Malaysia: Rising sea levels to lead to inundated coasts in future

PATRICK LEE The Star 4 Feb 15;

PETALING JAYA: If you thought that the devastating floods which struck the east coast of the peninsula recently was bad, things will get worse in the coming decades, said a research organisation.

The National Hydraulic Research Institute (Nahrim) said many of our coastlines were being affected by rising sea levels, with numerous parts of the country expected to be underwater by the end of the century.

Data by Nahrim showed that sea levels have been rising by between 0.2mm and 4.4mm every year since 2010 due to climate change.

Nahrim director-general Datuk Ahmad Jamalluddin Shaaban said this may lead to inundated coasts and affect more than eight million people, at today’s count.

“The areas that will experience the highest sea level rise are the Kedah and Kelantan coasts, Sungai Sarawak Estuary and the east coast of Sabah, by between 0.4 and 1.1m,” he told The Star.

He said that Malaysia was very susceptible to rising sea levels and that this would be especially critical at its low-lying areas, such as river mouths.

Tawau would be the hardest-hit nationwide, with its sea levels projected to be 1.064m higher by the year 2100 than they were today.

Kudat, Lahad Datu, Tawau, Sandakan and Kota Kinabalu were seeing sea levels rising by 3mm, 3.5mm, 3.6mm, 4.1mm and 4.4mm each year, respectively.

Ahmad said higher sea levels could lead to changes in wave speed and height, which may increase the rate of coastal erosion.

“Worst still, the sediment type along Malaysian coastlines comprises sand, clay and silt which are easily eroded by strong currents and waves,” he said.

Existing coastal structures, he said, may be swamped by waves especially during heavy rain at high tide.

Ahmad said that some 31% of Malaysians in the peninsula lived within the coastal zone, an area ranging 5km inland from the sea’s edge.

Some 55% of the area, he said, was also occupied by important industries, including agriculture, construction and fisheries.

Ports were also going to be affected by the rise in sea levels.

Harbours in Penang, Perak, Selangor and most of those in Sabah were projected to have sea levels higher than 50cm by 2100, compared to 2010.

Aside from the loss of land and destruction of coastal structures, Ahmad also expected communities to suffer relocation and lives lost as the changes increasingly take place.

Worse still, Ahmad said Malaysians could not avoid this phenomenon as the rise in sea levels was a global issue and inevitable.

“Adapting to climate change and employing disaster risk management are very important to minimise our vulnerability,” he said.

Ahmad said Nahrim was working with various government agencies to prepare the country for the phenomenon.

He said millions of ringgit was spent each year to build coastal protection systems.

Johor coastal villagers’ anxiety level rises with each passing year
The Star 4 Feb 15;

BATU PAHAT: When Mohd Izwan Rusli was a child, the Malacca Straits would overflow and flood villages near here once each year.

Today, the 26-year-old orang asli fisherman sees the sea creep up to coastal homes at least twice every month.

“The water comes up to the danger level. Up to here,” Mohd Izwan said, pointing at the wooden floorboards of a river mouth platform, about a metre above the low tide mark on the beach.

“This is normal now. The sea is getting higher,” he said.

Aminah Minal, who catches fish for a living, said some islands near here could no longer be reached by foot during low tide.

“When I was younger, we could swim to Sialu Island easily but now, we have to take a boat,” the 51-year-old said of the island which is just over a kilometre away from the main shoreline.

She added that even without rain, the sea would bring floods up to people’s homes, forcing many to move further inland for safety.

Coming in from his boat, her husband Paiman Zainal, 55, agreed, saying fishermen were finding it difficult to read sea conditions these days.

“It is rising in a very sudden way. Not just that; the winds have also changed with the seasons and floods coming earlier than before.

“We can’t even tell when the winds are going to come,” he said, shaking his head.

Kampung Lapangan Terbang village chief Mohd Mian, 46, said the sea swamped about 20 to 30ha of coconut plantations here a few years back.

A coastal barrier has since been put up there.

“This never happened before. The sea hasn’t reached our village yet but I don’t know what would happen if that stone wall wasn’t there,” he said.

Kampung Segenting fisherman Tan Kee Chye, 35, said people here were not worried about the rising sea level although it was about 15cm higher than it was some 20 years ago.

“Even if it goes up by another 15cm, we’re not scared,” he said, looking at the concrete foundations that supported his village.

He also said that his village was on ground that was higher than the other areas.

“If the water comes up to us, then all of Batu Pahat will be gone,” he said with a laugh.

‘East coast to experience more sea-related issues’
The Star 4 Feb 15;

PETALING JAYA: The east coast of Peninsular Malaysia will experience more sea-related problems than the west coast due to the stronger waves there during the monsoon season, according to experts.

“Also, the east coast coastline is highly prone to erosion because it is mostly sandy beaches,” said Universiti Malaysia Terengganu’s Dr Edlic Sathiamurthy.

He said higher sea levels would also mean higher high tides.

“A 50cm rise would be serious when we take into account its effect on tidal range and wave energy,” he said.

And as the high tides grew higher, he said, this would in turn result in more flooding and greater coastal erosion.

The west coast on the other hand faced weaker storms and waves and was naturally protected due to its geographical position and mangrove areas, said National University of Malaysia’s Prof Dr Joy Jacqueline Pereira.

However, Prof Pereira said more places could be flooded whenever there was a new moon phenomenon, which was when the moon was closest to the Earth and caused higher high tides.

“If the sea level was to go higher and there’s a new moon phenomenon, we can expect more areas to be inundated,” she said.

This was noted as one of the factors that led to the massive flooding on the east coast of the peninsula recently.