Global sea levels could rise three to six feet over the next century. Four feet of sea-level rise would inundate an area the size of Massachusetts, and just 20 inches of sea-level rise would cause $23-170 billion in damage in the United States.¹ Sea-level rise will also cause higher storm surge during extreme weather events like Hurricane Sandy, resulting in more flooding, more damage, and more erosion.

With so many lives and taxpayer dollars at stake, the Georgetown Climate Center is working with state and local governments to help them become “coast-smart” — that is, better prepared to cope with the threats posed by rising sea levels and higher storm surges.  We also convene dialogs between states, local governments and federal agencies to ensure that lessons learned are shared widely to inform future policy actions.

Below are the Center's publicly available sea-level rise and flood-related work products from our Adaptation Clearinghouse. Please visit our adaptation reports page for additional Georgetown resources.