In the News

‘Arcata is not going to be here’ – city to adapt, protect and retreat from sea level rise

12/25/16

“By 2050, this will be normal,” said Aldaron Laird, standing near the top of an Arcata wastewater treatment pond levee as waves broke at his feet.

A small group had trekked out to the Rising Tides Bench during a nine-foot King Tide on Dec. 13 for a discussion of sea level rise, its imminence and consequences.

While the bay’s present borders can more or less withstand today’s King Tides – also known as perigean spring tides, which coincide with maximum gravitational pull by the moon and sun – that won’t be the case when they ride in on top of tomorrow’s raised sea levels. At that point, seawater would overtop current levees and inundate coastal areas, including homes, farms, businesses and critical public infrastructure.

The higher sea levels are not an “if,” they’re a “when.” What we don’t know is exactly when.

Eureka Plans to Flout Coastal Commission Recommendations on Sea Level Rise

11/18/16

The images are dramatic, showing some of Eureka’s most important areas completely submerged in water. The Bayshore Mall, Costco, Schmidbauer Lumber, even parts of Old Town and Highway 101 would lie beneath the surface of the ocean according to the worst-case-scenario projections for sea level rise and tectonic subsidence by the year 2100 in a new draft report prepared for the City of Eureka.

Humboldt Bay Sea Level Rise Inundation Mapping

Inundation maps were developed by Jeff Anderson of Northern Hydrology & Engineering for the Humboldt Bay Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment Project. The maps show areas vulnerable to existing and future sea levels that are currently protected from inundation due to the natural shoreline, dikes or berms, and railroad or road grades.

Obama Moves To Protect Against Flooding From Rising Sea Levels

1/30/15

President Barack Obama issued an executive order on Friday directing federal, state and local agencies to incorporate projections for sea level rise in planning and construction along the coasts.

The new Federal Flood Risk Management Standard requires that all federally funded projects located in floodplains, including buildings and roads, be built to withstand flooding. The requirement, the White House said in a release Friday, would “reduce the risk and cost of future flood disasters” and “help ensure federal projects last as long as intended.”

King Tides are back sans storms

Solar-lunar alignment create big waves, but flooding risk minimal

1/20/15

The winter’s highest tides are predicted for this week, but without the storms that hit Humboldt County in late December, flood risk is minimal, according to the National Weather Service.

National Weather Service meteorologist Matthew Kidwell said the tide, which is considered a King Tide because of the alignment of the sun and the moon, peaked at 8.4 feet Monday morning and will probably be a little higher today and Wednesday.

“It’s actually going to be the highest (today), probably around 8.4 feet again,” Kidwell said. “But it usually has to get up to around 8.8 feet before we start seeing flooding.”