Sea levels along the Brazilian coast, where 60% of the country’s population lives, are expected to rise in the coming decades. In the states of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, for example, average yearly sea level increases of 1.8 to 4.2 millimeters have been measured since the 1950s. To date, however, there have been few studies of the impact of climate change on the coast, according to a report from the Brazilian Panel on Climate Change (PBMC), published in Rio de Janeiro in June 2017. “The most evident impacts of rising sea levels are increasingly frequent coastal floods and shoreline reductions. However, there are other less perceptible effects, such as marine intrusion, via which seawater penetrates aquifers and freshwater ecosystems,” José Marengo told Agência FAPESP on June 5, 2017. Marengo is head of research and development at the Natural Disaster Surveillance & Early Warning Center (CEMADEN) and a co-author of the report.
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