By: Zoe Chen
Max Guliani for Hudson River Park
New York City may not seem like a city that is vulnerable to storms and flooding, but it is. New York City is very vulnerable to the rising sea level and flooding caused by climate change. Hurricane Sandy is a perfect example of the unexpected but yet should be expected damage that weather can bring. Hurricane Sandy caused devastating flooding all over. This disastrous storm killed 233 people, and caused water levels to rise to 3.9 meters.
Climate change is only going to make things worse. Notice how it is February and New York has barely experienced any snow, and the temperatures are in the 50s? This is not normal at all.
Climate change is not doing us any good. The oceans are absorbing heat, which will only make it more powerful to create hurricanes like Hurricane Sandy. The damage that climate change is and will do is the concern though.
With New York City being the most densely populated city in the U.S, New Yorkers are constantly on the move, and the damages that weather can do, will and were not good for the New York lifestyle. The MTA, a critical part to the city life and transportation with 2.4 million daily riders, can only handle so much of the bad weather. The MTA system and sewage system pumps 53 million liters of water out of the subway system but it can only handle that much, causing it to be susceptible to being easily overwhelmed and flooded. But this is one small part of the many issues climate change is causing, hence why climate change is more important than it is. NYC needs to be protected from climate change because it is already known how much damage a storm can cause due to Hurricane Sandy.
"The Big U" - Rendering of 'the Big U' done by Dutch architecture firm BIG, taken from Architecture Daily
Solutions to climate change and the rising sea levels are being proposed. Like The Big U and walls the U.S Army of Corps are placed from Hudson Yards to Battery Park. The Big U is a $2.5 billion contract that is supposed to protect lower Manhattan by building raised berms initially, but was then changed to removing the East River Park and raising it by 2 meters to be the storm surge barrier. The U.S Army of Corps walls, a $52 billion project, is made up of sea walls starting from Hudson Yards and ends at Battery Park. These barriers have yet to be built, but if it is confirmed it would not be complete till 2044. But this raises the question of even if these walls/barriers get built, will it be too late? What if another catastrophic storm comes before 2044?
Proposed floodwall, about 20 feet tall, along the Hudson River in the West Village - Army Corps of Engineers
But there are more factors to be worried about. As water level rises, it can affect the drinking water supply in New York City. The Delaware River Watershed provides water to New York City reservoirs among others as well, and the New York City reservoirs provide the drinking water to the city, but it is not doing its job if the reservoir does not push water back to the Delaware River, which would cause salt to not be pushed back. This can cause a potential drought and with the rising sea levels as well, there may not be enough water.
Now is the time to focus on climate change, maybe things can turn around for the better or less harmful. New York City is our home. A home to the most densely populated city in the U.S. We should be concerned. Climate change is causing the sea levels to rise. What could be next?
RESOURCES:
Luthy, Quinn. "Sea Level Rise NYC: Causes, Consequences, and Solutions." Earth.Org, 25 Nov. 2022, https://earth.org/sea-level-rise-nyc/.
Maldonado, Samantha, and Stephon Johnson. "See Walls: Army Corps' Citywide Coastal Storm Plan Takes Shape, Steals Views." The City, The City, 27 Jan. 2023, https://www.thecity.nyc/2023/1/27/23573625/sea-wall-army-corps-nyc-coastal-plan.
Maldonado, Samantha. "Sea Level Rise Adds Salt to Region's Water Supply Forecast." Brooklyn Eagle, 6 Jan. 2023, https://brooklyneagle.com/articles/2023/01/08/sea-level-rise-adds-salt-to-regions-water-supply-forecast/.
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