Old Bridge Seeing Faster Sea Level Rise Than NYC: Rutgers Study

OLD BRIDGE, NJ —Marshy areas such as Old Bridge, Cape May and Leeds Point are seeing the fastest sea-level rise along the entire coast of New Jersey, even faster than sea levels are rising in New York City, according to a new Rutgers study published March 23 in Nature Communications.

The study was led by scientists Jennifer Walker and Robert Kopp at the Rutgers Institute of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences.

The Rutgers study looked at six sites along the Eastern seaboard: Connecticut, New York City, Cheesequake State Park in Old Bridge, southern New Jersey (Leeds Point and Cape May Courthouse) and North Carolina.

The study found the fastest rates of rise occurring at Leeds Point and Cape May Courthouse, followed by the Cheesequake area. In New York City, there were slightly slower rates of rise, and the slowest rates of rise occurred in Connecticut and North Carolina. You can read the study here: https://www.nature.com/article...

"Coastal plain locations (e.g., New Jersey) have experienced higher rates of rise than locations underlain by bedrock (e.g., New York City)," the Rutgers study read. "In New York City, there were slightly slower rates of rise, and the slowest rates of rise occurred in Connecticut and North Carolina."

However, all six sites showed rising sea levels over the past 300 years, the study found.

"It is extremely likely that the average rate of rise from 1700–2000 at all six sites was faster than during any preceding 300-year period," the study read. "Furthermore, it is virtually certain that the 20th century rate of rise at all six sites was faster than during any preceding century."

These findings are important, according to Jeff Tittel, the former director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, because while it has been documented that sea levels are rising, it shows that marshy, low-lying parts of New Jersey are particularly at risk.

Not only are glaciers melting faster than they have in 2,000 years, New Jersey is also seeing more rain and warmer temperature, according to this report released in 2020 by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.

Rising sea levels can make things like storm surges much worse, such as what the state experienced in Hurricane Sandy, when storm surges flooded streets and homes that in previous storms stayed dry.

“We are seeing some of the worst sea-level rise in South Jersey, in places like Cape May and Leeds Point," said Tittel. "This is concerning because these are some of the areas in New Jersey that are developing the fastest. This is why the Murphy administration needs to take immediate action to make our coasts and other flood-prone areas more resilient."

This includes updating regulations, doing hazard planning and the state buying out flood-prone properties, he said.

New Jersey is fourth in the nation for having the most flood-prone properties, according to the Sierra Club.

And New Jersey is also still building in flood-prone areas faster than most other states, according to the Sierra Club. A recent Zillow report found that New Jersey is second in the nation for building homes in risk-zones. According to that report, there are 282,354 homes at risk in New Jersey currently.

“We are already seeing sunny day flooding in Atlantic City and roads going underwater every full moon," said Tittel. "We haven’t updated our mapping or our programs, so some of the worst hit areas are places like Ocean City where they are still growing and building."

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