Employed

Per Capita Income

Above Poverty

Economic

Preschool Enrollment

Bachelor's Education

High School Enrollment

Education

Voting

Census Response

Social

Automobile Access

Active Commuting

Transportation

Insured Adults

Healthcare Access

Retail Density

Park Access

Tree Canopy

Neighborhood

Severely Cost Burdened Low-Income Renters

Severely Cost Burdened Low-Income Homeowners

Housing Habitability

Uncrowded Housing

Homeownership

Housing

Ozone

Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5)

Diesel Particulate Matter

Safe Drinking Water

Clean Environment

Extreme Heat

Impervious Surfaces

Outdoor Workers

Public Transit Access

Sea Level Rise

Two Parent Households

Alcohol Availability

Supermarket Access

Decision Support

We should all be able to live in homes and neighborhoods that are safe from sea level rise and flooding. Sea level rise can cause drowning, collisions, injuries, electrocutions, hypothermia, stress and other mental health conditions, food insecurity, unsafe drinking water, toxic releases, respiratory ailments, and displacement. Sea levels in California have already risen by 7 inches during the 20th century.

 Scientists expect this trend to speed up, with seas expected to rise 40-55 inches by 2100, assuming medium to high greenhouse gas emission levels.

 The impacts of rising seas are exacerbated during naturally occurring storms, flooding and tides, which can combine to flood coastal areas and nearby bodies of water. Flooded or overwhelmed wastewater treatment systems and toxic facilities can contaminate drinking water, causing gastrointestinal illness and other diseases. Flooded buildings may become moldy, increasing inhabitants’ risk for respiratory ailments. Over the long term, sea level rise can threaten protective wetlands and displace residents, potentially severing community ties and employment opportunities, and causing trauma and mental health conditions. The impacts of sea level rise are concentrated among low-income communities and communities of color, people with access and functional needs, elderly people, and people who are linguistically isolated.

This indicator measures the number of people expected to be living in flood zones in 2100, due to sea level rise and a 100-year flood event. For more information, see: The California Department of Public Health’s 

California Building Resilience Against Climate Effects (CalBRACE) Sea Level Rise Narrative

“Resilience” is defined as “the capacity of a community, business, or natural environment to prevent, withstand, respond to, and recover from a disruption.” National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Climate Resilience Toolkit, available at https://toolkit.climate.gov/content/glossary

Boweler, D. et al., “How Effective Is ‘Greening’ Of Urban Areas In Reducing Human Exposure To Ground Level Ozone Concentrations, Uv Exposure And The ‘Urban Heat Island Effect’?,” Collaboration for Environmental Evidence Review 08, no. 004 (2010), www.environmentalevidence.org/SR41.html.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “Reducing Heat Islands: Compendium of Strategies- Cool Roofs,” 2008.

K Ebi and J Semenza, “Community-Based Adaptation to the Health Impacts of Climate Change,” American Journal of Preventive Medicine 35, no. 5 (2008): 501–7.

California Department of Public Health. Building Resilience Against Climate Effects: Climate and Health Profiles. 2017. Available at: https://archive.cdph.ca.gov/programs/Pages/CalBRACE.aspx

California Department of Water Resources. The National Flood Insurance Program in California--Quick Guide Coastal Appendix: Planning For Sea-Level Rise. 2016. Available at: http://www.water.ca.gov/floodmgmt/lrafmo/fmb/docs/QGCoastalAppendix_FINALDRAFT_2016dec02.pdf

Cayan et. al. Climate Change Scenarios and Sea Level Rise Estimates for the California 2008 Climate Change Scenarios Assessment. 2009. Available at: http://www.energy.ca.gov/2009publications/CEC-500-2009-014/CEC-500-2009-014-D.PDF

University of California Santa Cruz. Adapting to Sea Level Rise: A Guide for California’s Coastal Communities. 2012. Available at: https://seymourcenter.ucsc.edu/OOB/Adapting%20to%20Sea%20Level%20Rise.pdf

http://www.datacenterresearch.org/data-resources/katrina/facts-for-impact/

Environment and Natural Resources Law & Policy Program. (2015). California Coastal Armoring Report: Managing Coastal Armoring and Climate Change Adaptation in the 21st Century. Stanford Law School. https://www.slc.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/CACoastalArmoringRpt.pdf

Addressing the health impacts of Sea Level Rise requires a range of measures designed to prepare communities and households for changing coastlines and flooding and to increase resilience.

