Climate change in New Jersey
According to climatology research by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, New Jersey has been the fastest-warming state by average air temperature over a 100-year period beginning in the early 20th century,[1] related to global warming.
"[3] Similarly, according to a 2013 Rutgers Climate Institute study, "[s]ince 1895, annual precipitation has increased at a rate of 4.1 inches (100 mm) (or about 9%) per century.
Such species include blue crab, perch, weakfish, flounder, and rockfish (which "rely on the tidal marshes in Delaware Bay to hide from predators"), as well as sea turtles and shorebirds (which feed on species that inhabit the marshes).
[3] "In Barnegat Bay and Little Egg Harbor, the rising sea is already eroding and submerging small marsh islands, which are important nesting areas that protect common terns, black skimmers, and oystercatchers from land-based predators.
For example, if water temperatures exceed 86 °F (30 °C) during summer, eelgrass could be lost, which would remove a key source of food for many fish.
[3] "Water temperature data from the late 1980s to early 2000s, collected at Rutgers University Marine Field Station, demonstrate milder winter temperatures in recent years while in this same period larvae of multiple fish species of southern origin became more abundant and those of northern species declined in richness and abundance.
[2] "Sea level is rising more rapidly along the New Jersey shore than in most coastal areas because the land is sinking.
If the oceans and atmosphere continue to warm, the sea is likely to rise eighteen inches (46 cm) to four feet (1.2 m) along the New Jersey shore in the next century.
"[2] "The United States Geological Survey estimates that barrier islands of the New Jersey shore from Bay Head to Cape May would be broken up by new inlets or lost to erosion if sea level rises three feet (0.91 m) by the year 2100, unless people take actions to reduce erosion.
[3] "Wind speeds and rainfall intensity during hurricanes and tropical storms are likely to increase as the climate warms.
[2] "Recent studies find little evidence of an increase in the number of hurricanes and tropical storms in the North atlantic during the past century, but there is evidence of an increase in the frequency and intensity of intense tropical cyclones during the period since 1970.
"[2] A March 2019 report prepared by the United States Army Corps of Engineers "says coastal communities face a combined average of nearly $1.6 billion a year in damage in the future [from flooding, storms] if steps aren’t taken.
"[5] "Heat-related hospitalizations and emergency department visits in the summer have been rising over the past decade in New Jersey" as of 2017.
Impacts, Risks, and Adaptation in the United States: Fourth National Climate Assessment, Volume II (Report).
