Small atoll islands may grow, not sink, as sea levels rise
New Scientist: Rising seas are eating away at small islands and will eventually turn their inhabitants into climate refugees, right? Not so for some of the world's most threatened islands, which have grown despite experiencing dramatic sea level rise...Paul Kench of the University of Auckland, New Zealand, and colleagues found no evidence of heightened erosion. After poring over more than a century's worth of data, including old maps and aerial and satellite imagery, they conclude that 18 out of 29 islands have actually grown. As a whole, the group grew by more than 18 hectares, while many islands changed shape or shifted sideways.