The map shows the relative risk that physical changes will occur as sea level rises. The
Coastal Vulnerability Index used here is calculated based on tidal range, wave height, coastal slope, shoreline change,
landform and processes, and historical rate of relative sea level rise. The approach combines a coastal system’s
susceptibility to change with its natural ability to adapt to changing environmental conditions, and yields a relative measure
of the system’s natural vulnerability to the effects of sea level rise. (Data from Hammar-Klose and Thieler
2001487b04ce-2b8a-4abe-ae9c-c03672fdaef5).