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Bryanna Velez

Mr. Sagorski

ENC 1101 (Tu-Thu, 8:00-11:20)

7/26/2021

Sunny Day Flooding

Imagine you are in the year 2050, your hometown, Miami, is fully submerged

underwater. You had to evacuate a short while ago and you had no place to go. Your house that

you had not finished paying off yet is a total loss. You feel anger that this issue had not been

taken seriously sooner. You would go back in time to 2021 to fix it. You are in luck; you can go

back in time. We are back in 2021, we can fix this issue. We must take it seriously. We cannot

wait until our feet are already underwater. This occurrence that happened in 2050 is due to sunny

day flooding or better known as sea level rise. The reason sea level rise is happening in the first

place is because of global warming. Global warming is the occurrence in which the temperature

on earth is progressively getting hotter. This is melting ice glaciers which causes the amount of

water in the ocean to rise as well. Sea level rise puts South Florida in several dangers because

water will continue to rise from this point on, the real-estate market will be heavily effected,

many people will be in high distress when the time comes, and global warming will continue to

worsen because many people refuse to acknowledge it. The only way to solve this problem is to

start focusing on the root of the problem: global warming. To get global warming under control,

the government must implement laws that force states to cut gas emissions.

The sea levels have been rising since the 1990s and most likely it won’t stop rising

anytime soon. Rebecca Lindsey confirms that “[i]n some ocean basins, sea level has risen as

much as 6-8 inches (15-20 centimeters) since the start of the satellite record in 1993.” Since the
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fact is the sea levels have been slowly rising there is no reason to believe that it will stop anytime

soon. Ariza explains the predictions of sunny day flooding and the effects it might have by

stating this:

The sea at the southern end of the Florida Peninsula has risen a foot since the 1900s, and

almost 5 inches since 1993. The ocean reclaims chunks of land in the fall and spring

during so called “sunny day” floods, which have become four times more common today

than 15 years ago. Some scientists say that another 6 inches of sea level rise could very

well arrive by 2030, and infrastructure planners are bracing for 2 feet by 2060. Five to 6

feet of sea level rise by 2100 is likely, and likely catastrophic: An inundation of this

magnitude would physically displace some 800,000 residents of Miami-Dade County —

nearly a third of the current population — and render a large portion of the city

uninhabitable.

The magnitude of this situation really comes from the exponential growth that the sea rising

levels history has been showing. Ignoring this inevitable issue is like ignoring the weather

forecast of a thunderstorm. People are ignoring these trends that completely point to what will

inevitably happen: Miami being underwater. The whole basis of these predictions is the statistics

on how much the sea levels have already risen in the past. Since the sea has risen almost 5 inches

since 1993, there is no chance it will magically stop rising anytime soon.

The key reason that climate change is even happening is because of humanity. “The

scientific community is nearly unanimous in its view that such temperature increases stem

largely from human activities” (“Climate Change: Should the U.S.”). The temperature increases

that are being spoken about is global warming, which is the cause of sunny day flooding.

“Climatologists believe that greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2), which are created
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primarily by burning fossil fuels such as coal and oil, are influential factors in inducing climate

change. If such emissions are not stopped or at least slowed, scientists warn, climate change

could have disastrous consequences for life on Earth” (“Climate Change: Should the U.S.”).

These fossil fuels that create greenhouse gases come primarily from us and our use of natural

resources. Some gases, one of them being CO2, “trap heat from the sun in the Earth's

atmosphere” (“Climate Change: Should the U.S.”). This can be very detrimental to our earth

because by entrapping these gases, it holds more heat than we need (“Climate Change: Should

the U.S.”). The burning of fossil fuels has only progressively gotten worse due to “automobiles,

factories, and electric power plants that generate energy for houses, office buildings, and other

needs” (Climate Change: Should the U.S.). Humans are clearly the only ones responsible for this

issue, therefore they should be aware of the problem at hand and find a way to solve it. They

cannot sit around and refuse to acknowledge it.

