There should also be coordination at the state and federal level to provide funding to low-income cities that may not otherwise have resources for sea level rise planning. This could happen, for example, when a sea wall in one city deflects storm surges towards an adjacent city without flood protections. Cooperation between cities and counties throughout the Bay Area is necessary to ensure that shoreline protection in one area doesn’t result in greater flooding in others. This coordinated effort should be replicated across the Bay Area. The County also conducted a countywide Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment to identify areas that will be impacted by flooding and erosion and provide solutions. San Mateo County has taken steps in this direction with the creation of OneShoreline, a government agency that works across jurisdictional boundaries to plan and implement sea level rise resilience measures in the county. Preparing the county for sea level rise will require a coordinated effort among cities to plan and implement solutions such as wetland restoration, horizontal levees, and sea walls. This means that during storms, rainwater runs off these surfaces picking up pollutants (like motor oil, chemicals, and trash) on its way to creeks and the Bay. Additionally, urban areas are primarily covered in concrete, asphalt, and other surfaces that don’t allow water to seep through. As storms and groundwater rise become more extreme, Bay Area communities will continue to be impacted by flooded streets and homes due to outdated stormwater infrastructure. Historically underinvested communities will be the most at risk when flooding occurs because historic inequities placed affordable housing in higher flood risk areas and because they are more vulnerable to economic damages incurred. While the whole Bay Area will experience rising seas, San Mateo County is particularly vulnerable, with over 30,000 homes, dozens of schools and hospitals, and over 7,000 acres of wetlands at risk of flooding by 2070. Sea levels could rise by up to 3.3 feet in San Mateo County by 2070 and 6 feet by 2100 according to the county’s Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment.
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