PLACES THAT WILL DISAPPEAR
Added on: 19th Apr 2015
AZURE WINDOW, MALTA
Located on Gozo, the second largest island of the Maltese archipelago,
the Azure Window is a limestone natural arch and the most popular
tourist attraction on the island. Recent surveys found out that the
arch has been constantly disintegrating and geologists suggest the
complete disintegration of the arch is just a matter of a few years.
MALDIVES
Maldives, a little island country in the Indian Ocean and a popular
holiday destination, is the world´s lowest country. With an average
ground level elevation of just 1.5 meters (less than 5 feet), the country
and its 400,000 inhabitants might soon be washed away by the
rising sea level. It’s very possible that the Maldivians will become
one of the world´s first climate refugees.
ARAL SEA, KAZAKHSTAN/UZBEKISTAN
While some places are threatened by floods, others suffer from drying
out. Located between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the Aral Sea was once
the fourth largest lake in the world. But since the 1960s, after the rivers
that fed it were diverted by Soviet irrigation projects, it has been steadily
drying out. By 2007, it declined to 10% of its original size,
splitting into several smaller lakes.
GLACIER NATIONAL PARK, MONTANA
Extending over 4sq km (1.6sq mi) on the US-Canada border, the
Glacier National Park was once littered with hundreds of glaciers. About
a hundred years ago, there were still 150 of them. By 2005, only
27 remained and they are expected to vanish within a few decades.
The glaciers have been an important part of the park´s fragile
ecosystem, providing homes to numerous animal and plant species.
KO TAPU, THAILAND
Translated as the Nail Island, Ko Tapu is a 20 metre (66 feet) tall sea
stack towering over the Phang Nga Bay, Thailand. This magnificent
rock formation became popular in 1974 when it was featured in the
James Bond movie The Man with the Golden Gun. Since then, it has
been visited by masses of tourists and it’s feared that the stack will
collapse soon due to its extremely shaky ground.
MAGDALEN ISLANDS, CANADA
Located in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, the Magdalen Islands are a
small archipelago and a popular tourist destination, known for white
sand beaches and spectacular sandstone cliffs. But the coast has
been constantly vanishing. Exposed to harsh weather and strong winds,
the cliffs currently erode by a speed of up to 1 metre (40 inches) per year.
DEAD SEA, JORDAN/ISRAEL/PALESTINE
Found in the Middle East, the Dead Sea holds several impressive
primacies. It is Earth’s lowest-elevation spot on land, one of the
world’s first health resorts, the world´s deepest hypersaline lake and
one of the world’s saltiest bodies of water. But to enjoy a bath in it,
you shouldn’t postpone the trip. Since 1930, the Dead Sea has shrunk
by half, currently recessing by a rate of 1 metre (3 feet) every year.
BELIZE BARRIER REEF, BELIZE
A part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, the world´s second
largest coral reef system, the Belize Barrier Reef is the country´s
top tourist destination, popular for scuba diving and snorkelling.
Home to numerous species including whale sharks, manatees and
sturgeons, the area has suffered from severe coral bleaching, oceanic
pollution, and uncontrolled fishing. It is estimated that about
half of the corals have already been lost.
MOUNT KILIMANJARO, TANZANIA
Naturally, it is not the entire Mountain Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain
in Africa that is about to vanish soon but its iconic feature – the
picturesque snow cap. Scientific studies have shown that about
85% of the snow has already disappeared and it is estimated that the
rest of the ice cap will be gone within just a few decades.
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