The Inconvenience Sunny Day Flooding Causes

There’s no tropical cyclone. It is not raining. The sun is out. But why is there flooding? You may not know but you can still get flooded even on a scorchingly hot day.  This flooding is called tidal flooding or sunny day flooding. In this blog, get to know what it is, what worsens it, and what are the effects.

How Tides Work

Before we talk about tidal flooding, let’s find out how tides work.

Tides are the daily rise and fall of the sea caused by the gravitational pull of the moon. 

The moon has a gravitational pull that brings about a phenomenon called tidal force. This tidal force causes two sides of the Earth and its water to “bulge out”: a) the side that is farthest from the moon and b) the side that is closest to the moon. When a country passes through this bulge, it experiences high tide. On the other hand, when a country is away from the bulge, it experiences low tide. 

Tides emerge from our oceans and move towards the shorelines where we can easily spot them. 

Nearly all tides occur twice a day as the Earth moves through its natural rotation period.

Below are some places that experienced tidal flooding:

Reasons for Worsening Tidal Flooding

In the past years, it is unfortunate that tidal floods worsened. This condition can be attributed to climate-related sea level rise, population growth and urbanization, and the loss of natural barriers.

1- Climate-Related Sea Level Rise

The warming climate can lead to two scenarios: 1) the melting of the ice and 2) the expansion of seawater. Either scenario can cause the sea levels to rise at a higher rate, eventually leading to frequent and worsened tidal flooding. 

2- Population Growth and Urbanization

Over 10% of the world’s population reside in areas that are less than 10 meters above mean sea level. Populations in many of these business districts continue to increase at a rapid rate. The rise in population gave way to the building of concrete houses, streets, highways, and parking lots. In consequence, these impenetrable surfaces prevent water from infiltrating the ground. The water instead seeps into storm sewers and local creeks; floodwater inundates city stormwater systems.

3- Loss of Natural Barriers

Coastal barriers consist of mangrove forests, barrier islands, and dunes. These natural barriers help reduce the effects of intense storms by taking in a great amount of the ocean’s energy before it reaches the land.

Tidal Flooding is Threatening

All these factors contribute to sunny day flooding, which troubles the public by threatening their health, hurting the local economy, interrupting traffic and transportation, degrading water quality, and overwhelming sewers.

Tidal flooding has actually swelled up in the U.S. on average by around 50 percent since 20 years ago and 100 percent since 30 years ago. Furthermore, the results of spiking sea levels along most of the continental U.S. shoreline, are believed to become more intense in the coming decades.

All these factors contribute to sunny day flooding, which troubles the public by threatening their health, hurting the local economy, interrupting traffic and transportation, degrading water quality, and overwhelming sewers. 

Any furthering in sea level rise, that is foreseen to come about this century, will further escalate the impacts of tidal flooding over time. Also, it will further lessen the interval between flood events.

How about a Modern Flood Protection Barrier?

To address tidal flooding, we can turn to a German climate change-addressed design. This can address sea-level rise and resist high tide flooding. 

I am talking about the RS Glass-Paneled Flood Barrier. It is really intended for large areas like seashores and riverbanks. Its components like glass panes, steel parts, Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer (EPDM) seals, and screws are designed to resist corrosion, high water pressure, and extreme weather conditions! That’s how resistant it is, even if it is glass and seems fragile.

Since it is made of glass, it does not obstruct scenic views and it is pleasing to the eye. Perfect for places along river banks. 

RS Glass-Paneled Flood Barriers will be permanently mounted on existing floodwalls, and RS Demountable Barriers can be added on top of the Glass-Paneled Flood Barriers. Hence, flood protection height can be extended! 

Sea level rise could become worse in the next decades but RS Glass-Paneled Flood Barriers are there ready to protect you from sunny day flooding for 50 years or more! 

Flooding because of high tides and increasing sea levels may cause you to worry and frustration, but having RS Glass-Paneled Flood Barriers will help you ease the worry. 

To watch how this modern technology can flood-protect you while preserving scenic views, click the “WATCH THE VIDEO” button.

For queries, click the “BOOK A MEETING FOR FREE” button and have a conversation with a Flood Expert.