Sea level
Key Finding
Queensland’s sea levels are rising according to historical tide gauge records.
Global mean sea level, which is the average level for the surface of the ocean, shows a long-term trend of permanent sea level rise.
Many tide stations operate along the Queensland coast. Different regions can exhibit seasonal, decadal and multi-decadal changes in sea level due to weather patterns, including the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) cycle and tectonic movement: care must be taken in interpreting trends from individual stations or over short periods of time.
- Tide gauges at Rosslyn Bay (Rockhampton) and Cape Ferguson (Townsville) managed as part of the Australian Baseline Sea Level Monitoring Project (Australian Baseline Sea Level Monitoring Project) indicate a sea level rise trend about the same or slightly higher than the global mean sea level rise trend of 3.2 ± 0.4 mm/year(Historic sea level rise).
More information:
Relevant Sustainable Development Goals’ targets
Download data from Queensland Government data
Metadata
Baseline sea level monitoring project sites at Cape Ferguson and Rosslyn Bay for the period 1996 to February 2020, compared to the global mean sea level rise from the CSIRO historical sea level changes database. Data is presented as a monthly mean sea level change which exhibits strong seasonal trends. Monthly mean sea level change is presented as a smooth trend line for the period to allow comparison with global mean sea level rise. Data is current as at February 2020.