In a new study, scientists have found that vast coastal cities in South and Southeast Asia are quietly sinking faster than anywhere else in the world. As a result, tens of millions of people become more vulnerable to rising sea levels.
According to a study by Nanyang Technological University
Singapore (NTU) published in the journal Nature Sustainability, rapid urbanization has resulted in several cities consuming too much groundwater to serve a growing population. As a result, the soil is settling. This is especially true for cities in Asia.
“Cities that suffer from rapid localized land subsidence are at greater risk of flooding than those that might be affected by climate change,” the study says.
Vietnam’s most populous urban center and major business center, Ho Chi Minh City, is sinking faster than 48 major coastal cities around the world. The southern Bangladeshi port of Chittagong is second on the list, while the Indian city of Ahmedabad, Indonesia’s capital Jakarta and Myanmar’s commercial center, Yangon, are in third, fourth and fifth place, respectively.
“Many of these fast-settling coastal cities are fast-growing megacities. High demands for groundwater extraction and densely constructed building structures contribute to localized land subsidence,” the study said.
According to the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, by 2050, more than a billion people will live in coastal cities at risk of rising sea levels.
The IPCC says global sea levels could rise by 60 centimeters by the end of the century, even if greenhouse gas emissions are sharply reduced.
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