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Coastal Issues 183The Role of Adaptation in California PortsBox 9.3California’s three major ports—Los Angeles, LongBeach, and Oakland—had a combined throughputof over $350 billion 7 in cargo in 2009, equivalentto 13% of the GDP of the six Southwest states.With such noted economic importance, port authoritiesare starting to address issues related tosea-level rise. While the greater water depth thatwill accompany rising sea level will help deeperdraft ships, many landside changes will be needed(see Chapter 14). The Port of Long Beach plans torebuild the Gerald Desmond Bridge because theair gap (the space between the bottom of the bridgeand the top of a ship) is restricting some ship transitto times of low tide. The Port of Los Angelesand the Rand Corporation prepared a climate adaptationstudy to consider the impacts from risingsea levels on the port. The creation and funding ofadditional protection or response plans for theseports—and their associated costs —is inevitable(Metropolitan Transportation Commission 2004).Economy, culture, and identityA large part of California culture and identity is invested in ocean and coastal resourcesand shoreline access, including beach-going, surfing, kayaking, hiking, and diving, aswell as recreational and commercial fishing. Thus, the socio-economic impacts to coastalcommunities from sea-level rise go well beyond losses to buildings, properties, and infrastructure.For example, estimated losses to the Venice Beach community from a 100-year flood event after a 4.6-foot (1.4-meter) sea-level rise (the high 2100 scenario fromTable 9.1) are $51.6 million (an increase of $44.6 million over the present risk), whichincludes loss of tax revenue, beach-going spending, ecological value, and other societalcosts (King, MacGregor, and Whittet 2011). However, such estimates depend on a set ofassumptions which—while reasonable—involve significant uncertainties. For example,the 1983 ENSO event caused over $215 million in damage statewide (in 2010 dollars;Griggs and Brown 1998); a similar event in 2100 would be significantly more damagingunder conditions of higher sea level, more intensive development, and greater propertyvalues (Griggs and Brown 1998). Thus, future losses may be higher than the bestavailable current economic science suggests. In addition, Native American communities,such as the Yurok and Wiyot of Northern California, are also examining traditionaluses of coastal areas and the impacts to tribal lands of sea-level rise (including loss ofland due to inundation), undertaking coastal restoration projects, assessing the impactsto salmon of overall ecosystem changes. (For further discussion of the impacts of climatechange on the lands and resources of Native nations, see Chapter 17.)9.5 Managing Coastal Climate RisksOverviewDue to the high concentration of coastal development, population, infrastructure, andeconomic activity in coastal counties, continued and growing pressure to protect theseassets and activities from rising sea levels is expected. Further concentration of wealth,