Home Climate Change Get Involved
Links Meet the team Quiztastic
Perhaps one of the greatest problems regarding Climate Change is how difficult it is to actually see evidence of what the local impact is or could be. The old 'Well I can't see it happening here, so it can't be happening at all' arguement.
It's one thing to see flooding in Bangladesh, Hurricanes in the U.S and melting pack Ice in Antarctica but completely different when it come to the effect on our local area & environment. With this in mind the team looked at a possible 'doomesday scenario' to see what happens if we do nothing about climate change. Living so close to the coast, the biggest effect that we could see is a change in sea level. Be prepared to buy some wellies! Find out more.

Firstly the team looked at the Alex Tingle website. This uses a combination of Google Earth & Nasa resources to generate new 'Flood' maps based on predicted rises in seal level. It certainly raised a few eyebrows! Check it out Here.
From this we created some new graphics and Flash animations to demonstrate the findings visually. Clip 1. Clip 2.

Flood Maps



As you can see from the clips it could be quite a big deal. One of the major issues regarding this 'doomesday scenario' is the massive impact this would not only have on our lives, but the devastation it would reep on the Braunton Biosphere, Bideford Bay marine life & the Taw / Torridge estuaries.

Coastal erosion estimates are based on a long-standing theory that as the sea level rises, the seabed rises too.
This occurs by rock, sand and earth eroding from the coast and filling out the seabed, until the original coast is recreated at a higher level. Current estimates are that up to 20 metres of the coast will erode, even if the sea level rises by just half a metre, due to climate change by the year 2100.
Usually the seabed below the tideline is eroded by the movement of tide and waves. and the eroded sediments, soils, and sands are usually redeposited naturally so that shores & tidelands change in shape but do not completely disappear. In the 'doomsday scenario' the erosion rate is increased rapidly, smothering the existing seabed.

 
 
Coastal Flooding & Barren Sea Bed There is also the added factor of the destruction of present stable lands that lie above the tideline in our coastal areas.

This rapid change in the makeup of the seabeds and surrounding coastlines could severely impact on these delicate eco-systems & our present way of life.
Not only would we loose a significant UNESCO recognised area of International importance, (Braunton Burrows) but the impact on local communities and livelyhoods could be enormous. The effects of any significant rise in sea level would be felt in every walk of life.


These rising global temperatures will not only raise sea leves but will also effect rainfall and other local climate conditions. Changing regional climate could alter woodlands, crop yields, and water supplies. It could also affect human health. Higher average temperatures mean longer and more intense heat waves, with a corresponding potential for more cases of severe heat stress. The redistribution of rainfall patterns would markedly increase the number of people living in regions under 'extreme water stress' (Drought conditions).

Heat Stress

Flip side of the coin?
Salt marshes, like the Skern on Northam Burrows, make up a very small fraction of the Earth's surface. These wetlands flood with salt water at high tide but are dry at low tide. Rising sea levels over the last couple of hundred years have created bigger tides that flood further inland, expanding salt marshes. As their area increases, so does their environmental importance. They can grow in depth by up to three millimetres a year because the tides constantly deposit sediments in the marsh. Plants and microscopic organisms living in salt marshes can get buried under newly deposited sediments. The carbon contained within these organisms gets trapped in the salt marsh and is prevented from escaping into the atmosphere, where it might act as a greenhouse gas and contribute to global warming. However, Climate Change is now happening at such an accelerated rate that this ''Upside" may be short lived.

Check out our 'Artist's Impressions of what things might look like in our local area. Just place your mouse over the pix.

View from Tower Street, Northam Northam & Burrows, Now & Then

The view from Tower Street, Northam, looking towards the Burrows & Sandymere.

The view across the River Torridge looking towards Barnstaple Street.
The view from... Bideford High Street

Looking up the High Street from Bideford Quay.

O.K, we have seen how Climate Change could effect us but what can we do about halting it's progress?
Find out how you can make a BIG difference >> MORE
 
Copyright Information