The sea at Copenhagen is projected to rise by 38 to 86 centimetres by 2100 and by 55 to 189 centimetres by 2150, according to figures the city gave its council in November 2024. Its storm-surge planning assumes 0.7 to 1 metre by 2100.
Metres, not centimetres, in a storm
Work by the Danish Coastal Authority and DMI, published in February 2024, puts extreme storm-surge water levels towards 2125 at up to 4 metres in the north of the city, near Lynetteholm, and 5 metres in the south, before waves.
An island designed to be raised
Lynetteholm, the artificial island being built by By & Havn, is designed as an adaptive defence for northern Copenhagen. Its perimeter crest is 2.5 to 3.5 metres, its continuous security level 4 metres, and its urban terrain will sit at a minimum of 5 metres.
One strategy for rain, sea, groundwater and heat
On 16 June 2025 the city's technical and environmental committee approved the outline of a single climate adaptation strategy built on four themes: more rain and cloudbursts, rising sea level and storm surge, rising groundwater, and urban heat. It will replace plans dating from 2011 and 2012. A committee amendment requires it to show how it will be financed.
October has passed
The city's 2026 Climate Adaptation Report said the draft was expected to be presented politically in October 2026, with adoption early in 2027. It was not on the climate committee's agendas of 5 and 26 October 2026.
How far cloudburst funding rules have cut the city's flood programme, how drought now affects the water supply, which projects are funded and what to watch before 1 January 2027 are set out in the report. The full report, Climate Resilience: Drought and Flood Risk in Copenhagen, is available for USD 249. For a free overview, see Copenhagen City Snapshot.