minutes<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"150\" data-attachment-id=\"291968\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=291968\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-461.png?fit=300%2C150&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"300,150\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"image-461\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-461.png?fit=300%2C150&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-461.png?resize=300%2C150&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-291968\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An article in another of America\u2019s once-great-newspapers<em>, The Washington Post<\/em>, titled \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/climate-solutions\/2023\/12\/13\/xavier-cortada-the-underwater\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">These yard signs offer an inconvenient truth about sea level rise<\/a>\u201d, published on 13 December 2023 in the \u201cClimate Solutions\u201d section, &nbsp;is a narrative journalism piece about the efforts &nbsp;of a local artist and Miami-Dade County\u2019s artist-in-residence&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Xavier_Cortada\">X<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Xavier_Cortada\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">avier Cortada<\/a>&nbsp;to raise awareness of Miami residents about the elevation of their residential properties relative to local sea level.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Why?&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/wattsupwiththat.com\/2016\/12\/07\/miamis-vice\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Miami has thousands of homes perilously close to local Mean Sea Level<\/a>.&nbsp; That link goes to my 7-year old piece that concluded, in part:&nbsp; \u201c<strong>Miami Beach is at such grave risk of sea water flooding today that it should preemptively be declared a disaster zone<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 not because of global-warming-driven sea level rise but due to a seeming total lack of sensible civil engineering standards and sensible building codes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That statement holds true for the thousands of homes built along sea water canals, just one or two feet above the local high tide line.&nbsp; If building those homes sounds crazy to you, then you are thinking correctly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It sounds crazy to Miami-Dade\u2019s artist-in-residence&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Xavier_Cortada\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Xavier Cortada<\/a>&nbsp;too.&nbsp; But, you see, Cortada has been an environmental and climate change activist his entire career.&nbsp; And he is absolutely right to be worried about those homes and businesses built so very close to Mean Sea Level, some of them at or below the:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td><a href=\"https:\/\/tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov\/datum_options.html#MAXTIDE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Max Tide<\/a><\/td><td>5.81<\/td><td>Highest Observed Tide<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><a href=\"https:\/\/tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov\/datum_options.html#MAXTIDEDT\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Max Tide Date &amp; Time<\/a><\/td><td>09\/10\/2017 17:00<\/td><td>Highest Observed Tide Date &amp; Time<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov\/datums.html?id=8723214\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">source<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The NOAA Tide Gauge for Miami is\u00a0 NOAA ID 8723214, Virginia Key, Biscayne Bay FL:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"720\" height=\"375\" data-attachment-id=\"291970\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=291970\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-462.png?fit=720%2C375&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"720,375\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"image-462\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-462.png?fit=720%2C375&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-462.png?resize=720%2C375&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-291970\" style=\"width:760px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-462.png?w=720&amp;ssl=1 720w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-462.png?resize=300%2C156&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: rgb(7, 7, 7); font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: collapse;\">It is obvious from the Tide Gauge data that unless there are substantial changes in natural Earth-processes, SLR in Miami will rise another\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder; color: rgb(7, 7, 7); font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: collapse;\"><u style=\"box-sizing: border-box;\">8-10 inches<\/u><\/span><span style=\"color: rgb(7, 7, 7); font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: collapse;\">\u00a0by 2100.\u00a0 Much of that amount of that Local Relative Mean SLR will be due to local land subsidence, Vertical Land Movement (VLM). \u00a0<\/span><a title=\"\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(209, 0, 20); text-decoration-line: none; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: collapse;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gps.gov\/cgsic\/meetings\/2019\/wdowinski.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Shimon Wdowinski, at Florida International University<\/a><span style=\"color: rgb(7, 7, 7); font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: collapse;\">, found that VLM in the Miami Beach area runs 1-2 mm\/yr and upwards to 2-3 mm\/yr in localized pockets.\u00a0 Along waterways, neighborhoods and islands built on the fill from canal digging and channel dredging have greater subsidence.