In 2009, the North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission (CRC), a body that controls and regulates coastal development in North Carolina, asked 13 members of its advisory Science Panel to prepare a report on the state of sea-level rise in North Carolina.
After the report was published, there was a subsequent maelstrom regarding its utility and validity.
Based on the latest scientific studies both locally and globally, the Science Panel's report concluded that by 2100, a 40-centimeter sea-level rise is highly likely, a 100-centimeter rise is likely, and a 140-centimeter rise is possible.
Although the panel did not advocate for any particular response or policy, they recommended that a 100-centimeter sea-level rise should be adopted as the basis for any future coastal management plan.
Opponents said that, if implemented, the new regulations for development would cost developers and homeowners a fortune. After a fierce legislative battle, the opponents advanced legislation that effectively requires no consideration of sea-level rise in any planning until the Science Panel can produce a new report by 2015.
How will local political decisions like this affect development along a coastline that is facing rising seas? Orrin Pilkey and Alexander Glass from Duke University discuss in EARTH magazine.