Perhaps no city in America is as closely bound to the sea as Norfolk. It is home of the world's largest naval base, the Atlantic fleet, and a major international cargo terminal. Nauticus, the national maritime center, serves as a tourist attraction in the downtown harbor area. But the same ocean that gave life to the city may soon repossess it as the first victim of global warming.

Norfolk has always been prone to tidal flooding, especially during hurricanes and northeasters. But the city must now face a new enemy: the steady rise in the ocean sea level. Higher tides, which started eighty years ago at the turn of the century, now cause daily flooding. The mean high tide mark in Norfolk is now nine feet higher than in 2000. It is rising at the rate of almost an inch a year. Storms, which previously caused minor damage, now inundate streets, flood homes and weaken the most substantial structures. Hurricane Alice destroyed large sections of the city in 2017 and some neighborhoods are now permanently under water. The St. Valentine's Day northeaster of 2028 proved that even expensive seawalls are useless in holding back storm surges; water even reached the second floor of office towers in the financial district. Problems seem to grow worse each day.

What brought about these conditions that threaten the very existence of Norfolk? Many scientists blame the "greenhouse effect," an atmospheric phenomenon that set off a complex chain of events that led to environmental disaster throughout the world. First, air pollution built up in the atmosphere from gas compounds such as carbon dioxide and trapped heat from the sun. Air and water temperatures slowly began to rise. Finally, huge ice floes in Greenland and Antarctica began melting, elevating ocean water levels. The East Coast cities of Charleston, Daytona Beach, Atlantic City and Miami have all experienced similar problems because of their low elevations. Nearby Virginia Beach, which has lost much of its oceanfront land, is not immediately threatened because the city as a whole sits on higher ground.

Robert Saunders, president of United Virginia Bank, is spearheading a drive to move city assets, such as the Chrysler Museum art collection and the MacArthur Memorial to a new location in Amelia County, about a hundred miles to the west.

"Nobody wants to abandon the city," Saunders told a meeting of the local Chamber of Commerce, "but if the environmental trend continues, Norfolk will become the first of many coastal cities resting at the bottom of an expanding sea.

The Federation of Concerned Environmentalists (FOCE) will hold an international teleconference on rising tidal waters in February of 2030. People from all walks of life will organize into study groups to talk one-on-one to scientific experts and government leaders. Each group will collect information and issue specific recommendations. The Norfolk City Council has selected your FPS team to represent the youth of the local community. Look at the dilemma from every angle, identifying challenges and searching for solutions to the one problem you think is most important. Coastal cities around the globe face destruction from relentless ocean waters. Their struggle to survive is now in your hands.

© 2001 Future Problem Solving of Virginia