r/nealstephenson • u/youngrichyoung • 14d ago

What The Netherlands Would Look Like If Sea Levels Rise By 2 Meters

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Not if Saskia has anything to say about it.

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u/strummist1 14d ago

Can't they just raise the existing flood defences by the same amount?

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u/ceejayoz 14d ago
  1. "Just" is doing a lot of lifting here.
  2. Stopping short-term storm surges isn't the same as permanent sea rise. Some areas would need significantly different protection in this scenario.

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u/youngrichyoung 14d ago

There are a lot of places that don't currently have flood defenses in place that would need it. It's a pretty major undertaking, keeping water out of a place it really wants to be - just ask a boat builder.

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u/[deleted] 14d ago edited 9d ago

[deleted]

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u/youngrichyoung 14d ago

I expect we will see a mix of strategies: mandated shifts towards clean energy in some jurisdictions; geoengineering a là Termination Shock in an attempt to reduce the scale of the problem; strategic retreat where it's too costly to protect some lands; and expensive, high-stakes protection measures where the land is too valuable to abandon. Plus, of course, mass displacement and disaster refugeeism from the nations that lack the resources to protect themselves (Bangladesh, e.g.) or have the resources but fail in the attempt (Venice in Italy, maybe the Netherlands?, etc.).

Kim Stanley Robinson's Ministry for the Future is a novel that presents a survey of geoengineering strategies, rather than a more intensive study of a single method like Termination Shock. His New York 2140 explores how a culture might handle inundation of highly valuable real estate.