After the devastation of superstorm Sandy New York City needs a rescue plan ? and it should include abandonment of areas that cannot be protected
IF WE were today choosing where to site a conurbation of 20 million people, the New York metropolitan area would quickly be struck off the list. With an extensive waterfront sitting only a few metres above sea level ? and with that predicted to rise by a metre by 2100 ? it would rightly be deemed too risky.
However, New York is where it is, and represents such a colossal investment in infrastructure and human capital that its fate cannot be left to chance. Hopefully, the misery caused by superstorm Sandy ? and the post-storm realisation that the Big Apple is decaying (see "Sandy aftermath: New York City is rotting at the core
") ? will concentrate minds on the need to turn embryonic engineering designs into a proper plan to protect the city from surging storm waters (see "Protecting New York City from the next big storm").
The region's political leaders must be kept on their toes, as it will be easy to lapse back into complacency after the clean-up is over. Waiting for a tragedy on the scale of the 1953 North Sea storm, which killed some 1800 people in the Netherlands and transformed that nation's approach to flood defence, would be unforgiveable.
As the region moves to climate-proof its key assets, by building flood barriers, for example, tough decisions need to be made. Like it or not, the plans will have to incorporate managed retreat from areas that can't feasibly be made safe ? particularly the expanses of coastline on the Jersey Shore and Long Island that took a hammering from Sandy.
Part of that managed retreat should include plans to convert abandoned developments into natural habitats that could help slow advancing storm surges.
It will also be crucial to manage the expectations of those living behind the new flood protection. Even with barriers in place, there will still be times when it will be necessary to hunker down or evacuate. Barriers won't stop the severe flooding that would occur if a major storm comes ashore, stalls and dumps heavy rain over the area for several days.
New York City has so far lagged behind cities like Rotterdam and St Petersburg in flood protection. It should now become a matter of pride for New Yorkers to lead the world in planning for climate change. Their great city deserves nothing less.
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