Another aspect that not many people look at is that the economy that will be affected, or

more specifically, the real estate market. The U.S. Census Bureau states, “Florida’s Miami-Dade

County adds more than 500 new residents every week” (qtd. in Treuer). Since Miami is

frequently getting more and more residents, that means that more money is being put into real

estate. All this money being invested will be a total loss if there is no solution found for sunny

day flooding. “If nothing is done to dramatically reduce global greenhouse gas emissions,

flooding will increase, taxes will increase, people will start moving away, and housing values

will fall” (Treuer). The effects it will have on real estate will be calamitous since the city of

Miami Beach has the “current population of more than 91,000 residents and with more than 7

million tourists with rental and vacation properties, the [city of Miami Beach] has a total real

estate value in excess of US$30 billion” (Conyers et al.). The amount of money Miami Beach is
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worth in real estate is at fatal risk. It might quite literally be underwater in a few decades if

something is not done immediately. Many people are putting property investments in Miami if

they haven’t already since it is such a popular place. Not only will the real estate market lose a

lot of money but so will the individuals who have property investments here. The value of

property will significantly decrease as we get closer to disaster.

Many people will be affected by sunny day flooding since many people live near the

oceans. The world is so big that people like to undermine just how many people are in it, or in

this situation, how many people live near the coast. A very surprising fact that I think maximizes

the urgency of a solution is the fact that “[n]early 40 percent of all humans live within 60 miles

of an ocean” (Climate Change: Should the U.S.). The amount of people who will be affected by

sunny day flooding is an enormous amount. Numerous people are in danger and action needs to

be taken rapidly. Kevin Loria explains exactly one of the ways sunny day flooding might effect

these people by stating that “[t]he solid ground under South Florida — Miami, Miami Beach, the

Keys, and much of the rest of the peninsula — is mostly limestone made of compressed ancient

reefs that are full of tiny holes. That means salty water is rising up through the ground itself, not

just in the waters surrounding Florida.” The water rising through the actual ground puts many

people in a compromising position. The ground under them and their property will be at total

loss. When the sea levels rise, which they will, if we don’t quickly find an effective way to solve

this problem many people will be in danger. Their properties will be ruined, and they won’t have

any place to go if we don’t find a solution.

The biggest factor in why an effective solution hasn’t yet been put in place is that many

people refuse to acknowledge this issue. Their ignorance only worsens the situation at hand. For

some reason, this worldwide evident issue has become political, as most things do. People who
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oppose climate change “in Congress, and the tiny group of climate researchers allied with them,

have argued that the concerns of thousands of mainstream scientists about the future are based on

unproven computer forecasts” (Gillis). As mentioned earlier, these forecasts are based on history

of the past. There is no reason to believe that these forecasts are unreliable. Also, the people who

are backing up these forecasts are educated scientists. It isn’t like they are getting their

information from an unreliable magazine. On the other hand, many people choose to ignore this

issue due to procrastination, something we can all relate to. Galen Truer explains the psychology

that goes into play by stating that “[h]umans have natural biases that favor the present over the

future, strongly held opinions over new information, and certainty over uncertainty. These biases

make it easy for people to learn from experience, but difficult for them to imagine and internalize

future threats such as sea-level rise.” It is very onerous for the human brain to imagine a potential

tragedy that will happen in the far future, which is understandable. The reality is that we don’t

have to imagine it or feel the stress that comes with it, but we must try to prepare for it. Sunny

day flooding is an inescapable issue that needs to be addressed one way or the other. It needs to

be addressed by the government who stands over us and uses our tax dollars for its corrupt needs.

The reason that needed solutions have been so difficult to implement is because a “minority of

policy makers, generally conservative, question whether climate change is even a legitimate

phenomenon or whether human activity indeed causes it” (“Climate Change: Should the U.S.).

By policy makers spreading misinformation, it only causes disruption in our society that clouds

our minds from focusing on this crucial issue. We need to find a functional solution to this

regardless of the misinformation that is being spread.

