Sustainability Momentum Sdn Bhd

Photo Credit: BBC 

Gilles Erkens from the Deltares Research Institute has warned that some of the world’s coastal megacities, such as Jakarta, Ho Chi Minh City and Bangkok are sinking 10 times faster than water rising and would probably sink below sea level if no immediate action is taken. Compared to natural subsidence, human activity such as groundwater extraction for drinking water has greater impacts on the land. Combined with the effects of rising sea levels, larger and longer floods are expected to occur in coastal regions. According to the research, the best solution to mitigate the problem is to stop pumping groundwater and seek alternative water sources for the cities. Tokyo and Venice are examples of cities which did so to combat land subsidence in their countries.