Looming Deadlines for Coastal Resilience

The Union of Concerned Scientists analysis finds that climate-driven sea level rise will expose over 1,600 critical infrastructure assets in the US to disruptive flooding at least twice per year by 2050. Public and affordable housing are the most vulnerable assets, with a disproportionate burden falling on disadvantaged communities. By 2100, the scale of risk depends heavily on global emissions, with the high scenario potentially affecting 15,081 assets. The report recommends science-informed planning, scaled-up funding, and a focus on reducing historical inequities to build coastal resilience.

• By 2050, under a medium sea level rise scenario, more than 1,600 critical infrastructure assets across the US will face disruptive flooding—defined as flooding occurring at least twice per year—representing a near doubling of the 904 assets at risk in 2020.
• Public and affordable housing is the most widespread and acutely exposed category of critical infrastructure. By 2050, it is among the most heavily affected types, with 507 assets at risk of flooding twice or more annually.
• Coastal flood risks disproportionately impact disadvantaged communities. By 2050, 54 percent of critical infrastructure at risk is located in these communities, which on average contain twice as many at-risk assets per capita as nondisadvantaged communities.
• The scale of infrastructure risk by 2100 is highly dependent on global heat-trapping emissions. Under a high scenario, 15,081 assets would flood twice annually, compared to 6,533 under a medium scenario and 3,494 under a low scenario.
• Certain US states face significantly higher numbers of at-risk assets by 2050 under the medium scenario, specifically Louisiana (334), New Jersey (304), Florida (170), Maryland (140), and California (137).
• The report identifies a critical lack of regulatory mandates for infrastructure resilience; for example, wastewater treatment plants are not currently required by law to protect themselves from flooding, despite being highly exposed due to their gravity-fed designs.
• The analysis highlights the risk of cascading failures and environmental contamination, noting that in places like South Wilmington, Delaware, the proximity of brownfields and public housing could lead to industrial contaminants spreading through residential areas during flood events.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2024). Looming Deadlines for Coastal Resilience. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2024-06/Looming_Deadlines_for_Coastal_Resilience.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. Looming Deadlines for Coastal Resilience. 2024. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2024-06/Looming_Deadlines_for_Coastal_Resilience.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=Looming Deadlines for Coastal Resilience |date=June 2024 |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2024-06/Looming_Deadlines_for_Coastal_Resilience.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2024looming, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{Looming Deadlines for Coastal Resilience}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2024}, month = jun, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2024-06/Looming_Deadlines_for_Coastal_Resilience.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }