How homes could be retrofitted to float during floods cbc.ca - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from cbc.ca Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Reading Time By Benoit Morenne
Climate change has the potential to wreak devastating effects on the places we call home. Global sea levels could rise by 6.5 feet by the end of the 21st century if greenhouse-gas emissions grow unchecked, according to a study published last year in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, putting the coastal homes of millions at risk of flooding or worse. Research in the same journal this year found that tropical cyclones are now 25% more likely to be a Category 3 storm or worse versus four decades ago, a trend scientists expect to continue, increasing potential property damage. And by the 2050s, the Pacific Northwest is projected to see a 78% increase in areas burned by wildfires, according to a 2009 study in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres.