Duke University Press Sea Level Rise: A Slow Tsunami on America's Shores

The consequences of twenty-first-century sea level rise on the United States and its nearly 90,000 miles of shoreline will be immense: Miami and New Orleans will disappear; many nuclear and other power plants, hundreds of wastewater plants and toxic waste sites, and oil production facilities will be at risk; port infrastructures will need to be raised; and over ten million Americans fleeing rising seas will become climate refugees. In Sea Level Rise Orrin H. Pilkey and Keith C. Pilkey argue that the only feasible response along much of the U.S. shoreline is an immediate and managed retreat. Among many topics, they examine sea level rise's effects on coastal ecosystems, health, and native Alaskan coastal communities. They also provide guidelines for those living on the coasts or plan on moving to or away from them, as well as the steps local governments should take to prepare for this unstoppable, impending catastrophe. Review "For decades the Pilkeys have been unafraid to provide straight talk about the reality of our tense relationship with the coast, whether it's the nature of our highly dynamic coastal landscape, the impacts of shoreline armoring, or the reality of climate change. Here they provide a clear-eyed and sober view of America's future with rapidly rising seas and how woefully unprepared we are for what very well might be our nation's biggest challenge."--Chad Nelsen, CEO, Surfrider Foundation"[The] approach of highlighting specific communities allows the authors to effectively communicate that just as geographic regions may be differently impacted, as a function of their particular coastal morphology and through the effects of local geologic processes such as subsidence, different reactions may be generated within communities sharing specific regional cultures. . . . Recommended. All readers."--J. Schoof "Choice" (7/1/2020 12:00:00 AM)"Sea Level Rise is written in direct, nontechnical language that's absent of dramatic innuendo and is full of information and documentation regarding the anticipated effects of a rising sea level. Ignoring its message could have severe consequences."--Barry Silverstein "Foreword Reviews" (9/1/2019 12:00:00 AM)"[Orrin Pilkey and Keith Pilkey] identify the legal, political and financial decisions required to cope with sea level rise as it threatens nearly every aspect of American life, including commerce and shipping, the military, tourism and the design and functioning of major cities. The sober assessment questions whether the recent trend toward building resilient coastal communities is even possible."--Debbie Elliott "NPR" (12/3/2019 12:00:00 AM)"Careful, thoughtful, conservative -- and profoundly disturbing."--Ben Steelman "Wilmington Star-News" (10/5/2019 12:00:00 AM)"This is a compelling history of the near-future. Read it to understand the pressures that will shape our planet as the century wears on--and read it as a reminder that we must act now to keep things from getting worse than they must."--Bill McKibben, author of "Falter: Has the Human Game Begun to Play Itself Out?" From the Author Orrin H. Pilkey is James B. Duke Professor Emeritus of Geology at Duke University and the author and coauthor of numerous books, including The Last Beach, also published by Duke University Press. Keith C. Pilkey is an administrative law judge with the Social Security Administration. He is coauthor, with Orrin H. Pilkey, of Global Climate Change: A Primer, also published by Duke University Press. About the Author Orrin H. Pilkey is James B. Duke Professor Emeritus of Geology at Duke University and the author and coauthor of numerous books, including The Last Beach, also published by Duke University Press. Keith C. Pilkey is an administrative law judge with the Social Security Administration. He is coauthor, with Orrin H. Pilkey, of Global Climate Change: A Primer, also published by Duke University Press.