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"720\" height=\"394\" data-attachment-id=\"291972\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=291972\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-463.png?fit=720%2C394&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"720,394\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"image-463\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-463.png?fit=720%2C394&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-463.png?resize=720%2C394&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-291972\" style=\"width:760px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-463.png?w=720&amp;ssl=1 720w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-463.png?resize=300%2C164&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shimon Wdowinski provides a pretty good illustration of the constituents of Local Relative Sea Level Rise:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"720\" height=\"577\" data-attachment-id=\"291973\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=291973\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-464.png?fit=720%2C577&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"720,577\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"image-464\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-464.png?fit=720%2C577&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-464.png?resize=720%2C577&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-291973\" style=\"width:760px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-464.png?w=720&amp;ssl=1 720w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-464.png?resize=300%2C240&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Subsidence is downward Vertical Land Movement (VLM) and in Miami is a major component of Local Relative SLR (as reported by tide gauges). \u00a0Tide gauges are scarce in southern Florida \u2013 which is an oddity for a place so intimate with the sea \u2013 but there are six of them that report Sea Level Trends:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"720\" height=\"432\" data-attachment-id=\"291974\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=291974\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-465.png?fit=720%2C432&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"720,432\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"image-465\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-465.png?fit=720%2C432&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-465.png?resize=720%2C432&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-291974\" style=\"width:760px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-465.png?w=720&amp;ssl=1 720w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-465.png?resize=300%2C180&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the upper left corner above is the previously shown Virginia Key Tide Gauge record which is the tide gauge closest to Miami. The Lake Fort Worth Tide Gauge record (West Palm Beach, lower right) is useless, but agrees with the other five that SLR in Southern Florida is linear \u2013 not accelerating \u2013 not increasing, but just going up at the same rate across the entire length of each record.&nbsp; The Linear Relative Sea Level Trends at each are different, due to differences in local Vertical Land Movement, which adds to Relative SLR if the land is moving downward \u2013 subsiding \u2014 (and subtracts if the land is itself rising) \u2014 but all are linear \u2013 they are all linear trends<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If this is the case, and it is, then what has gotten into our campaigning artist,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Xavier_Cortada\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Xavier Cortada<\/a>?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" data-attachment-id=\"291976\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=291976\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-466.png?fit=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"300,200\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"image-466\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-466.png?fit=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-466.png?resize=300%2C200&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-291976\" style=\"width:382px;height:auto\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He seems to believe &nbsp;that \u201cBy 2100,[according to the&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/by%202100,%20the%20southeast%20florida%20regional%20climate%20compact%20projects%20that%20local%20sea%20levels%20will%20rise%20somewhere%20between%20two%20and%20eight%20feet.\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Southeast Florida Regional Climate Compact<\/a>&nbsp;project] \u2026 local sea levels will rise somewhere&nbsp;<strong>between two and eight feet<\/strong>.\u201d &nbsp;&nbsp;So, he has gone a bit overboard and established the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/cortada.com\/2018\/underwaterHOA\/about\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Underwater Homeowners Association<\/a>&nbsp;in expectation of that event. &nbsp;His project is to have neighbors place signs in their yards showing how many feet above sea level the property is.&nbsp; The home shown with an 8 on the sign is his home in Pinecrest, Florida.&nbsp; (I have doubts, the yard seems to slope several feet up to the house, but at least he is playing his own game.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And what is the possibility of mean sea level rising by two to eight feet in the next 77 years?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Vanishing small \u2013 Miami has seen almost exactly 1 foot of SLR (including subsidence) in the last 100 years \u2013 a long a steady rise.&nbsp; And what that means is that, if the past is any indicator, and it is, that Relative SLR in Southern Florida, including the Miami area, is not going to be suddenly doubling or tripling \u2013 thus:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Miami&nbsp;<u>will not<\/u>&nbsp;be seeing 2 to 8 feet of Relative Sea Level Rise in the next 77 years \u2013 but rather 8 to 10 inches, maybe as much as 12 inches.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But wait!\u2026.does this mean Miami is off the hook?&nbsp; That it is not in danger from rising seas?&nbsp; Not in danger from hurricane storm surge?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Absolutely not \u2013 Miami is a disaster zone pre-made and just waiting to happen.&nbsp; Billions of dollars of built infrastructure sits on Miami Beach which is built on a sand-based\/ancient-reef barrier island.&nbsp; Some of Miami Beach is built below&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov\/datum_options.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Mean High High Water<\/a>&nbsp;(highest high tides).&nbsp; Much of the infrastructure is underground out of necessity and below&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov\/datum_options.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Mean Sea Level (MSL)<\/a>, requiring pumps to move water up and out \u2013 sewage too.&nbsp; And this means, when the storms come and knock out electrical power, the pumps stop working\u2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But not from the gently\u00a0<em>rising<\/em>\u00a0seas.