Miami: How Rising Sea Levels Endanger South Florida

"When I wrote this piece in 2013, I imagined Miami still had time to come to terms with its watery future. Now, in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey and Irma, I'm not so sure." Jeff Goodell wrote the article four years ago, and this week has made it relevant again. Just like the ProPublica article on Houston published last year, this piece is eerie to read. But climate scientists and activists have been warning us about climate change for decades. 

The article starts with a description of fictitious Hurricane Milo hitting in 2030. "There was a foot of sand covering the famous bow-tie floor in the lobby of the Fontaine­bleau hotel in Miami Beach. A dead manatee floated in the pool where Elvis had once swum." From there, the author talks about current Miami, still developing real estate. The challenges facing Miami and other parts of southern Florida are fast and slow at once. Fast as hurricanes and storm surges, and slow as the sea level rises, contaminating groundwater and inundating neighbourhoods. South Florida is not only flat, but its bedrock is porous limestone, which means seawalls and other similar structures will not hold the water back. Floridians are looking to the Dutch, but the Dutch expertise may be limited in this case. Another issue that southern Florida faces is that of nuclear reactors sitting at the water's edge, which may or may not be ready for Hurricane Irma. Will investors continue to invest in Miami, or will increased insurance costs hollow out the city? 

John Stuart of Florida International University, "compares Miami with Baiae, the ancient Roman resort town in the bay of Naples that was once a playground for Nero and Julius Ceasar. Today, because of volcanic activity, the ruins of Baiae are mostly under water. 'This is what humans do... we inhabit cities, and then when something happens, we move on. The same thing will happen with Miami. The only question is, how long can we stick it out?'" We may find out sooner than the author anticipated.