The Water Will Come
Rising Seas, Sinking Cities, and the Remaking of the Civilized World
Ratings11
Average rating4.1
"By century's end, hundreds of millions of people will be retreating from the world's shores. Nuclear reactors will be decommissioned. The greatest cities in human history, abandoned. This is the story of our rising seas. In a shocking cover story for Rolling Stone, Jeff Goodell predicted that within the lifetime of many of the readers of this book, Miami as we know it today will vanish. This is not a reckless hypothesis. From island nations to the world's major metropolises, our coasts will drown in the rising waters, which will soon inundate and transform our landscapes. There is no simple way to protect ourselves from this fate--no barriers to erect, no walls to build--to prevent the iconic cities of our time from becoming modern Atlantises. THE WATER WILL COME is the definitive account of why this will happen, how this will happen, and what it will mean. Grounded in fact, science, and on-the-ground reporting, it will tell the story of the coming great drowning, in the vein of environmental classics in this mode, like The World Without Us."--Publisher's description.
Reviews
Popular Reviews
Reviews with the most likes.
An interesting but ultimately shallow look at what will come with rising sea level. My biggest take aways are; walls will not work in the long run; expect higher sea levels from 6 to 15 not 3ft in the next 50 years; a slow retreat should start now, a fast retreat will be disastrous
Thanks to Little, Brown and Company via NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. It has not influenced my thoughts or opinions about this book.
Throughout this book, Goodell explores geographic regions and innovative technologies to see what can be done to reduce the impact of rising water. Ultimately, there are some questions that emerge:
- How can we depoliticize climate change and show the real and impending impact on human civilization?
- How will governments address buy-outs, flood damage, and relocation of peoples, towns, and cities?
- How will governments and societies address climate refugees, whose numbers may swell far above and beyond political refugees?
- How can we stop being so short-sighted with our thinking about investment defending communities against climate change?
- Will the Arctic be a new battleground in the fight for fossil fuels and developmental resources?
Overall, this is a well-researched book. I was pleased that Goodell explored not only Western (primarily American) concerns, but also those of the Marshallese and Nigerian. I did feel like the chapters dealing with Miami real estate developers and the role of nuclear and military facilities on the Eastern Seaboard to be a bit of a slog, but worth it to get to the other chapters.
