Mapping climate change - barriers and opportunities for action

4.1.2 Coasts and ports
Rising sea levels and more powerful storms are expected to lead to higher storm-surge water levels.
Coastal areas will obviously be more at risk. This problem to some extent will become evident
before 2050, however, according to future climate projections, it will not be a major problem until
towards the end of the century. Due to the nature of Danish coasts, it will be possible to prevent the
effects of climate change to a significant extent by making the required precautions in the long-term
planning of coastal protection and protection in form of dykes.
Nature, land development, and infrastructure, including dykes along the coasts, will be affected by
climate change. Low-lying land areas along the coast and Danish ports pose particular challenges.
Erosion and flooding are well known phenomena, which land owners are already dealing with
today. Individual coastal stretches are predicted to be affected by climate change to varying degrees,
however the additional strain on Danish coasts up to 2050 is expected to be relatively modest. Some
parts of the coastline are protected against erosion via beach nourishment. It is assessed that
climate-related erosion can be addressed by increasing the sand volume in beach nourishment by
one-fifth.
Important effects of climate change
Based on future projections of climate change, see section 3, key consequences for Danish coasts
and ports will include
Higher storm-surge water levels will increase erosion and coastal recession:
This is the implication of the general increase in sea level and the fact that the coasts are
being impacted by higher waves during more frequent and more powerful storms, which
will lead to increased erosion and recession of the coastline relative to today. The flatter the
coastal part of the seabed, the greater the erosion. Erosion will be most pronounced for the
west coast of Jutland and less for other Danish coasts. Built-up areas in low-lying coastal
areas will be at threat from higher storm-surge water levels and more frequent flooding.
Furthermore, houses and other buildings near the coast will be at threat from erosion.
More frequent flooding of low-lying coastal areas:
Low-lying land not protected by dykes will be exposed to more frequent flooding. At the
same time, the risk of water breaching existing dykes will increase. Cities developed by the
mouth of rivers, e.g. in fjords, may come under double pressure: from a rising sea level as
well as from increased precipitation and run-off from the catchment area.
More powerful storm surges will make activity at ports more difficult:
With more powerful storm surges, key areas will be flooded more frequently and this means
interruption in port activities and also poses a greater risk of damage to buildings. The same
applies to ferry landings. At the same time, more intense storms will pose a greater risk of
ships breaking their moorings and causing damage to cranes and other equipment at the port.
More powerful storm surges put port infrastructure under pressure:
The port protection that protects the basin itself will be affected to an increasing extent by
the waves and protection will be less effective during high storm surges. In ports where
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