By Pam McVety, Physicians for Social Responsibility Florida
Executive orders coming out of Washington that undo federal actions to address the climate crisis seem to favor Greenland over Florida.
Because of these orders, the United States’ cuts to carbon emissions will be way too small and fossil fuel production will expand, both leading to additional warming. As a result, mining and security plans for Greenland will become viable sooner, but there will be serious consequences felt in Florida.
The reality is that added warming will intensify the already-accelerating ice melt on Greenland and rising seas will swamp Florida sooner. This also means that all of us living today will likely have to deal with additional costs and escalating damages from a more rapidly rising sea level. I don’t think most Floridians want our leaders to increase either our risks or costs.
The melting of Greenland ice is more serious than you think. It was reported in the Guardian in 2021 that the scale of disappearing ice on Greenland is so large that the losses in a single day alone create enough meltwater to cover Florida with two inches of water. This is a massive amount of freshwater flowing into the ocean. Imagine this increasing.
Greenland’s ice is melting faster than any time in the last 12,000 years. If all the ice on Greenland melted, sea levels would rise by more than 20 feet. The average elevation in South Florida is about 6 feet above sea level.
Further, as the oceans warm, the water expands, adding to sea level rise. If the melting freshwater slows up the Gulf Stream, this will add to the sea level rise along our East Coast.
It is not an exaggeration to say that these changes are not in Florida’s interest. They will seriously harm our families and communities.
Even the “Winter White House,” Mar-a-Lago, which is a mere 3 feet above sea level, will be flooded sooner and be more vulnerable to storm surges with more sea level rise.
Further, this means that some Floridians may have to move sooner from their homes as rising seas flood their property and communities more often. Technically, this would make them climate migrants like those coming from the Dry Corridor in Central America. This area, because of climate change, is experiencing erratic rainfall and a prolonged drought lasting years – impacting livelihoods and food security, while driving people north to the U.S.
Of course, the swamping of Florida doesn’t happen overnight, but gradually, and the losses and costs slowly get larger and occur more often, along with unanticipated costly surprises.
Drinking water wellfields get contaminated with saltwater. High tide creeps over and under seawalls, killing lawns and vegetation. Saltwater backs up in storm drains, flooding streets and parking lots
Roads and infrastructure are elevated at public expense. Pumps are installed and operated. Tourists shy away from places where they must walk through water to get to their hotels. Alligators and crocodiles visit our neighborhoods. Mangroves expand north, wiping out the iconic Everglades sawgrass.
Storms cause more flooding and more damage. Sewage systems and other infrastructure damaged by saltwater require costly repairs. Beaches erode, requiring expensive renourishment projects that impact offshore marine habitats. Insurance rates soar.
None of this should surprise you because we are already experiencing these effects of sea level rise and the associated costs. Imagine these impacts increasing and becoming more widespread. What Floridians are facing is real and our situation is made worse by cutting these beneficial climate change programs.
In a warmer world, Greenland will actually be green, and it would be easier to mine rare earth minerals and to defend the U.S. from there with all that pesky ice gone. But that is not the real reason for these orders: It is the largesse of the fossil fuel industry to political candidates and this is the return on their investments.
Unfortunately, it hurts Florida and every living thing on this planet.
Pam McVety is a retired biologist, climate justice advocate and board member of Physicians for Social Responsibility Florida. Banner photo: A man looks at ice in Greenland (iStock image).
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