The Shoreline between Nature and Society, a Changing Heritage - Vulnerability of Coastal Ecosystems and Adaptation - page 181

5.2.2. Marine submersion
The story of marine submersion is an ancient one, wrapped in
legends that were born from the realities of the moment. The great
flood in the Old Testament for instance brings us back to
Mesopotamia but also recalls that during the Flandrian transgression,
the people who lived not too far from the sea might have had the
impression that a catastrophe was taking place, as the threshold of
the Black Sea was overcome due to the scale and speed of the
phenomenon. Similarly, tales from Brittany of the King of the
mythical city of Ys are rooted in similar natural phenomena, assuming
that the rhythm of the transgression varied over time with phases of
extreme speed. This ancient story periodically comes back to life in
the media: the slow sea level rise is threatening some Pacific islands
with submersion [BIR 93]. The sea is not the only one at fault as these
islands were often utilized in the conflict between the United States
and Japan to store air fields whose materials were taken from coral
reefs that were greatly undermined in the process. It is also the case in
the Maldives, where tourism development also occurs to the detriment
of the coral reef, which is the best existing flood protection.
If the risk of slow submersion exists, it is also down to man to do
something about it; however, this assumes that we take into account
both the history of the latest transgression and the causes that can be
identified to explain its rhythm and coastal effects. This is a truly
topical question that is echoed by the media in the context of climate
change according to some, whereas others, although they do not deny
climate change, fail to see the early stages of a real change that would
imply instability in the major action centers of the climate system
(anticyclones and marine currents).
5.2.2.1. A bit of history on the latest transgression
Research on the topic of sea level rise extends along various lines
[PIR 96]. All studies highlight a convergence of the sea level
rise curves in a transgression maximum around 6,000 BP, but most
diverge when it comes to identifying the rhythms (although not
significantly) due to the interference of sea movements and
continental shelves. The curve shown below is one of the most recent