Top 10 Sinking Cities of the World
Nature is successfully crushing humans’ ‘Power and Greed’ in the form of flash floods, tsunamis, hurricanes, landslides, wildfires and sinking cities. The catastrophic destruction caused by ‘Nature’ in the year 2019 all across the globe is really of great concern to our civilization. The magnitude of destruction and loss of lives is humongous. But, are we really worried about the grave dangers of our existence or saving our Planet Earth? The answer is ‘the’ BIG NO!
We humans are more concerned about social media senseless tweets of a lunatic President, stupid statements by hundreds of Political Leaders, who is wearing what, which Smartphone is better and which actors are having affairs with which actresses. The Human Civilization has reached to its lowest form in terms of saving humans’ lives at any costs. The real irony is that ‘Power and Greed’ has become the norm of the Second Millennium.
In the month of August 2019 itself, as many as 10 countries in Asia (Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam); 2 in America (Arkansas State in USA and Guatemala); 5 in Africa (Morocco, Nigeria, Sudan, Sierra Leon, Yemen); and 5 in Europe (Spain, Turkey, Switzerland, Italy, Norway) experienced to watch heavy destruction of lives and infrastructure due to heavy rains and flash floods. Thousands of lives were lost and the destruction, which the flash floods left behind are truly immeasurable. We all know the magnitude of burning Amazon, because of its own President Bolsanaro. The wildfires in Spain and California have become an annual affair now.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo announced on the 26th of August 2019 that the Capital of the nation will be moved to East Kalimantan province on Borneo Island, which is famous for its rainforests and orangutans, because Jakarta is sinking rapidly. Jakarta is not the only Capital city, which is sinking rapidly. There are many more, which are on its verge of being called the ‘Sinking Cities of the World’ by 2050.
The IPCC – Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s special report titled ‘Sinking Cities, Rising Seas’ has detailed how the rise in global temperatures is taking us all towards the ultimate ‘Climate Catastrophe’. Sea Levels are expected to rise nearly by 16 inches in coming decades and cities will submerge under water to become part of human history.
Dr. Katherine Kramer, the lead author of ‘Sinking Cities, Rising Seas’ of London-based charity Christian Aid elaborated, “Eight global cities, namely, London, Shanghai, Bangkok, Houston, Jakarta, Manila, Dhaka and Lagos, were used as Case Studies. All of these cities have heightened overall vulnerability to sea level rise and to damaging storm surges due to the fact that they are, well, sinking into the earth. Some cities, such as Jakarta, have lost their valuable natural means of flood protection to rampant development.
Additional factors like poor planning exacerbate an already dire situation, while climate change acts as a further multiplier of existing and future vulnerabilities. These global metropolises may look strong and stable, but it is a mirage. As sea levels rise, they are increasingly under threat and under water.” Currently, the increasing warming of climate at 1 degree Celsius has demonstrated climate impacts’ vulnerabilities and destruction in the most obvious manner. And, global leaders are still not at all bothered to act firmly, immediately and in unison.
The Indonesian capital Jakarta is the fastest sinking city in the world, because of over-extraction of groundwater and rising sea levels. Johnny D elucidates the ‘Top 10 Sinking Cities of the World’:
BANGKOK, THAILAND
In the year 2015, Bangkok’s sea level elevation was five feet and was sinking a little less under an inch per year. Thai governmental officials noted that by 2030, the Capital city is likely to submerge, if the rising sea keeps going at the same rate. As per the ‘Sinking Cities, Rising Seas’ report – ‘As elsewhere, Bangkok's sinking feeling has ironically been made worse by its reaching for the skies.
The sheer weight of its buildings is pressing into the coastal sediments and getting compact, as the sustaining water is depleted from them’.
BEIJING, CHINA
The Capital city of China, Beijing is sinking faster than Bangkok at the rate of 4 inches per year in some areas, as per the 2016 study. Interestingly, researchers noted the depleting groundwater has caused the sinking impact.
The second largest city of China is estimated to have an amazing 2.18 plus billion people, who rely on groundwater as its main source of water in the total area of 16,808 square kilometer. Over the years, water has been accumulating and its extraction has dried the soil to compact.
DHAKA, BANGLADESH
Bangladeshi Capital city Dhaka is sinking at a little over a half-inch per year rate. The river-side city with a total land area of 306.28 sq km is home to 20.628 million people. Extraction of groundwater and shifting tectonic plates has played significant roles in the caving in of the region.
