Mediterranean UNESCO World Heritage at risk from coastal flooding and erosion due to sea-level rise
Description
UNESCO World Heritage sites (WHS) located in coastal areas are increasingly at risk from coastal hazards due to sea-level rise. The study assesses Mediterranean cultural WHS at risk from coastal flooding and erosion under four sea-level rise scenarios until 2100. Based on the analysis of spatially explicit WHS data, an index-based approach was evaluated that allows for ranking WHS at risk from both coastal hazards. Out of 49 cultural WHS located in low-lying coastal areas of the Mediterranean, 37 are at risk from a 100-year flood and 42 from coastal erosion, already today. Until 2100, flood risk may increase by 50% and erosion risk by 13% across the region, with considerably higher increases at individual WHS.
The results provide a first-order assessment of where adaptation is most urgently needed and can support policymakers in steering local-scale research to devise suitable adaptation strategies for each WHS.
Reference information
Source:
Reimann, L., Vafeidis, A.T., 1, Brown, S., Hinkel, J., Tol, R.S.J., 2018. Mediterranean UNESCO World Heritage at risk from coastal flooding and erosion due to sea-level rise. Nature Communications (2018) 9:4161 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-06645-9Published in Climate-ADAPT Feb 26 2019 - Last Modified in Climate-ADAPT Dec 12 2023