@article{fdi:010053776,
  title = {{C}omparing the role of absolute sea-level rise and vertical tectonic motions in coastal flooding, {T}orres {I}slands ({V}anuatu)},
  author = {{B}allu, {V}al{\'e}rie and {B}ouin, {M}. {N}. and {S}im{\'e}oni, {P}. and {C}rawford, {W}ayne and {C}almant, {S}t{\'e}phane and {B}or{\'e}, {J}ean-{M}ichel and {K}anas, {T}. and {P}elletier, {B}ernard},
  editor = {},
  language = {{ENG}},
  abstract = {{S}ince the late 1990s, rising sea levels around the {T}orres {I}slands (north {V}anuatu, southwest {P}acific) have caused strong local and international concern. {I}n 2002-2004, a village was displaced due to increasing sea incursions, and in 2005 a {U}nited {N}ations {E}nvironment {P}rogramme press release referred to the displaced village as perhaps the world's first climate change "refugees." {W}e show here that vertical motions of the {T}orres {I}slands themselves dominate the apparent sea-level rise observed on the islands. {F}rom 1997 to 2009, the absolute sea level rose by 150 +/- 20 mm. {B}ut {GPS} data reveal that the islands subsided by 117 +/- 30 mm over the same time period, almost doubling the apparent gradual sea-level rise. {M}oreover, large earthquakes that occurred just before and after this period caused several hundreds of mm of sudden vertical motion, generating larger apparent sea-level changes than those observed during the entire intervening period. {O}ur results show that vertical ground motions must be accounted for when evaluating sea-level change hazards in active tectonic regions. {T}hese data are needed to help communities and governments understand environmental changes and make the best decisions for their future.},
  keywords = {geodesy ; seismic cycle ; island arcs ; vertical motion},
  booktitle = {},
  journal = {{P}roceedings of the {N}ational {A}cademy of {S}ciences of the {U}nited {S}tates of {A}merica},
  volume = {108},
  numero = {32},
  pages = {13019--13022},
  ISSN = {0027-8424},
  year = {2011},
  DOI = {10.1073/pnas.1102842108},
  URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010053776},
}