Virginia Beach blazed a trail on the way to better planning for sea level rise.  In a series of conversations held last week, over 100 residents ...

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Wetlands Watch, working with the Southern Environmental Law Center, has intervened in Federal Court to support the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) "Endangerment Finding" -- the conclusion that greenhouse gases cause climate change and thus endanger human health and welfare.  We were compelled to do so because of our work in tidewater Virginia over the last four years, helping communities cope with accelerated rates of sea level rise.

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According the the Army Corps of Engineers, the wall's design doesn't take into account future sea-level rise caused by climate change.

 Read the entire online article, Waterworld, published online 9/2/10 in The New Republic

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This presentation, "FLOODING: Norfolk and the Region," was given on August 25, 2010 by Kristen M. Lentz, P.E., the Acting Director of Public Works. Section1 gives a scientific overview of flooding, future projections, and potential consequences. Section 2 identifies flood mitigation tools.  Section 3 describes Norfolk's flood mitigation program. The presentation reviews recommendations for city council action and outlines federal funding availability and strategies.


Consultants Work on Flood Plan as Tides Rise and Norfolk Sinks (Virginian-Pilot, August 26, 2010) gives an eye opening look at the consequences of Norfolk's sea level rise.

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Until recently, septic systems were kept away from most wetlands and nearby soggy soils because the soils wouldn’t “perc” – or percolate. If the “perc” rate was wrong, the soil didn’t allow the sewage effluent to move through soil at the right speed: too fast and the effluent would reach ground and surface water before it finished decomposing; too slow and the effluent would pond up on the surface of the soil. If the soil was saturated with water, during the wet winter and spring season or all year long, it wasn’t considered safe to apply sewage into because of the threat of groundwater contamination. We also said that land wouldn’t “perc.”

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