Just watched a tidal marsh in Georgia disappear in 3 years

I live near Savannah and there's this stretch of marshland I've been walking past for over a decade. Three summers ago it was full of tall grass and crabs and birds. Last month I took the same path and it's now open water where the marsh used to be. I'm talking about a good 30 feet of land gone into the creek. A local biologist I ran into said the sea level rise combined with more intense storms is eating away the shoreline faster than anyone predicted. He showed me old satellite images from 2017 compared to now and it's shocking how much changed. I never thought I'd watch a whole ecosystem just vanish like that in front of me. Has anyone else near the coast seen this happen where they live?

2 comments

2 Comments

amy_sanchez6d ago

I thought people were exaggerating about this stuff until I saw it with my own eyes. "A good 30 feet of land gone" really hit me because I live near the coast in South Carolina and always figured marshland was tougher than that. We have a spot my dad used to take me fishing at as a kid, and last time I went back, the bank was just crumbling into the water. I used to roll my eyes at climate change talk because it felt like fear mongering, but watching actual ground disappear where I used to walk changes your mind real quick. Your biologist friend showing satellite images sounds like exactly the kind of proof I needed.

the_john6d ago

...and that's the thing, once you see it with your own eyes you can't unsee it. I grew up thinking the marsh was this tough, permanent thing but it's really just mud and grass holding on by a thread. My buddy down in Charleston sends me pictures of the same spots we hung out at in high school and it's like someone took a bite out of the coastline. Makes you feel pretty stupid for ever dismissing it as fake news or whatever.