The sea level rising has begun to take a big toll on the economies of cities from New York, NY and Shanghai, China. Scientists are now saying that economic damages are going to increase at a faster rate as warming continues to increase. It could be a huge problem for big cities that are close enough to waterways that can be affected by sea level rising. A lot of these major cities play a large role in the global economy. Scientists are predicting that major floods whipped up by storms will cause trouble for cities and is forcing cities to add to their budget to cover for damages to trains and buildings. A member of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Juergen Kropp, said, “the damage from sea level rise rises faster than sea level rise itself.” The article highlighted the Danish capital of Copenhagen, and said that a sea level rise of four inches would increase economic damage by $1.1 billion if no action is taken. If the four inches were to double by the year 2050 then it would cost four times as much making the damages around $4.4 billion. The eight inch rise in sea level is the worst possible outlook determined by the UN. A study in 2014 determined that by the year 2100 sea level could rise by one meter (worst-case scenario) and cost anywhere from .3%-9% of total GDP in damages.

Scientists write articles like this to make sure people are aware of the possible changes and are aware of the damages caused by global warming and rising sea levels. Jochen Hinkel of the Global Climate Forum in Berlin said, “People have adapted to sea-level rise in the past and will do so in the future.” This quote concludes that people will be able to adapt and limit economic damages in the future but it is very important preventative action is taken.

Article:

“As Sea Levels Rise, Economic Damage Piles Up Even Faster: Study.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 2016. Web. 28 Feb. 2016. <http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2016/02/28/world/europe/28reuters-climatechange-sealevel.html>.