Sea Level Rising and Land Subsiding

As concerns of rising sea level ripple throughout the globe, one that is often ignored is that of the sinking of cities due to groundwater extraction. Recent studies show that some coastal mega cities are sinking at a rate almost 10 times that of the rising sea level. Drought conditions of this past year are making matters worse. As rain water and snow melt sources are depleted a there is a greater dependence on groundwater as the ultimate source.

The San Joaquin Valley is California's major source of agriculture and farmers in the area are completely reliant on groundwater for crops such as grapes. A majority of the area is sinking at a level of 2.5cm per year, but there is one 2 square-mile area that is subsiding at a rate of about one foot per year. Roads and infrastructure are not built to handle cases so extreme, and adjustments will be necessary in order to escape potential disaster. 

Coastal cities such as Jakarta, New Orleans, Tokyo and Venice are experiencing the same gradual descent causing more frequent cases of extreme damage and flooding. As a result of this, Tokyo has halted groundwater extraction, and Venice is also following suit.