\u00a0 The real problem is how close to Mean Sea Level the built environment is already.\u00a0 The tidal range in Biscayne Bay and Miami is only about 2 feet, low to high.\u00a0 The highest tide ever at Virginia Key was just over 3 feet.\u00a0 With many homes built on canals with only a foot or two of<a href=\"https:\/\/www.fema.gov\/glossary\/freeboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u00a0freeboard<\/a>\u00a0above high tides:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"720\" height=\"473\" data-attachment-id=\"291977\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=291977\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-467.png?fit=720%2C473&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"720,473\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"image-467\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-467.png?fit=720%2C473&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-467.png?resize=720%2C473&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-291977\" style=\"width:760px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-467.png?w=720&amp;ssl=1 720w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-467.png?resize=300%2C197&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The high tide mark is easily seen on the sea walls as the dark water mark shifts to grey concrete.&nbsp; That\u2019s not much freeboard: a foot, maybe 18 inches.&nbsp; If you somehow think that just a few Southern Florida homes are built on canals like this one, use&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/earth.google.com\/web\/@25.77814096,-80.15132485,17443.09947076a,0d,35y,0.0024h,1.0712t,0r\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Google Earth<\/a>&nbsp;and get a good close look.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If Miami was to experience a Major Hurricane [a hurricane that is classified as Category 3 or higher] arriving from just the right (or wrong) direction at the same time as high tide \u2013 with the wind relentlessly pushing water up into Biscayne Bay \u2013 those lovely homes in the photo above are going to be flooded and all those boats in the canals will end up on people\u2019s lawns or inside their houses.&nbsp;&nbsp; The effects of a Cat 5 hurricane on the City of Miami Beach would be horrific.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><u>Bottom Line:<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cortada is right to be worried, but as with the majority of climate activists, he has been misinformed and blindly accepted exaggerated claims of disaster created out of over-heated climate models.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miami and its surrounds are at risk from the sea \u2013 because they have built too close to the sea and too close to the local Mean Sea Level, with intentionally dug canals letting the sea reach far into the interior. &nbsp;Storm surge is the enemy. &nbsp;Almost any unusually high tides flood roads and infrastructure \u2013 a major storm with surge combining with high tides would be a flooding disaster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong># # # # #<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><u>Author\u2019s Comment:<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cortada is clever and talented \u2013 but pushing misinformation to \u201cinform the public\u201d is not a good idea.&nbsp; The reality is worrisome enough \u2013 it needs no exaggeration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Re-writing building codes in Miami-Dade County would go a long way to improving the situation (and create a building trades boom).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Not one more building should be allowed to be built with less than 8 feet of freeboard above existing Mean Higher High Water.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thanks for reading.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An article in another of America\u2019s once-great-newspapers, The Washington Post, titled \u201cThese yard signs offer an inconvenient truth about sea level rise\u201d, published on 13 December 2023 in the \u201cClimate Solutions\u201d section, \u00a0is a narrative journalism piece about the efforts \u00a0of a local artist and Miami-Dade County\u2019s artist-in-residence\u00a0Xavier Cortada\u00a0to raise awareness of Miami residents about the elevation of their residential properties relative to local sea level.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":291979,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"An article in another of America\u2019s once-great-newspapers, The Washington Post, titled \u201cThese yard signs offer an inconvenient truth about sea level rise\u201d, published on 13 December 2023 in the \u201cClimate Solutions\u201d section, \u00a0is a narrative journalism piece a","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691818699,691825491,691820093,691825492],"class_list":{"0":"post-291966","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-uncategorized","8":"tag-climate-solutions","9":"tag-miami-beach","10":"tag-sea-level","11":"tag-tide-gauge","13":"fallback-thumbnail"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0998803d7-b594-4416-8800-8d73cb4e1985.jpg?fit=1600%2C1066&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1dX8","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":243819,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=243819","url_meta":{"origin":291966,"position":0},"title":"The Nation Flounders on Miami Sea-Level Rise Story","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"02\/08\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"The story is not just false, it is laughably inept. There is no evidence the United States faces the loss of any major coastal city due to climate change or that climate change has or will create climate refugees.","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-326.png?fit=1200%2C508&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-326.png?fit=1200%2C508&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-326.png?fit=1200%2C508&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-326.png?fit=1200%2C508&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-326.png?fit=1200%2C508&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":233516,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=233516","url_meta":{"origin":291966,"position":1},"title":"Thirty Feet Of Sea Level Rise By 2100","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"12\/11\/2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Newsweek says Miami will drown and it is Marco Rubio\u2019s