Jun 21, 2009 12:32 pm US/Eastern
Annapolis Prepares For Hurricane Season
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WJZ) ―
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In the state's capital, a sinking land problem and a rising sea level make for a bad combination.
CBS
In the state's capital, a sinking land problem and a rising sea level make for a bad combination.
Jessica Kartalija reports memories of Hurricane Isabel are prompting city leaders to take action.
In 2003, Isabel left her mark on Maryland. Annapolis was hit especially hard as floodwaters displaced residents and left a path of destruction behind.
"We can look at the impact of Hurricane Isabel and say, `This is the area that's going to be affected,'" said Maryland Environmental Programs Chief Frank Biba.
Recently, heavy rains and a rising sea level have flooded Annapolis streets.
"The water level is rising and there is visible proof of that all the time, particularly during the summer when you get the wind out of the south that pushes the water up the bay," said Mayor Ellen Moyer.
A Baltimore-based consulting company is being paid $75,000 to engineer four different ideas. It's then up to the Annapolis City Council to decide what to do with them.
"This will tell us what infrastructure improvements we need to make, what we'll need to do in the future with the expectation the water will rise," Moyer said.
In a report on Maryland's climate change, scientists predict the water will rise another two feet over the next century.
"It's an incremental rise. It's not like we're going to wake up on the first of January and water's going to be three feet deeper. It's going to happen slowly but we are going to notice it and we need to prepare as soon as possible," Biba said.
Annapolis city officials say they expect to have an engineering proposal by the end of this year.
Damage from Isabel totaled $945 million throughout Maryland and Washington.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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