Miami groups mark rising sea level impact

A group of Miami environmentalists is making sure the threat of rising sea levels is not ignored.

Numerous local environmental organizations are working with a New York artist to mark a 26-mile light blue chalk line on streets running through Miami and Miami Beach, Miami Herald reported. The project is called HighWaterLine and has been duplicated in London and Philadelphia. Activists began working on the Miami version Wednesday.

The group is marking where water would reach after a three-foot and six-foot sea level rise.

A two-foot sea level rise is projected by the Army Corps of Engineers within the next 47 years. The environmentalists involved in HighWaterLine cite a University of Miami geology professor’s findings that a six-foot rise by 2100 is possible.

HighWaterLine concludes on Sunday in Brickell.

South Florida’s real estate market would suffer greatly if recent projections are accurate. The Southeast Florida Regional Climate Change Compact predicts a $4 billion decline in the region’s property values from a mere one-foot rise. A three-foot increase could result in a $31 billion plunge in values. [Miami Herald] — Eric Kalis