New studies led by the University of Colorado show that most of the world's river deltas are sinking. A river delta is a landform created when the mouth of the river flow into a larger area such as the ocean or estuary. This is caused by human activity such as building dams, man-made channels, and man-made levees. This poses a large environmental threat because if the river deltas sink, then the land that separates the river from the larger body of water then the whole ecosystem will be disrupted. This will cause a huge loss of land aproximately 100,000 square miles of land. About 500 million people live on river deltas. This will not only put millions of people out of home, but the debris from the houses will cause mass pollution and could also harm the environment.
This article was very surprising to me. I knew about how global warming was increasing the world's water level, but according to the University of Colorado, 24 out of 33 of the world's major river deltas are sinking. The sinking of these river deltas could not only produce major pollution, but also take away large areas of land. River deltas are very fertile and are mostly used for agricultural purposes. This sinking could lead to a shortage of food in certain areas and a shortage of housing in others.
Josh L.
http://www.enn.com/wildlife/article/40505
With nearly two thirds of river deltas sinking something needs to be done. Stop worrying about the houses and start worrying about the harmful affects it has on our ecosytem. Houses can be rebuilt but nature takes its own course. Now its understanable to use a damn because in some situations places absolutely need a water source, but over two thirds of deltas depleading, thats a bit ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting article. It is hard to believe that 24 out of 33 of the world's major river deltas are sinking. I believe that the focus should be to pose solutions to stop this problem. The human activities that cause the sinking are important but a compromise needs to be met. If this problem is not fixed our waters will be poluted and we will reap the effects. This is a good article that sparks a great deal of contoversy.
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