The sea levels are rising in the Bay of Bengal 10 times faster than the global average, which has caused alarm and grave concern for the Capital city. The City officials have undertaken concrete efforts to lessen the deadly impact of flood-producing catastrophe.
HOUSTON, USA
Dr. Katherine Kramer had written about Houston – ‘Ironically, being a fossil producer is undermining Houston's already-limited resilience to climate impacts, including sea level rise’. Over the decades, the Houston-Galveston region has sunk a total of 105.9 inches. At present, the Northeastern sections of Houston are sinking at a faster rate of nearly 2 inches per year. The situation is grave and dangerous in coming next two decades. The US Geological Survey reported Houston’s Harris County region has sunk nearly 10 to 12 feet since the last 100 years.
The over-extraction of groundwater in Houston has taken a toll just like in Jakarta. Industrial-scale groundwater extraction, oil and gas production have caused Texas’s biggest city to sink and sag even further. Privately owned wells and water suppliers continue to pull large amount from the aquifers.
LAGOS, NIGERIA
The 1,171 sq km populous city of Nigeria with 21 million people was once the Capital city of the African nation. The city is prone to flooding and the shoreline is eroding at a faster rate. As per a 2012 study, catastrophic devastation would take place in Lagos, if the sea level rises by 3 to 9 feet. Lack of adequate drainage systems along with subsidence caused by groundwater extraction has made Lagos a high-risk city in the world.
Dr. Katherine Kramer had written that the sea level rise of 7.8 inches could cause havoc for 740,000 Nigerians to lose their home in Nigeria. Non-sustainable development, combined with climate impacts, may not prove a good combination for the city as per Dr. Kramer.
LONDON, UK
It is interesting to note that London is sinking because of a geological perspective. As per Dr. Kramer’s explanation, a remnant of the last Ice Age is responsible for flood-prone London sinking. The sinking is a result of the weight of the glaciers pressing down on Scotland 11,000 years ago, due to which the North got depressed while the South soared relatively.
With UK’s glaciers having melt, Scotland is on the rebound at a rate of 1mm per year. The South of the country is sinking back into the rising sea.
MANILA, PHILIPPINES
Manila is rapidly sinking at the rate of nearly 4 inches per year. The rate is 10 times the rate of sea level rise caused by global warming. Groundwater extraction is one of the main reasons for the sinking city. Dr. Kramer revealed that Manila has an average elevation of around 16 feet.
The subsidence increases the risk of flooding, while penetration of sea water moving further inland during high tides has created alarming situation.
SHANGHAI, CHINA
Shanghai’s rapid expansion of infrastructure has caused China’s populous city to sink under the weight of its own development. Strangely, the situation has become grave due to large amount of groundwater extraction to meet the daily requirements of 22,315,474 people. The Chinese government has taken effective aggressive actions to slowdown subsidence. A GPS system to monitor the sinking and a larger shift away from groundwater extraction, and restrictions on private wells have been effective.
Shanghai’s annual sinking rate has come down from 3.5 inches to less than half an inch. The Chinese are also pumping billions of gallons of water into once tapped-out aquifers, which has also slowed down while reversing some sinking some areas.
WASHINGTON DC, USA
Washington DC is sinking because of a mile-high ice sheet from the last Ice Age. As per a 2015 research, the American Capital city will drop more than 6 inches by 2115. The large ice sheet has pushed the land beneath the Chesapeake Bay upward.
Sea levels in the Chesapeake Bay are rising alarmingly to cause grave concern. In the year 2019, rain water had inundated even the White House.
JAKARTA, INDONESIA
Jakarta is the fastest sinking city in the world at the rate of roughly 10 inches per year. As per the ‘Sinking City, Rising Seas’ report, an approximate 40% of the city lies below the sea level. With its 10.8 million population’s daily needs, groundwater extraction has led to predominance of illegal private wells, which has drained underground aquifers causing dramatic subsidence.
At times rivers have reverse flow and rains regularly swamp neighborhoods. Buildings are slowly disappearing underground and being swallowed by the earth. The high-rise buildings are further adding towards its sinking rate. Jakarta is not only the Capital city of Indonesia, but also is the financial, cultural, political and business centre. The 6,392 sq km area is the second most populous urban city in the world after Tokyo.