The government needs to implement climate laws to improve sunny day flooding and

climate change. “A climate law mandates that your state cut its climate-damaging emissions to
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zero no later than 2050” (Kowka). The deadline of 2050 is necessary because scientists claim

that we still have hope for Earth if we do get emissions under control by this year. By enacting

this law, it forces political figures to be more aware of how crucial this issue is. The political

officials are the people we need to push the most since they have pull in what our government

does. The states can possibly minimize the gas emissions by following these suggestions

proposed by David Herring:

Where possible, we can switch to renewable sources of energy (such as solar and wind

energy) to power our homes and buildings, thus emitting far less heat-trapping gases into

the atmosphere. Where feasible, we can drive electric vehicles instead of those that burn

fossil fuels; or we can use mass transit instead of driving our own cars. Where affordable,

we can conserve energy by better insulating our homes and buildings, and by replacing

old, failing appliances with more energy-efficient models. Where practicable, we can

counterbalance our annual carbon dioxide emissions by investing in commercial services

that draw down an equal amount of carbon out of the atmosphere, such as through

planting trees or carbon capture and storage techniques. Where practical, we can support

more local businesses that use and promote sustainable, climate-smart practices such as

those listed above. We can consider placing an upper limit on the amount of carbon

dioxide we will allow ourselves to emit into the atmosphere within a given timeframe.

The climate law with these guidelines will force people to care and be more aware of our Earth

and how we should be taking care of it. The government has only been looking into short term

solutions when they should be looking into the best long-term solutions. Sea walls and water

pumps would only work for a certain amount of time before it would be more money to find
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another short-term solution. We must focus on reducing global warming since that is the cause of

sea level rise in South Florida.

The issue of climate change and sunny day flooding should not be a controversial issue.

This is urgent and needs to be treated as such. The people who choose to make it political will

have to shape up and realize that this effects millions of people on earth. The solutions that are

being implanted such as sea walls and water pumps are only temporary solutions. So many issues

come from climate change, not just sea level rise. People will suffer if we do not get this

situation in check. The investments that people have in Miami will go completely underwater,

literally. If we focus on trying to solve the bigger problem at hand, it will significantly minimize

the other issues involved as well.

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Works Cited

Ann Conyers, Zella, et al. “Sea Level Rise in Miami Beach: Vulnerability and Real Estate

Exposure.” Professional Geographer, vol. 71, no. 2, May 2019, pp. 278–291.

EBSCOhost, doi:10.1080/00330124.2018.1531037.

Ariza, Mario A. “As Miami Keeps Building, Rising Seas Deepen Its Social Divide.” Yale

Environment 360, 29 Sep. 2020, https://e360.yale.edu/features/as-miami-keeps-building-

rising-seas-deepen-its-social-divide.

"Climate Change: Should the U.S. Government Take Aggressive Steps to Combat Climate

Change?" Issues & Controversies, Infobase, 28 May 2021,

icof.infobaselearning.com/recordurl.aspx?ID=2015. Accessed 17 July 2021.

Gillis, Justin. "Global Warming's Mark: Coastal Inundation." New York Times, 4 Sept. 2016, p.

A1(L). Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A462388369/ITOF?

u=lincclin_mdcc&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=633b0a78. Accessed 17 July 2021.

Herring, David. “What Can We Do to Slow or Stop Global Warming?.” Climate, 29 October.

2020, https://www.climate.gov/news-features/climate-qa/what-can-we-do-slow-or-stop-

global-warming.

Kowka, Bethany. “What Are Climate Laws and Why Do We Need Them?.” Conservation Law

Foundation, 3 Dec. 2020, https://www.clf.org/blog/what-are-climate-laws-and-why-do-

we-need-them/.

Lindsey, Rebecca. “Climate Change: Global Sea Level.” Climate, 25 Jan. 2021,

https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-global-

sea-level
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Loria, Kevin. “Miami is Racing Against Time to Keep Up With Sea-Level Rise.” Business

Insider, 12 April. 2018, https://www.businessinsider.com/miami-floods-sea-level-rise-

solutions-2018-4.

Treuer, Galen A. “The Psychology of Miami’s Struggle to Adapt to Sea-Level Rise.” Bulletin of

the Atomic Scientists, vol. 74, no. 3, May 2018, pp. 155–159. EBSCOhost,

doi:10.1080/00963402.2018.1461970.