Every year, heavy rains and high tides force coastal sea levels surrounding South Florida to rise, which result in serious flooding for the Magic City, particularly in Miami Beach. Concern is only growing as the implications of climate change become more apparent – according to the United States Geological Survey, South Florida’s regular sea level is expected to rise by upwards of two feet by 2060.

In an effort to curb the disruptive and costly effects of the area’s seasonal flooding, especially that associated with the annual “King Tide” – which occurs once or twice a year as a result of the unique alignment of the Earth, moon and sun – city officials last year unveiled a $300 million project to install pumps to control water levels.

When the project was first announced, Reuters reported that each pump would be capable of pushing out 7,000 gallons per second, and that the city would also be retrofitting 300 outflow valves to allow stormwater drainage into the bay.

Some have criticized the project, likening it to an expensive Band-Aid, which is why Miami Beach has also begun more long-term strategizing, including possibly requiring developers to sacrifice street-level views for more elevated building designs. But in the meantime, many fear the pumps will be inadequate in protecting the area’s estimated $23 billion in real estate.

Miami’s Three Flooding Problems

The major hurdle engineers in Miami Beach have to figure out, is the unique way in which the city floods; rather than high tides washing over sea walls, Miami floods from the ground up. Water seeps through the porous limestone bedrock and rises underfoot, creating an interesting dilemma for the city that’s likely to become even more difficult to reconcile as the surrounding sea level inches up.

In a study from University of Miami’s Department of Atmospheric Sciences, researcher Brian McNoldy collected and analyzed sea level data from Virginia Key (south of Miami Beach) to determine the pace of sea level rise. Reviewing information from as far back as 1996, McNodly discovered the sea level along Miami’s coast had already gone up by 3.7 inches.

From his findings, McNoldy explained three problems Miami will face and is facing in regards to flooding:

1. The area’s sea level is possibly rising faster than the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicted. Through his own calculations, McNoldy postulated that Miami’s high tide level could rise by more than five feet within the next 50 years.

2. Because tidal predictions are made examining “astronomical factors,” such as the moon’s orbit, and fail to consider factors like weather, day-to-day predictions have become much less accurate.

3. Apart from flooding, a sea level rise threatens South Florida’s drinking water, of which 90 percent is supplied through porous limestone aquifers. When sea level rises, saltwater exerts additional force on the fresh water, and it is pushed further from the coast. The process is called saltwater intrusion, and already it is affecting wells in the area.

More than $2 Billion in Annual Flood Costs

The pump and retrofitting project got underway last year and has made progress in the time since, but there is still much room for improvement.

According to a recent report from CBS Miami, in the Mirador 1000 condominiums, which is situated next to a major pump station, nearly four inches of flood water breached the building’s lower parking garage Sunday. Residents are now questioning the pumps’ effectiveness.

Other Miami Beach residents have expressed concerns over pollutions.

In a conversation with Miami New Times, Isaiah Mosley, a former environmental scientist with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, revealed what it was like to first observe and then later explore the water coming out of the pumps.

“It was horrible!” He said. “It tasted like petroleum and gasoline.”

Mosley said that he found “small articles of trash, plastic wrappers and plant matter,” which he pointed out are small enough for fish to eat and carry out into the larger food web.

The city claimed in a statement to the publication that it is “almost impossible” for debris to make it through the turbidity curtain surrounding the pumps’ discharge.

The prospect of flooding in Miami Beach is particularly concerning to residents and buyers interested in the area, because buying in flood zone means taking on certain risks that might not exist elsewhere. The city’s efforts are likely to postpone the potential of more significant flooding in the area, but an increase in damages is inevitable, and it will soon become an even bigger issue for people entering the Miami market.

According to a study from World Bank Economist Stephane Hallegatte, among others, by 2050, Miami’s annual flood costs will be $2.5 billion – the highest in the U.S, and among the most effected cities in the world. Hallegate said that even in cities that are “very-well protected today, losses will reach levels that are completely impossible to imagine.”