Human Development Report - Croatia 2008 Coastal Zone and Sea-Level Rise^775.3.1. Particularly vulnerable areas
A limited number of studies have been undertaken
in Croatia related to present and future sea-level rise
due to climate change. One of the most recent ones^10
provides both a good overview of the risks of sea-lev-
el rise along the Croatian coast and an assessment of
coastal vulnerability and the adaptation options avail-
able to reduce this vulnerability. This study and the in-
dependent analysis for this Report identify a number
of vulnerable areas on the Croatian Coast (Table 5-1).
Sea-level rise also remains a potential, but less signifi-
cant, threat to numerous other coastal areas. Natural
and climate change-related fluctuations in runoff,
plus future economic development, may intensify the
effects of sea-level rise all along the Croatian coast.
The small island of Krapanj in the Adriatic, which is
only about 1.5m above sea-level, may require com-
plete evacuation in the case of close to 1m sea-level
rise (Figure 5-4). Another potential “hot spot” for sea-
level threats are coastal agricultural areas, in particular
the Neretva River Delta, where significant productionSource: OIKON d.o.o.
Figure 5-3: Flood affected area of the Neretva river valley after 0.50m (light grey) and 0.88m (dark grey) sea-level rise.
(Mesh means urban settlement)West Istrian coast Raša River
Vrana Lake on the Island of Cres (the freshwater reservoir) Zrmanja River
Town of Nin City of Zadar
Vrana Lake Nature Park near Biograd The small but densely inhabited island of Krapanj
City of Split Cetina River
Neretva River City of Dubrovnik
City of Stari Grad on Hvar River Krka
Areas around ŠibenikTable 5-1: Areas that are likely to be vulnerable to sea level rise on the Croatian coast