Photo: Until more ports take action [to adapt to rising sea levels and other impacts], shippers will have to navigate a port ecosystem where some facilities are preparing for climate change and others are not: that is the conclusion of a recent article in Supply Chain Dive
The article cites Austin Becker, a professor in The University of Rhode Island's Department of Marine Affairs, referring to the draft findings of a recent survey. Becker notes that while ports such as Los Angeles and New York have begun resiliency planning, they could be in a minority of U.S. ports: "It turns out, there aren't actually that many that have," he said. "There are about 300 or so ports in the U.S. and ... we were able to find about 10 that have gone through a resilience planning process."
In addition to a focus on what is being done or needs to be done to prepare for rising sea levels around the USA, the article also highlights the importance of understanding port-specific inter-dependencies; and stresses how working with partners needs to be a priority. In the absence of adequate preparedness, it finds that the inherent interconnectedness of port systems risks compounding the problem, leaving 'assets such as warehouses, trucking networks and railroads vulnerable to disruptions from climate change and rising sea levels'.
