BEAUFORT, S.C. — The greatest enemy to the Parris Island Marine Corps Recruit Depot is one it likely cannot defeat: Mother Nature.
For over a century, the low-lying island surrounded by teeming marsh and serpentine estuaries has held its ground, weathering hurricane aftermath and tidal flooding. But if scientists’ worst-case-scenario sea level rise predictions hold, three-quarters of the 8,000-acre island will be underwater before the end of this century.
Even sooner, in fewer than 15 years, water would capsize the single causeway connecting the base to the mainland, one study said.
