New Report: Louisiana Highly Vulnerable to Sea Level Rise

According to a federal study, the state of Louisiana, along with the Southeast and Caribbean, is at risk from an increasing sea level.

The findings come from the National Climate Assessment, which says the areas are "exceptionally vulnerable to sea level rise, extreme heat events, hurricanes and decreased water availability."

"Nationally, more than 5,790 square miles and more than $1 trillion of property and structures are at risk of inundation from sea level rise of two feet above current sea level – an elevation which could be reached by 2050 under a high rate of sea level rise of approximately 6.6 feet by [the year] 2100, 20 years later assuming a lower rate of rise (4 feet by 2100), and sooner in areas of rapid land subsidence,'" the study found.

The study is the result of a three-year project involving more than 300 experts and top administration officials, including President Obama’s science and technology adviser and the head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Not everyone is ready to greet this report with open arms, however.

The Cato Institute weighed in on the study, saying that the report “overly focuses on the supposed negative impacts from climate change while largely dismissing or ignoring the positives from climate change."

Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) said the report was supposed to be scientific, but is "more of a political one used to justify government overreach."