fault.","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/00Screenshot-2022-12-11-193118.png?fit=1135%2C641&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/00Screenshot-2022-12-11-193118.png?fit=1135%2C641&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/00Screenshot-2022-12-11-193118.png?fit=1135%2C641&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/00Screenshot-2022-12-11-193118.png?fit=1135%2C641&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/00Screenshot-2022-12-11-193118.png?fit=1135%2C641&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":278513,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=278513","url_meta":{"origin":291966,"position":2},"title":"DeSantis is Right, New York Times, We Should all \u2018Shrug Off the Threat\u2019 of Catastrophic Climate Change","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"09\/13\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"In short, DeSantis is right to \u201cshrug off\u201d the climate hype and focus instead on the real problems facing Florida. Doing so might reduce the chances of sea water incursion and subsidence, and minimize damage done by hurricanes undoubtedly instore for the state in the future. Ending fossil fuel use\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Climate change\"","block_context":{"text":"Climate change","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=climate-change"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/08c0f88c50daf76614fa6d303631f262d.jpeg?fit=1200%2C825&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/08c0f88c50daf76614fa6d303631f262d.jpeg?fit=1200%2C825&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/08c0f88c50daf76614fa6d303631f262d.jpeg?fit=1200%2C825&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/08c0f88c50daf76614fa6d303631f262d.jpeg?fit=1200%2C825&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/08c0f88c50daf76614fa6d303631f262d.jpeg?fit=1200%2C825&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":296877,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=296877","url_meta":{"origin":291966,"position":3},"title":"When Climate Change Education becomes Child Abuse","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"01\/18\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Climate Kids\u00a0presents itself as an educational tool to teach children, at the grade school level, about Climate Change.","rel":"","context":"In \"child abuse\"","block_context":{"text":"child abuse","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=child-abuse"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0141338089.webp?fit=1200%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0141338089.webp?fit=1200%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0141338089.webp?fit=1200%2C768&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0141338089.webp?fit=1200%2C768&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0141338089.webp?fit=1200%2C768&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":232999,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=232999","url_meta":{"origin":291966,"position":4},"title":"False, Washington Post, Climate Change Isn\u2019t Forcing Retreat From Hog Island","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"12\/08\/2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Recently the\u00a0Washington Post\u00a0ran a story titled, \u201cOn the edge of retreat,\u201d ascribing climate change induced sea level rise as the reason many of the remaining residents of Hog Island, Virginia are relocating to the mainland. This is false.","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/0sandpiper-g111c204b9_1920.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/0sandpiper-g111c204b9_1920.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/0sandpiper-g111c204b9_1920.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/0sandpiper-g111c204b9_1920.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/0sandpiper-g111c204b9_1920.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":407791,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=407791","url_meta":{"origin":291966,"position":5},"title":"False, Yahoo News, Cape Coral Isn\u2019t Sinking","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"10\/12\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Yahoo News\u2019 reprinted an item from The Cool Down, titled\u00a0\u201cExperts warn that beloved US coastal town could soon vanish off map entirely: \u2018I\u2019m scared,\u2019\u201d\u00a0which claims Cape Coral, Florida will disappear soon due to climate change induced sea level rise. This claim is absolutely false. Actual sea level rise data is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Cape Coral\"","block_context":{"text":"Cape Coral","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=cape-coral"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/0AQM1OMi-Xtf95Ty8JTep2L9nJdggPaGjYLHqTmkOWpbEGAss9wgemxhUxzOg_x1OYg1REeK3R6TPAFWlt6kh-jdEz3c6S-oikI0ZhW8nvZZp2M5Yh-FiuRd40f7Ee4qi-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C665&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/0AQM1OMi-Xtf95Ty8JTep2L9nJdggPaGjYLHqTmkOWpbEGAss9wgemxhUxzOg_x1OYg1REeK3R6TPAFWlt6kh-jdEz3c6S-oikI0ZhW8nvZZp2M5Yh-FiuRd40f7Ee4qi-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C665&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/0AQM1OMi-Xtf95Ty8JTep2L9nJdggPaGjYLHqTmkOWpbEGAss9wgemxhUxzOg_x1OYg1REeK3R6TPAFWlt6kh-jdEz3c6S-oikI0ZhW8nvZZp2M5Yh-FiuRd40f7Ee4qi-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C665&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/0AQM1OMi-Xtf95Ty8JTep2L9nJdggPaGjYLHqTmkOWpbEGAss9wgemxhUxzOg_x1OYg1REeK3R6TPAFWlt6kh-jdEz3c6S-oikI0ZhW8nvZZp2M5Yh-FiuRd40f7Ee4qi-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C665&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/0AQM1OMi-Xtf95Ty8JTep2L9nJdggPaGjYLHqTmkOWpbEGAss9wgemxhUxzOg_x1OYg1REeK3R6TPAFWlt6kh-jdEz3c6S-oikI0ZhW8nvZZp2M5Yh-FiuRd40f7Ee4qi-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C665&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/291966","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121246920"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=291966"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/291966\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":291981,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/291966\/revisions\/291981"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/291979"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=291966"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=291966"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=291966"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}