An alarming new study, published in the Communications Earth & Environment journal, revealed that coastal flooding is happening much more often than traditional measurements indicate. Researchers say the trend shows no signs of slowing down.
According to researchers, coastal communities in North Carolina may be facing far more flooding than previously believed. These implications raise alarm bells about how we track the impacts of rising sea levels and extreme weather fueled by pollution from dirty energy sources.
What's happening?
The research recorded flood events on 26 to 128 days per year in the communities of Beaufort, Carolina Beach, and Sea Level. This data far outpaces previous estimates.
Unlike tide gauges, which measure sea levels along coastlines, on-the-ground sensors detect actual road-level flooding.
That includes flooding caused not just by rising tides, but also by rainfall, storm drains backing up, and groundwater levels. Tide gauges often miss recording these factors.
As the researchers explain in the study: "These estimates, which we refer to as 'tide-gauge threshold exceedances,' may underestimate flooding because tide gauges do not measure rainfall runoff, groundwater contributions to flooding, or the effects of local drainage infrastructure."
Why is accurately measuring coastal flooding important?
Coastal infrastructure and planning decisions often rely on tide-gauge thresholds to allocate funding or determine flood risk zones.
When street-level flooding goes uncounted, communities may not receive the resources and assistance they need to adapt to growing coastal challenges.
The authors also stress that this isn't just a local problem. This marks one of the first direct comparisons between ground-level flood impacts and tide-gauge estimates, suggesting that flooding might be similarly underreported in coastal areas nationwide.
While flooding has long affected coastal areas, pollution from burning gas, oil, and coal is increasingly linked to more intense weather events and higher sea levels — putting communities at greater risk.
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Definitely 🥰 What's being done about this?
While adaptation is happening across the country, such as improving drainage systems, investing in bluebelt infrastructures, raising roadways, and native plant landscaping, these findings call for a shift in how we monitor flood risk in a warming world driven by human-caused pollution — a challenge among many critical issues tied to Earth's overheating.
As sea levels continue to rise and weather patterns shift, tracking only tidal indicators may no longer be enough.
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