In the face of the existential threat posed by rising sea levels, the United States is committed to combating or at least adapting to this phenomenon.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated on Wednesday that these changes could « lead to the displacement of tens of millions of people by 2050. »
« Climate change is melting glaciers. It is causing sea levels to rise. It is fueling extreme weather events such as storms, which have become even more devastating when combined with rising waters. In several countries, these events are disrupting lives and livelihoods. Based on current trends, sea level rise could displace tens of millions of people by 2050. We can still prevent this, but time is running out, » he explained during a meeting at the UN General Assembly aimed at addressing concerns regarding the impact of climate change on oceans and seas.
Blinken also noted that while striving to combat this phenomenon, the Biden administration would oppose any efforts to limit or restrict the rights of affected countries.
« Our position is that rising sea levels should not diminish a country’s maritime zones, including fishing areas and resources under its jurisdiction, » he stated. « No country should lose its statehood or its membership in the United Nations or other international organizations due to rising sea levels, » the Secretary of State added.
In some areas, the glacier is more than 2,000 meters thick. Approximately 120 km wide, the Thwaites Glacier is the widest on the planet. If it were to melt completely, sea levels could rise by three meters.
The volume of ice flowing into the ocean from the Thwaites Glacier and neighboring glaciers has more than doubled between the 1990s and the 2010s. This region now accounts for 8% of current sea level rise, or 4.6 millimeters per year.
Scientists participating in the International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration (ITGC) are striving to understand the mechanisms behind the glacier’s retreat.
They aim to predict the rate and extent of future sea level rise, which could have devastating effects on hundreds of millions of people living along coastlines, from low-lying Pacific islands to cities like New York and London.
