Societal impacts of sea level rise induced erosion in southern Sweden (SISLER)

Sea level rise is a key effect of modern climate change.

The Skåne coastline is uniquely sensitive within Sweden to sea level rise because it is mostly formed of sediments and its low-lying topography is overprinted by extensive built environments including urban areas, transport, energy, and farming infrastructure, as well as managed nature reserves and other important recreational areas.

Swedish municipalities are legally obliged (“Plan- och bygglagen”) to include climate- and erosion-related risks in their spatial planning.

However, it is a challenge for coastal municipalities to fully comply with the legal requirements because the scientific basis is presently difficult to interpret for coastal adaptation to sea level rise and there is currently limited research describing the effects of sea-level rise on erosion along Swedish coasts.

This project is designed to address these shortcomings through: (i) developing physical process-based predictions of erosion driven by sea level rise for the Skåne coastline; and (ii) co-creating with our end-users an understanding of these predictions to inform adaptation of the built coastal environments of Skåne to rising sea level through sustainable technical and ecosystem-based solutions.

Our predictions of coastal response to sea level rise, including analyses of probabilities, will be communicated to our end-users using an interactive GIS platform.