Sunny Day Flooding & Climate Advocacy

Why sunny day flooding matters

Impacts from sea level rise can be effective at engaging both Republicans and Democrats. And there are a lot of Senators (and even more Representatives) that represent coastal states or districts (See this map).

Local impacts drive effective local discussions, and sunny day flooding from sea level rise is a predictable local impact you can use to build out these local discussions. 

In July 2020, NOAA released a new report on sunny day flooding that they call “high tide flooding” (NOAA, July 2020 “2019 State of US High Tide Flooding with a 2020 Outlook). This report was covered by both FOX News and the New York Times. 

People often use many terms that may be interchanged but also may mean different things to different people. To help clear up some of these terms, here are a few with some definitions we will use:

• Sunny day flooding: flooding not caused by a storm 
• High tide flooding: NOAA uses this term and created the acronym HTF 
• Nuisance flooding: flooding not caused by a storm 
• King Tide: a non-scientific term used to describe exceptionally high tides 
• Spring tide: a tide just after a new or full moon, when there is the greatest difference between high and low water. They occur each month. (lower tides are neap tides) 
• Perigean-spring tide: exceptionally high spring tide due to moon's orbit 

Here is a video to help understand tides better.
 

Step-by-step instructions

For tools to help develop a local story, this section of the training is still being uploaded. In the meantime, click the "Watch" tab to see the video and access the slides that cover the following information.

To help predict upcoming spring tides or the highest tide each month in your area, use NOAA’s Tides and Currents Map 

• Zoom in on the map to your area to pick a Gauge Station
• Click on your selected Gauge Station
• Click on Station Home
• Click on Tides/Water Levels and select “NOAA Tide Predictions”
• Add this page to your favorites if you want. 
• Change date range to any period less than 31 days, and click Plot Daily
• 30-day chart for October 2020 Pointer shows details for high and low tides

To help anticipate where to find instances of sunny day flooding in your community, here are some additional tools and websites.

• Climate Central maps (Point to a peak to show data for risk) 
• Suite of Sea Level Tools from ClimateCentral
• NOAA Sea Level Rise tool

Intro & Agenda
(from beginning)

• Jim Tolbert
• Tom Wells

Download PowerPoint or Google Slides presentation.

Intro & Agenda
(from beginning)

• Jim Tolbert
• Tom Wells

• Download the audio here

Coastal Impacts Action Team

• What actions will you take to create local stories about impacts to your community?
• Are there people in your CCL Group or others who would want to work with you on this?

• Climate Central maps (Point to a peak to show data for risk) 
• Suite of Sea Level Tools from ClimateCentral
• NOAA Sea Level Rise tool
• NOAA, July 2020 “2019 State of US High Tide Flooding with a 2020 Outlook