Sinking US cities already face ‘real impacts’ as subsidence poses risk to buildings and roads

Major cities on the US’s Atlantic coast are sinking faster than previously thought, with some rates of subsidence outpacing global sea level rise and threatening buildings, roads, and other key infrastructure.

Urban centres including New York City, Long Island, Baltimore, Virginia Beach, and Norfolk are seeing areas sinking by as much as 5mm per year, according to new research published in the journal PNAS Nexus.

Such rapid sinking can undermine building foundations, damage roads,…