The parts of Peterborough that could end up underwater by 2050

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The parts of Peterborough that could end up underwater by 2050

Major residential areas around Peterborough city centre would be affected

 

Vehicles negotiate flooding on Bourges Boulevard in Peterborough following hours of rain. (Image: Cambridge News)

 

Rising sea levels are among the most widely acknowledged dangers of climate change.

 

As global temperatures rise, sea levels increase, creating a higher risk of flooding and will result in large swathes of land being claimed by the oceans.

 

The 2015 Paris Agreement had a long-term goal of restricting the rise in global average temperature to less than 2C above pre-industrial levels, as well as striving to limit the increase in temperature to 1.5C.

 

However, in 2019, the UN stated that: “even if countries meet commitments made under the 2015 Paris Agreement, the world is heading for a 3.2 degrees Celsius global temperature rise over pre-industrial levels.”

 

A 2015 study from Climate Central declared that, if carbon emissions were to cause around 3.2C of global warming, as the UN predicted, then the seas could rise by as much as 10 metres.

 

It has been reported that this rise in sea levels could happen by 2050 if climate change is not halted.

 

This would have a destructive effect on the planet - threatening the lives of millions.

 

If this increase were to happen, much of the East of England would find itself underwater.

 

This would have the most devastating impact across Cambridgeshire’s fens and would see the market town of March fall entirely underwater.

 

Cambridgeshire’s landscape is notably flat - the fens were drained 200 years ago, turning the salt marshes into agricultural land. These areas are already at significant risk of flooding.

 

However, as climate change accelerates and sea levels rise, large swathes of the fens could be reclaimed by the seas.

 

Peterborough would also be affected significantly by sea levels rising 10 metres.

 

Flooding is already a problem in and around the city, but if sea levels were 10 metres higher, then nearby towns Whittlesey and Yaxley would be subsumed by the water.

 

Inner-city areas, particularly around the River Nene, would also find themselves underwater.

 

Peterborough United’s current stadium London Road and surrounding homes would be submerged, while the Embankment (where the club’s planned new stadium would be located) would also be underwater, leaving Posh without a ground.

 

Major residential areas around London Road, Oundle Road, Frank Perkins Parkway, Fletton Parkway and in Stanground would also be affected, claiming thousands of homes to the east, south and west of Peterborough city centre.

 

Viersen Platz and Peterborough Lido would be underwater and significant parts of the tracks around Peterborough station would be unusable.

 

Nene Park would also fall victim to the water, while the rising level would stretch to Bourges Boulevard, would cover Ferry Meadows, and would create significantly more water hazards at Orton Meadows Golf Course.

 

Around Cambridgeshire, other areas would also be affected significantly. Ely would become an island once more, while parts of Cambridge and Huntingdon would become submerged.

 

Though flooding is already a significant problem in Peterborough and across Cambridgeshire, as climate change continues to take hold and global temperatures rise, the region could find itself in deep trouble.

 

 

Source: The parts of Peterborough that could end up underwater by 2050