It’s no secret that the Yorkshire Coast has been dramatically impacted by coastal erosion over the past century. We’re talking the complete loss of villages which have fallen victim to the sea, and a crumbling coastline which has required emergency sea defences to prevent the loss of further communities, such as Mappleton.
But if there’s one place that’s an example of just how dramatic coastal erosion can be, it’s Spurn Point – which has been close to being completely demolished by the sea in very recently years.
And now, just to make things all the more frightening, Climate Central has developed a map which showcases the dramatic effects of rising sea levels.
The map predicts places around the world that will sink completely underwater in a matter of just thirty years if we don’t act against climate change now, with a whopping proportion of Yorkshire affected.
Areas such as Hull, Withernsea and Skipsea would be the first hit, with the more land-locked areas such as Driffield and Beverley expected to become seaside towns as a result.
If that wasn’t scary enough, areas such as Goole, Selby and large portions of Doncaster would completely sink underwater – with the effects stretching as far as the outskirts of York and even further inland towards Castleford and Pontefract.
The worst part of all is that all of this could happen as soon as 2050 – meaning that in our lifetimes, we could lose a whole lot of Yorkshire. And as proud as we are of our region, we don’t need to explain how devastating that would be (on many, many levels).
Based on expert opinions from the Climate & Atmospheric Science journal, it’s expected that we could see a sea level rise of 1.3 metres by the year 2100, which would not only wipe out a large number of Yorkshire towns and villages, but much of the East of England, too – including large parts of Lincolnshire, East Anglia and even the city of London.
Read more: England Is Set To Be Home To The World’s Longest Coastal Path This Year
