#coastal-subsidence

#coastal-subsidence

Thousands of Californians received earthquake warnings on Thursday after a 4.7-magnitude tremor shook Northern California. The US Geological Survey (USGS) issued a ShakeAlert after the quake struck at 4:49am PT (7:49am ET), about 70 miles offshore of Petrolia. ShakeAlert messages are triggered when seismic sensors detect a quake of magnitude 4.5 or higher expected to cause significant shaking. The epicenter was located 190 miles west of Chico, a city of about 121,000 residents, and 65 miles west-southwest of Fortuna, which has roughly 12,000 residents.

recent scientific studies have recorded an average annual rise of seven millimeters over the past two decades. This is the second-highest sea level rise in the entire Caribbean, surpassed only by areas in southern Haiti. The underlying story is the same: greenhouse gas emissions have accelerated the melting of the polar ice caps. Consequently, the coastlines in some of these locations begin to subside in a geological process that poses a threat and a source of anxiety for residents.