Historic Annapolis faces a watery grave if impact of climate change is ignored

Without question, Annapolis is an American historical treasure. It’s where George Washington resigned his commander-in-chief commission from the Continental Army. It is also where the famed patriot and sea captain John Paul Jones is buried.

Whether you’re looking at the state capitol’s white, wooden dome or the Naval Academy’s blue-gray chapel dome, Annapolis’ architecture provides a clear picture of how our country has developed over the centuries.

Now imagine the Annapolis waterfront as a modern-day underwater Atlantis. As heartbreaking as it is to contemplate, the truth is that some of the most historic parts of this fair city may one day be below the Chesapeake Bay’s surface unless we change the trajectory of the current climate crisis (“Climate change will make Baltimore County warmer and wetter, report says – some already feel the heat,” May 21).

Already, the seas are expected to rise as much as 4 feet by the end of this century, according to the National Climate Assessment.

With two tropical storms forming early this year, and experts predicting a busy hurricane season ahead, it’s important to keep in mind that just a few inches of sea level rise can result in storm surges reaching farther and farther inland (“NOAA hurricane forecast predicts busy 2020 season,” May 21).

Tragically, while humans can adapt and reluctantly retreat to higher ground, the same can’t be said for our historic sites. Meaningful moments happen where they happened, and once they are lost to rising seas, we will irretrievably lose key parts of our national heritage. It is one of the great under-told tragedies of the growing climate crisis.

Understanding this danger, Environment America filed an amicus brief in partnership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation to challenge the Affordable Clean Energy Rule, a new set of regulations created by the Trump administration.

Unless defeated in court, this plan will sharply increase U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, driving global warming and spurring an even greater rise in sea levels.

Not surprisingly, Annapolis isn’t alone when it comes to the danger the Affordable Clean Energy Rule presents. The United States’ past is under threat from coast-tocoast because when many of our ancestors first came to North America, they settled along the shores of our great country. From these strategic locations, small settlements grew into our nation’s most iconic historic cities.

With that in mind, we must be committed to a future where our children and future generations can walk and touch the places where our ancestors and founding fathers made history happen. Our representatives in Washington should feel the same way. After all, more than two hundred congressional districts lie along the coast. That means that almost half of the U.S. Congress represents areas in these threatened zones.

For the sake of our shared history, we must all push our elected leaders to put a stop to rolling back environmental protections.

Our nation’s heritage depends on it. Ultimately, all Americans should ask themselves this question: Can we continue to ignore the climate crisis and risk a watery demise for our historic coasts or will we give our most beloved cities and towns a fighting chance to stay above water?

Andrea McGimsey, Washington, D.C.

The writer is the senior director of Global Warming Solutions at Environment America.