'King' tides: a global warming preview?
Pat Brennan
The Orange County Register
02/15/2011
Want a glimpse of what a warmer world with higher sea level might look like?
A local environmental group is asking Orange County residents to help them create that dramatic picture -- by taking pictures themselves. The plan, says Ray Hiemstra, associate director of Orange County Coastkeeper, is to get residents to submit their photos of tidal encounters -- waves hitting Balboa Island sea walls, for example, or the ocean front at Seal Beach.
The king tides, he says, are unusually high tides.
"It's a name for these very high tides that come along occasionally, when everything lines up just right," Hiemstra said. "The idea is to get people thinking about sea level rise, and what we may expect in the future."
The king tides are expected to hit the coast Feb. 16 to 18, with the peak between 7:30 a.m. and 9 a.m. on Feb. 17.
The group is especially interested in photos of places known to flood, and where high water levels can be gauged against jetties, bridge supports, sea walls and other structures.
Minor coastal flooding is possible in north county Thursday as high tides, high surf and stormy weather combine, especially in Seal Beach and Sunset Beach (read more on Laylan Connelly's Beach Blog).
Coastkeeper hopes to receive many before and after shots, Hiemstra said. They'll be used to try to identify coastal areas most prone to inundation.
Post photos to the Coastkeeper Flickr page along with your contact information and the date, time and location.
Environmental groups and residents up and down the California coast are expected to take part.
The best of the images will be assembled by the California Coastkeeper Alliance, Hiemstra said
