[StBernard] Rebuilding New Orleans: Subsidence and Sea-Level Rise are the Greatest Threats

[Westley Annis]

Rebuilding New Orleans: Subsidence and Sea-Level Rise are the Greatest
Threats

A new article at Geology.com points to subsidence and sea-level rise as the
greatest sustainability threats to rebuilding New Orleans. The city is
slipping below sea level at a rate of about one foot per decade. Hurricane
Katrina was one of 17 hurricanes to pass near the city since 1852.

(PRWEB) February 5, 2006 -- Most people think that hurricanes are the
greatest threat to New Orleans, however, a new article at Geology.com titled
Rebuilding New Orleans
<http://www.geology.com/articles/rebuilding-new-orleans.shtml>  specifies
subsidence and sea-level rise as much greater concerns. Within the next
century, New Orleans will sink about one meter and sea level is likely to
rise another one to two meters. This places New Orleans an additional two to
three meters below sea level by the end of this century. 

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This continued subsidence and sea-level rise will make the city very
expensive to sustain and demand a continuous upgrading of the levees and
pumping systems. These costs of protecting the city from seepage and storms
will become more expensive than practical. Anyone who owns or plans to
purchase New Orleans real estate should understand not only the hurricane
risk, but also the subsidence and sea level rise risks.

About Geology.com:

Geology.com serves as a portal to geology and earth science information
across the Web. It provides resources for learning about geology and is
visited by over 200,000 teachers, students and geologists each month.

For more information, visit Geology.com.