Inside Climate News – As seawater creeps further into coastlines, salt threatens to pollute the freshwater reserves that people depend on.
But this brine isn’t just coming from the ocean: New research shows freshwater ecosystems are facing widespread dual threats of salt contamination from the sea and land, made worse by climate change.
Humans are a salty species, using the mineral for a vast number of reasons—from de-icing the roads during snowstorms to seasoning food.
But our salty habits, coupled with rising seas, pose major threats to human health, infrastructure, agriculture, and wildlife.
Now, scientists are trying to help water managers better understand the salt risks that crucial water supplies face from land to sea as global temperatures warm.
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A salty future
When it comes to climate change, scientists are learning to expect the unexpected. Even so, 2024’s rate of sea level rise was unusual, according to NASA.
“Every year is a little bit different, but what’s clear is that the ocean continues to rise, and the rate of rise is getting faster and faster,” Josh Willis, a sea level researcher at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, said in a statement.
Using an ocean-observing satellite, scientists measured last year’s global rate of sea level rise at 0.23 inches, compared to the expected rate of 0.17 inches annually.
This may seem tiny, but bear in mind that even small increases in sea levels can have major consequences for coastal communities, including worsening storm surges during hurricanes.
Around two-thirds of 2024’s rise can be attributed to ocean warming, because seawater expands as it heats.
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The rest of the rise is due to an influx of water coming from ice sheets and glaciers, which are melting at unprecedented rates around the world due to climate change …