Which risk increases when thawing permafrost destabilizes coastal bluffs undergoing wave action?

💡 Explanation

When thawing permafrost weakens coastal bluffs, wave action further degrades the coastline because the ice cementing bluff sediments melts, reducing shear strength and increasing vulnerability to wave attack. Therefore, accelerated erosion rates result, rather than increased methane hydrates, thermokarst lake expansion, or reduced sediment delivery, which operate via different climatic or hydrological mechanisms.

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