Response of upper Gulf Coast estuaries to Holocene climate change and sea-level rise

"One of the main impacts of global warming is accelerated sea-level rise: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predictions suggest that the rate of rise could reach as high as 5'10 mm/yr by the end of this century. While it is generally recognized that accelerated sea-level rise will severely impact low-gradient coastlines, scientists are still ill prepared to predict coastal response. A study of seven Gulf Coast estuaries (Mobile Bay and Mississippi Sound, Weeks Bay, Calcasieu Lake, Sabine Lake, Galveston Bay, Matagorda Bay, and Corpus Christi Bay) was aimed at examining their response to past changes in the rate of sea-level rise and climate. The rates of change are of the same magnitude as those predicted for this century. The estuarine response to change has been one of abrupt landward retreat and major reorganization of estuarine environments at decadal time scales. This book should be of interest to scientists and policy makers concerned with future impacts of global warming."