) requires California jurisdictions to conduct vulnerability assessments and define resiliency goals, policies, and objectives in either the safety element of their general plan, or by incorporating it in local hazard mitigation planning. Local jurisdictions can reduce the health impacts of extreme heat by using these planning processes to understand likely climate changes and impacts, assess vulnerability, and craft interventions. The State of California has developed the 

, a step-by-step guide for local governments, and the U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 

Building Resilience Against Climate Effects (BRACE) Framework

 offers guidance for health agencies and others seeking to address the health effects of climate change.

Assessing vulnerability to climate impacts is a particularly important step in resilience planning. While climate change impacts all Californians, some individuals and families are more impacted, and have fewer resources to draw upon to help them adapt. 

The health impacts of climate change often deepen existing social inequities—magnifying or layering new risks on top of economic, social, environmental, biological, and health disparities

 Using the BRACE framework, the California Department of Public Health has produced 

Climate Change and Health Profile Reports

, summarizing health risks and vulnerability by county. They have also published 

Climate Change and Health Vulnerability Indicators

 to help local jurisdictions understand climate change and health vulnerability. The 

 can also be used to assess underlying social vulnerabilities at the census tract level.

Actions designed to improve climate resilience also provide the opportunity to maximize additional health or quality of life benefits that can be achieved in addition to increased resilience. Sea level rise adaptation measures create several opportunities for additional benefits. For instance, 

 can help reduce heat-island effects, create opportunities for healthy transportation and recreation and offer targeted job opportunities for communities with high rates of unemployment; 

 offers opportunities for smart growth planning and enhanced walking, biking and transit connections; infrastructure upgrades (like resilient drinking water systems) can help ensure access to safe drinking water in the face of other climate events and emergencies; and planning for sea level rise can help build community capacity to engage in other planning efforts. Local governments should prioritize interventions that minimize risk in low-income communities or communities of color, while maximizing benefits that support healthier community conditions.

Resilience efforts should prioritize the participation of community members in each step of the process. This will help ensure that community standards, expectations and requirements are effectively addressed, while building buy-in and support for resilience measures, and improving community capacity to envision and address climate impacts. For more information, see: The California Department of Public Health’s 

, and the Urban Sustainability Directors Network’s 

Equitable, Community Driven Climate Preparedness Planning

Local governments have many tools they can use to increase resilience to sea level rise. In the short term, they should make sure they are 

, by reviewing and improving emergency response plans and systems to warn and protect residents during flooding events. When floods occur, effective and targeted 

 systems should be in place. Jurisdictions can also help their residents become 

 who are able to bounce back following flooding.

In the longer term, governments can pursue 

 to move development out of the flood plain and 

 to use land more efficiently. They can also invest in 

 to defend households, development, infrastructure and recreation areas from rising seas and storms, and in 

 to increase water absorption and reduce flooding and storm water surges. They can also help foster 

 which has been shown to reduce social vulnerability and the health impacts of climate events.

Although climate resilience actions tend to save money in the long term, some come with a high immediate cost. Several funding sources and technical assistance programs can support local government efforts to improve resilience. For more information, see: The U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit’s 

, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency‘s 

Utilize green roofs to increase water absorption and reduce flooding and storm water surges.

Pollution

Climate

Sufficient Evidence

Green Roofs

Support resident power, social connections, and climate awareness, which have been shown to reduce social vulnerability and the health impacts of climate events.

Emerging

Capacity Building and Technical Assistance Programs

Community Power and Connection

Equity

Environmental Justice Element (SB 1000)

Community Organizing

Community-Based Resilience Planning Processes

Defend households, development, infrastructure and recreation areas from rising seas and storms.

Shelter in City (Emerging Practice)

Rapid Repairs Programs (Emerging Practice)

Flood Insurance Support Programs (Emerging Practice)

Promising

Mold Abatement Programs

Local governments should get ready by reviewing and improving emergency response plans and systems to warn and protect residents during flooding events.

Recovery Plans 

Proactive Outreach and Education (Sea Level Rise)

“Hard” Armoring

Healthy Neighborhoods

“Soft” Defense Measures

Resilient Infrastructure Systems

Move development out of the flood plain to minimize damage and the health impacts of rising seas.

Relocation of Existing Development

Land Use Controls on Planned Development

Risk Information at Property Purchase 

Plan for concentrated, affordable, and cool development near transit to use land outside of flood plains more efficiently.

Transit-Oriented Affordable Housing

Strong Evidence

Parking Requirements

When floods occur, effective and targeted emergency response systems can help ensure that health impacts are minimized.

Policy Guide

Sea Level Rise

References