A Coast to Coast Conference in Darwin has been told that coastal homes in Australia that are at risk of being adversely affected by rising sea levels should carry some sort of warning when they go up for sale. Canadian planning consultant Clive Attwater suggested that people need to be made aware of the possible risks:
“Warning (of) severe erosion risk by 2040 needs to be on the ad, like a cigarette packet perhaps.
There will be losses, there will be damaging events and we need to accept that fact.”
– “There goes the seachange” – Brisbane Times
I think this makes sense. People need to be made aware of any potential risks to their home, and whether we see a worst case scenario or not, at least buyers would know what could lie ahead.
Down in Coffs Harbour people are a little worried. One Coffs Coast resident said:
“You see it on the news all the time. I’d hate to think I’ve invested hundreds of thousands of dollars only to see it washed into the sea.”
– “Lifes a beach for now” – Coffs Coast News
How real is this threat? Well, the Coast to Coast Conference was told that over the next 100 years a sea level rise of at least 0.5 metres was a certainty, though it’s likely sea levels will rise 1 metre, and perhaps even as much as 4 metres.
For more information, have a look at my other posts on this topic:
Beach and canal house prices under threat
Coastal homes still popular despite threat of rising sea levels