Worries about projected sea level rise have been front and center this fall at a variety of forums, not the least of which occurred at the United Nations last month.
It’s a subject near and dear to the hearts (and pocketbooks) of San Mateo County residents and businesses. The low-lying (and heavily-developed) land east of Highway 101 is especially vulnerable if the water level in San Francisco Bay rises significantly — and that is the generally-accepted prediction provided by scientists.
Governmental agencies typically are looking at anticipating a potential increase in the height of bay waters of six inches by 2030 and up to 24 inches by 2050. The county’s 2018 Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment has based its findings and recommendations on a projected sea level rise of 3.3 feet (40 inches).
Just east of Millbrae and San Bruno, San Francisco International Airport officials aren’t taking any chances with their massive regional asset. They are preparing to get out in front of the issue by raising their system of barriers to handle a 36-inch rise in the bay’s level, giving them some hopeful comfort that such a move would get SFO to 2085 without a catastrophic inundation of their ultra-valuable enterprise.
The published price tag for an ambitious plan to boost existing levees, seawalls, berms, etc., is nearly $600 million (that doesn’t include interest and fees). With roughly 11 miles of shoreline (or near-shoreline on Highway 101) to remedy, the cost would work out to $55 million per mile, or thereabouts.
Because of differences in existing prevention devices (or no protections at all) along the full length of the county’s bay shoreline, attempting to extrapolate per mile costs on a city-by-city basis to mirror what SFO is proposing would be a mistake.
Foster City, for one, is preparing to improve its levee system via $90 million worth of bonds. Next door, a portion of San Mateo (the Shoreview area) is targeted for another $23.5 million in levee upgrades. It has been pointed out that the state of California owns and controls significant portions of the bayfront as well.
County municipalities are coming to grips with the threat posed by the predicted rise in the level of the bay. Red flags are going up. That already has occurred in opposition to the planned development of old, diked salt ponds in eastern Redwood City.
A major, new office complex on the Burlingame bayfront includes new protections that are under construction. Several bay shoreline restaurants and hotels already have such structures.
We can expect more in the future.
Robert Bianchi
The death of San Mateo’s Robert Bianchi last month did not mean the end of the children’s train in the city’s Central Park. Bianchi, who passed away at the age of 81, had owned and operated the popular kiddies’ ride, a park fixture, for 37 years. The train has been purchased and is still up and running on weekends and holidays and through the summer — so that Peninsula tradition appears to be safe, at least for the moment.
Derby time
Speaking of pleasant old-time options for today’s smartphone generation, here’s another one, this time in the North County: Brisbane will conduct its 13th soap box derby races this Saturday at 8 a.m. on San Francisco Street. It’s the ultimate “green” racing event — no gasoline, no oil, no electricity. The event will be part of the tiny town’s 33rd annual Day in the Park celebration.
John Horgan’s column appears weekly in the Mercury News. Contact him by email at johnhorganmedia@gmail.com or by regular mail at P.O. Box 117083, Burlingame, CA 94011.
