This year, the flood potential along the coast has also increased partly because current El Niño conditions in the Pacific have raised the sea level on the California coast, said Brett Sanders, a UC Irvine professor of civil and environmental engineering who studies flood risks. He said that’s one of several compounding factors, along with beach erosion and long-term sea-level rise driven by climate change, that in the coming years “will contribute to more coastal flooding events like the ones we’ve seen this weekend.” Read More