Sweltering heat waves, pounding rainstorms, rising sea levels and flash flooding could be in New York City's future, according to a new report commissioned by the Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
"Make no mistake about it: our failure to act now could well endanger the city that our children will inherit," said Bloomberg on Tuesday in a water treatment plant in Rockaway Beach, Queens.
Among the report's projections are more days with temperatures over 90 degrees, likely causing more blackouts, annual rainfall increasing up to 10 percent and causing more frequent flooding and severe droughts in the city by century's end.
"We're informing ourselves of the risks and beginning to take them seriously," said Dr. Cynthia Rosenzweig of the Columbia University Earth Institute.
The report also warns of dangerous, rising sea levels. In the Rockaways, water levels could rise up to two feet in coming decades, raising concerns for homeowners.
"Here you come to the beach to enjoy your life, and you're not going to put that kind of money into a location if you have to worry about it in the future," said one local.
"The whole Rockaways could be gone," said another.
The mayor said the city's taking precautions, including organizing a task force to protect the city's infrastructure, rather than gambling with having to rebuild after intense storms and flooding.
The water treatment plant in Rockaway Beach that hosted the mayor on Tuesday is raising equipment higher off the ground to prevent damage in a flood.
Bloomberg's also pushing his PlaNYC sustainability initiatives, like reducing the city's carbon footprint by 30 percent.
"A city that is developing needs to be sustainable. The two are inextricably linked," said Marcia Bystryn of the New York League of Conservation Voters.
But with the city's economy in a tailspin, there may be a drought of interest in spending vital resources protecting the city from climate risk that will occur in the coming decades.