Miami, Jun 16 (EFE).– Bolivian engineer Carlos Tamayo has proposed a solution for the sea level rise caused by climate change that has earned him an award in the Global Impact competition organized by Silicon Valley’s Singularity University.

“Definitely, there is a problem with rising sea levels that affects cities like Miami Beach and Fort Lauderdale,” Tamayo said in an interview with Efe.

South Florida residents are concerned about rising sea levels and engineering could help in finding solutions.

The ground in the region is porous limestone, allowing underground water to rise to the surface.

The options, according to the Bolivian engineer, must include the construction of levees, elevating beaches and adapting drainage networks.

Tamayo has proposed using a digital tool that allows the evaluation of a system comprised of dams with underground barriers to deal with rising sea levels and salt water encroachment.

Miami is the world’s most vulnerable city to property damage – estimated at more than $416 billion – from rising sea levels, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, or OECD, says.

Tamayo said it was necessary to know that measures are being taken to deal with a problem common to other cities, like Amsterdam, and that solutions can be found with multi-disciplinary efforts.

The rise in sea levels “is not a myth and something must be done, but the problem must be approached in a reasonable way to avoid panic,” Tamayo, an adviser to the city of Miami Beach, said.

The goal, he said, is to implement mitigation measures and adapt to the current situation.

Tamayo, a graduate of Bolivia‘s Catholic University who holds a graduate degree in engineering from Florida International University, took on a challenge from Singularity, which describes itself as part university, part think tank and part business incubator, to come up with innovative options for dealing with rising sea levels.

The Bolivian engineer, who comes from a landlocked country, won one of the scholarships sponsored by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation for the post-graduate program at the university in Mountain View, California. EFE