Is sea level rising within Maryland waters?
Yes. Historic tide-gauge records document that sea level is rising in Mid-Atlantic waters and the Chesapeake Bay at an average rate of 3 to 4 millimeters (mm) per year. There has been approximately one foot of sea level rise in the Chesapeake Bay over the past 100 years. This rate is nearly twice that of the global historic average, as reported in the IPCC report. Maryland is experiencing more of a rise in sea level than other parts of the world, due to naturally occurring regional land subsidence. Land is currently subsiding in the Chesapeake Bay region at a rate of approximately 1.3 mm/year. How much will sea level rise? The IPCC report projects that global sea levels will rise between 7 and 23 inches by the year 2099. For Maryland waters, regional land subsidence must be factored into the equation in order to estimate relative sea level rise. This means that the State could experience an additional 5 or more inches of sea level rise, over and above what is being experienced globally
