Florida

South Florida’s beachfront buildings found to be sinking faster than expected

Published

4 months ago

December 19, 2024

South Florida’s beachfront buildings found to be sinking faster than expected

Schematic illustrating potential scenario to explain the observed subsidence pattern. Credit: Earth and Space Science (2024). DOI: 10.1029/2024EA003852

A team of mechanical, architectural and environmental engineers, geoscientists, and geoinformation specialists affiliated with several institutions in the U.S. and Germany has found that many of the tall, heavy buildings along the coast of South Florida are sinking into the ground much faster than was expected.

In their study published in the journal Earth and Space Science, the group compared satellite images over several years to learn more about ongoing subsidence along multiple beachfronts.

Prior research has shown that many factors can lead to subsidence, in which the altitude of a given parcel of land declines. Natural causes include water movement, earthquakes and gravity. Manmade causes include the heaviness of the built environment, including large buildings, and activities including fracking and landscaping.

In this new study, the researchers noted that the many tall buildings along many parts of the coast in South Florida appeared to be extremely heavy. They wondered if adding so much weight might be causing the ground beneath them to sink.

To find out, the researchers obtained precise satellite imagery for several of the most popular beaches in South Florida and compared 35 buildings standing on them over time. Modern satellite imagery is so precise it can detect changes in altitude of just a few centimeters. The researchers found that every one of the buildings they measured was sinking, ranging from 2 to 8 cm over the years 2016 to 2023, and that most of them were sinking faster than expected.

The research team also found that there were differences in subsidence between beach areas. The worst, for example, was occurring on Sunny Isles Beach; after that was Surfside, site of the collapse of a 12-story building back in 2021. Miami Beach, they noted, was experiencing the least amount of subsidence.

Because of the building collapse three years ago, the researchers took a closer look at Surfside to find out if subsidence may have been a contributing cause and found no evidence. Even if the building had been sinking, they note, it should not have led to structural damage unless it was sinking unevenly, with one part of the ground under the building sinking faster than another.

They suggest more work is required to determine if that is happening to any of the buildings in South Florida, and if so, to warn their owners.

More information:
Farzaneh Aziz Zanjani et al, InSAR Observations of Construction‐Induced Coastal Subsidence on Miami’s Barrier Islands, Florida, Earth and Space Science (2024). DOI: 10.1029/2024EA003852

Citation:
South Florida’s beachfront buildings found to be sinking faster than expected (2024, December 19)
retrieved 19 December 2024
from https://phys.org/news/2024-12-south-florida-beachfront-faster.html

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Florida

Florida is poised to ban fluoride from public water systems – WTOP News

Published

7 hours ago

April 29, 2025

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Florida is poised to ban fluoride from public water systems – WTOP News

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida is poised to ban fluoride in public drinking water, over the concerns of dentists and…

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida is poised to ban fluoride in public drinking water, over the concerns of dentists and public health advocates who say the mineral is a safe, effective way to protect people of all ages from developing cavities.

Florida lawmakers gave final approval to the bill Tuesday. The measure now goes to the desk of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, whose administration has advocated against the fluoridation of community water systems, arguing high levels could pose a risk to children’s intellectual development.

Fluoride strengthens teeth by replacing minerals lost during normal wear and tear, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The addition of low levels of fluoride to drinking water is considered among the greatest public health achievements of the last century.

“As dentists, we see the direct consequences fluoride removal has on our patients and it’s a real tragedy when policymakers’ decisions hurt vulnerable kids and adults in the long term,” Brett Kessler, president of the American Dental Association, said in a statement earlier this month. “Blindly calling for a ban on fluoridated water hurts people, costs money, and will ultimately harm our economy.”

While Florida’s bill doesn’t specifically reference fluoride, it will require the mineral and some other additives be removed from water sources across the state, said bill sponsor Republican state Rep. Kaylee Tuck.

“Anything that relates to water quality, removing contaminants, things like that, we’re not touching that,” Tuck said. “It’s anything that has to do with health. So fluoride, vitamins, whatever else it is.”

Utah became the first state to pass a ban last month, approving legislation that bars cities and communities from deciding whether to add the mineral to their water systems.

Fluoride has come under increased scrutiny under the influence of U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is setting the gears of government in motion to stop fluoridating water.

Some local officials in Florida have already voted to remove the mineral from their community water systems, ahead of state lawmakers’ push to ban fluoride.

Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said Tuesday she is “deeply disappointed” by the passage of the bill, adding that it disregards “the overwhelming consensus of dentists, doctors and medical experts and will end a practice that has been in place for decades to protect our health.”

Levine Cava said that ending fluoridation, which is a safe and cost-effective way to prevent tooth decay, will have “long-lasting health consequences, especially for our most vulnerable families.”

The mayor said the decision should be left to local communities.

About one-third of community water systems, serving more than 60% of the U.S. population, fluoridated their water, according to a 2022 analysis by the CDC.

___ Associated Press writer Freida Frisaro in Fort Lauderdale, Florida contributed to this report. Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

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© 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.

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Florida

Panthers rally late in 3rd to defeat Lightning in Game 4 of Eastern 1st Round | NHL.com

Published

1 day ago

April 29, 2025

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Panthers rally late in 3rd to defeat Lightning in Game 4 of Eastern 1st Round | NHL.com

The Panthers trailed 2-1 before scoring twice to take a 3-2 lead with 3:36 remaining in the game.

Florida leads the best-of-7 series 3-1. Game 5 will be in Tampa on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. ET; FDSNSUN, SCRIPPS, ESPN2, TVAS2, SN360).

“We finished well, and it’s nice to give our fans that win,” said Jones, who gave Florida the late lead. “We’re up 3-1 and understand the job is not finished. Both teams played hard tonight, and there were a lot of ups and downs. They scored two back to back, and we stuck with it pretty well and got the win at the end of the day.’’

Anton Lundell had a goal and an assist, and Carter Verhaeghe also scored for the Panthers, the No. 3 seed from the Atlantic Division. Sergei Bobrovsky made 18 saves.

“We haven’t had a lot of these this year,” Florida coach Paul Maurice said. “They have been grinders. It has been tough. We had key guys out of the lineup … so, we don’t have the history of the comeback and that’s a little tougher. It was really important mentally to come back.’’

Mitchell Chaffee and Erik Cernak each scored, and Andrei Vasilevskiy made 19 saves for the Lightning, the No. 2 seed from the Atlantic.

Tampa Bay was trying to match the Panthers by winning each of its first two road playoff games in this series.

“It was tough losing the first two at home, so, we have massive challenges ahead of us,” said Lightning coach Jon Cooper, whose team beat the Panthers 5-1 in Game 3 on Saturday afternoon. “For 115 minutes, we passed every test possible. We just had a tough 11 seconds there at the end of the game. It’s unfortunate. We played well enough to win both games, and came up a little short.’’

Ekblad tied the score 2-2 at 16:13 by getting to a Sam Reinhart rebound in the slot and beating Vasilevskiy over his glove.

Florida then took a 3-2 lead at 16:24 when Jones’ point shot went off Ryan McDonagh’s skate and under Vasilevskiy’s right arm before bouncing over the goal line.

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Florida

1 dead, multiple injured after boat hits ferry in Florida

Published

2 days ago

April 28, 2025

Press Room

1 dead, multiple injured after boat hits ferry in Florida

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