The Climate Reality Project -- New York

What can change in a day? Everything. On September 14, the world will focus its attention on the truth about the climate crisis. For 24 hours, we will all live in reality. Pick a faraway place or a city near you. Make it yours for one day. We’re hitting every time zone — but only once. 7 p.m. in your time zone. Choose a location and get involved.

New York --

There are few places as diverse and as international as New York City. Located on a large natural harbor on the Atlantic Coast of the United States, New York boasts a population of close to 9 million people. New York is home to people with roots in more than a hundred different countries, speaking more than two hundred different languages, and professing every faith. How do you get such a big, diverse and densely populated city ready for climate change? That’s what planners in New York are grappling with as they come to grips with preparing the city for sea level rise.

New York Harbor has already experienced sea level rise of 15 inches in the last 150 years, with another 2-10 inches projected by the 2020s and 7-29 inches projected by mid-century. As sea levels rise, roads and homes will be increasingly flooded, drinking water may become contaminated by saltwater, and pollution from flooded sewers will increase. And that’s without the addition of stronger hurricanes, one potential impact of climate change. New York is already vulnerable to up to 30 feet of flooding during a hurricane. High seas and stronger storms are a recipe for disaster for one of the world’s great cities.

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