Sea levels 'could rise by more than 1m due to global warming'

Washington, July 7 (ANI): A scientist has warned that climate change could drive up sea levels by twice as much as previously predicted.

Scientists working for the UN concluded in a 2007 report that sea levels could rise by 18 to 59cm by the end of this century, reports News.com.au.

Tim Naish, an Antarctic researcher at New Zealand's Victoria University of Wellington, said that new data suggested sea levels could rise by a metre or more within that time.

His work examining sediment cores from Antarctica's seafloor indicates if the planet were two to three degrees warmer, it would have a dramatic effect on the polar ice sheet.

Naish told the Australian Earth Sciences Convention in Canberra that a sea level rise of 1m could have devastating effects for coastal communities around the world, including in Australia. (ANI)