Climate Change To Raise Sea Levels, Cost Massapequa $49 Million

MASSAPEQUA, NY — Massapequa might have to spend more than $49 million by 2040 to raise seawalls because of rising sea levels caused by climate change, according to an environmental advocacy group.

The Center for Climate Integrity organized a nationwide study to project costs of raising seawalls and other protective barriers. Massapequa has six miles of seawalls. Raising those walls to counteract seawater will cost the village $49.2 million.

"At present, taxpayers and property owners are on the hook for 100 percent of climate adaptations costs," the organization wrote. "Unless something changes, communities will be forced to cut existing public services or raise taxes as these costs continue to rise."

To cover the price tag, each person in Massapequa would have to pay $2,245 in added taxes that would otherwise go to community essentials such as schools, hospitals and emergency services.

Overall, the nation faces more than $400 billion in costs over the next two decades due to "inevitable" sea-level rise, the researchers found. The cost is nearly as high as the original interstate highway system, and it requires building more than 50,000 miles of coastal barriers in half the time it took to create the highway network.

The advocacy group said big oil companies should pay their fair share for environmental issues.

"Communities cannot afford the massive costs of climate adaptation on their own," the organization said. "These costs weren't always inevitable. Now that they are, polluters should pay their fair share."