Sea level rising. It is not disputed that there has been a global warming, nor that human emissions have contributed to this global warming. However, it is disputed how much of the warming is caused by human activity. The range is the allegations of a substantial part to an insignificant part.Global warming is now well documented, particularly through efforts coordinated by the IPCC (FNs kli-mapanel). It would be ignorant to discuss elasticity and flexibility in Malmö without to consider the fact of the problems that are ahead of us.

Before After Before After

If the global warming continues, as the IPCC forecast, it will affect the climate in many different ways. A serious consequence of the temperature increase is that sea levels have begun to rise. An estimate indicates 1.8 mm / year, and that this will continue.This is both because water expands when it gets warmer, and that parts of the country-based ice from the poles is melting off. When the sea-level rise alone it will affect millions of people living in island states and low lands.

Global warming predictions

If the global warming continues, as the IPCC forecast, it will affect the climate in many different ways. A serious consequence of the temperature increase is that sea levels have begun to rise. An estimate indicates 1.8 mm / year, and that this will continue.This is both because water expands when it gets warmer, and that parts of the country-based ice from the poles is melting off. When the sea-level rise alone it will affect millions of people living in island states and low lands.

Temperatures, global and local

Global mean surface temperature difference from the averagefor 1961-1990

Maximum average temperature

Precipitation

Minimum average temperature

Västra Hamnen- before bo01 in 2000

Malmö is a city that will be strongly affected. The City need a long term strategy to cope with the consequences of rising sea levels. New buildings should only be envisaged where the ground level is at least three feet above the sea and the sea should, in the long term, creates a protective barrier that can handle extreme weather events with high water and waves.

The City of tomorrow?

What can be done?Is it possible to have sustainable development in places like Malmö?

In extreme cases it will in one hundred years be nearly three meters above current sea level. This means that the whole coast, large parts of Malmo’s inner city and parts of Malmö’s main areas of development like the West Harbor, Nyhamn and Limhamns port area, are vulnerable.

The proposal is that the current guideline in the main plan of the minimum ground level of new construc-tion increased from 2.5 to 3 meters. To protect the already built-up areas from flooding, it is proposed that in a long term perspective to built a protective barrier along the coast. Such coastal protection can be a combination of padding, ramparts, walls and mobile devices than can be closed immediatly when flooding threatens.

Västra Hamnen- sustainable or a growing problem?

Possible solutions?

Only in Västra Hamn it is today around 3200 inhabitants, and in 2013 it is estimated to rise to 4866. In 10 years they are counting that atleast 13000 citizens will live in this area.“Temperature increases, precipitation increases and we will get higher sea levels. There is climate change, we know. In Malmö the already noticeable. Among other things around Riseberg creek. But there is readi-ness, “said Malmö’s energy and climate change strategist Dagmar Gormsen.

Maybe the solution is not to built a fort agains the nature, but to live with the nature and its force. The challenging is to built with it and not against it. In the Netherlands they have lived with the problems al-ways. The operational manager of the public-private Netherlands Water Partnership, Lennart Silvis, says:

“We’ve been adapting for 1,000 years. That’s nothing new. It’s just that climate change is going faster than it was before.” Instead of raising dikes as they have done for 100 of years, the Dutch want to reclaim land and build public recreation areas that can absorb storm surges.I think that it is more sustainable for the challenges to come.