Sea-Level Rise and Coastal Wetlands : Impacts and Costs

Scientific evidence indicates that global warming could well lead to a sea-level rise of 1 meter or more in the 21st century. This paper seeks to quantify how a 1-meter sea-level rise that would affect coastal wetlands in 76 developing countries and territories, taking into account how much of wetlands would be submerged and how likely the wetlands would move inland as the coastline recedes. It is estimated that approximately 64 percent of the freshwater marsh, 66 percent of Global Lakes and Wetlands Database coastal wetlands, and 61 percent of brackish/saline wetlands are at risk. A large percentage of this loss would be shouldered by two regions: East Asia and the Pacific, and the Middle East and North Africa. At the country level, the results are extremely skewed with a small number of countries being severely affected. In East Asia, China and Vietnam would bear the brunt of these losses. In the Middle East and North Africa, Libya and Egypt would see the most losses. A rough estimate of the economic value of the goods and services produced by wetlands at risk is approximately $630 million per year in 2000 U.S. dollars.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Blankespoor, Brian, Dasgupta, Susmita, Laplante, Benoit
Format:	Policy Research Working Paper biblioteca
Language:	en_US
Published:	World Bank, Washington, DC 2012-11
Subjects:	agriculture, biodiversity, birds, carbon, carbon dioxide, carbon sequestration, classification, climate, climate change, Climate Change Research, climate regulation, coast, coastal areas, coastal change, coastal countries, coastal ecosystems, coastal processes, coastal protection, Coastal Research, coastal wetland, Coastal Wetlands, coastal zone, coastal zones, Conservation, construction, contingent valuation, contingent valuation studies, cultural heritage, data sets, data sources, destruction of wetlands, dikes, drainage, dredging, Ecological Economics, Ecological Studies, Ecology, Economic Impact, economic valuation, economic value, economic values, economic welfare, Ecosystem, ecosystem services, ecosystems, emissions, Environmental, environmental amenities, Environmental Change, Environmental Economist, Environmental Research, Environmental Systems, erosion, Estuarine, extinction, flood protection, flooding, forest, forested areas, forested wetlands, forestry, forests, fresh water, freshwater, freshwater marsh, freshwater marshes, Freshwater Wetlands, geographic areas, Geographic Information, Geographic Information System, Geological survey, GIS, global climate change, Global Environmental Change, global warming, global wetlands, groundwater, human activities, Human activity, human impacts, Hydrology, impacts of climate change, irrigation, island nations, Lakes, land cover, land cover data, land reclamation, Land subsidence, land use, Landscape, loss of wetlands, low tide, Mangrove Forests, mangroves, marshes, Mitigation, mosquito, mosquito control, Natural Resource, Natural Resource Management, Nature, net present value, open access, Partnership, peat, plant communities, Policy Makers, precipitation, preservation, recycling, Regional Environmental Change, regional wetlands, remote sensing, reservoirs, salinity, Sea, sea level rise, Seas, sediment, sediment retention, shorelines, small islands, storm protection, storms, stream, swamp, swamps, Swift, temperate wetlands, tidal range, Tidal Wetland, Topography, total economic value, total wetlands, trapping, trees, Tropical Wetlands, uncertainty, upland areas, uplands, urban areas, valuation, value of wetland, vegetation, waste disposal, Water Resources, Waters, watershed, waves, wetland, wetland area, wetland areas, wetland categories, wetland delineation, wetland loss, wetland losses, wetland plants, wetland restoration, wetland soil, wetland types, wetland value, Wetlands Ecology, wetlands loss, wetlands losses, Wildlife,
Online Access:	http://hdl.handle.net/10986/16383
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