How Does Melting Ice Affect Ocean Water Levels?
Seas Are Already Rising
For the past century, the world's ocean water level has risen at a rate of about .07 inches per year, primarily due to human-induced global warming, according to the United Nations-sponsored Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The rate of rise is increasing, measuring .12 inches annually between 1993 and 2003, and it will likely accelerate further as greater amounts of ice melt near the globe's northern and southern poles.
The IPCC has predicted a maximum total sea level rise of 1 to 4 inches during the next 100 years. But a recent study of melting ice in Greenland found these estimates may be too conservative. Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison say ocean water level rises of 1 to 2 feet are possible over the next century.
As ocean water levels continue to rise as a result of melting ice, coastal cities around the world may face catastrophic consequences.
Melting Ice
Melting ice can have a major impact on ocean water levels. During the last ice age, melting ice caps caused sea levels to rise nearly 400 feet.
The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that sea levels would rise by more than 200 feet if all of the ice now sitting on land in Greenland and Antarctica melted.
Fortunately, these ice sheets will not disappear overnight. A 2001 IPCC report said global temperatures would have to warm by 36 degrees Fahrenheit to melt all of Antarctica's ice. Scientists say such a temperature jump is not anticipated anytime soon.
Impact of Rising Ocean Water Levels
The bad news is that even relatively minor rises in ocean water levels can have dire impacts for vast numbers of people in low-lying coastal areas. These impacts could include more coastal erosion, increased flooding, reduced supplies of drinking water, losses of property and wildlife habitat, threats to transportation systems and declining incomes from agriculture and tourism.
Major cities like New Orleans and London already rely on man-made structures for protection from storm surges and these structures will need further strengthening as sea levels rise. It is estimated that a sea level rise of around 8 inches would displace 740,000 people in Nigeria. A 3-foot rise in ocean water levels could swamp cities along the U.S. eastern seaboard and 20-foot rise in sea levels would submerge a large portion of Florida.
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