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Climate change threatens iconic Sussex landscape
The National Trust highlights Birling Gap in its map of climate change threats to its stately homes, countryside and coastline, published today.
The National Trust reports that in 2014, the chalk cliffs at Birling Gap suffered seven years’ worth of erosion in just two months, in part due to heavy storms. The rate of erosion, although naturally occurring due to the geology of the area, will only increase as we see more storms, rainfall and higher sea levels.
The National Trust’s map plots how extreme heat and humidity, landslides, coastal erosion, shrinking and shifting ground, and high winds could change over the next 40 years. The data are based on a “worst-case scenario” where emissions of heat-trapping gases continue unabated.
The data will be used by the National Trust to assess risks to its sites and possible actions.
