China’s Coastal Cities Sinking Faster Than Ever | Shocking Study on Sea Levels Rise at Record Speed - video Dailymotion

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A study led by Rutgers University scientists reveals sea levels are rising faster than any time in 4,000 years, with China's coastal cities like Shanghai and Shenzhen facing severe sinking risks. Natural processes combined with human activities like groundwater extraction are accelerating the sinking in key delta regions. Find out how thermal expansion, glacier melt, and urban subsidence threaten major cities and global supply chains, and what’s being done to slow it down.

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00:00Did you know that China's coastal cities are sinking and the sea levels are rising at record

00:05speeds? Well, a team of scientists led by Rutgers University has uncovered the truth.

00:10Sea levels today are climbing faster than at any time in the past 4,000 years.

00:15Their big finding? Well, China's coastal cities are at some of the highest risk in the world.

00:21And this is not just a headline scare, but it is backed by thousands of geological records.

00:26The researchers dug deep. They analysed ancient coral reefs. They studied mangrove formations.

00:33These natural time capsules hold evidence of how high the seas once reached. With that data,

00:39scientists reconstructed ocean changes going back almost 12,000 years.

00:44So how fast are the waters rising? Well, according to this study published in the journal Nature,

00:49global sea levels have gone up by around 1.5 milliliters each year since 1900.

00:54Now, that may sound small, but it is the fastest average rise in any century-long period over the

01:00last four millennia. It is a big leap for a system that's usually slow to change.

01:05Now, the lead researcher, Yucheng Lin, explains what is exactly behind this speed.

01:11Well, two major forces are at play. Thermal expansion and melting ice.

01:16When the planet heats up, the oceans absorb that heat and water expands.

01:19But that's not all. Melting glaciers and ice sheets, especially in Greenland and Antarctica,

01:25dump huge amounts of water into the oceans. More heat, more water, more risk for everyone

01:31on the coast. So for China, the threat is doubled. Many of its biggest cities, for example, Shanghai,

01:38Xinjiang and Hong Kong sit on soft sinking sediment. Deltas made of waterlogged land are naturally

01:45unstable. But human activity is making it even more worse. Extracting groundwater for daily use

01:52speeds up the sinking process. Subsidance, the slow sinking of the earth, happens from both natural

01:57and man-made causes. Now, in Shanghai, some areas dropped more than one meter in the last century.

02:04That's far faster than the pace of global sea level rise. And every centimeter higher the ocean goes,

02:10the risk of flooding spikes for these vital urban and industrial areas. Why does it matter outside China?

02:17Well, these delta regions aren't just local. They're also crucial part of the global supply chain.

02:23So whenever the manufacturing hubs face flooding, international commerce also feels the shock.

02:29So these regions are flat and fertile, perfect for development, but highly exposed to any change in water levels.

02:37So what is being done about this big problem? Well, the news is not all grim. Cities like Shanghai have

02:43slowed the subsidence by controlling groundwater extraction. They are re-injecting fresh water

02:49and stepping up regulations. Scientists have mapped the most vulnerable zones, giving city planners the

02:56tools they need to protect people and businesses. So this study reaches far beyond China. Other major cities

03:03like New York, Jakarta, Manila, all are built on similar low-lying land. They face the same threats.

03:10Experts remind us that while deltas are great for farming, fishing and building cities, they're also

03:17especially prone to sinking when human demand outpaces nature's balance. One more thing is that the

03:23Rutgers-led team used a smart technology too. Their software helps model environmental changes across

03:29millennia. That's vital for seeing the bigger picture. The study got support from the National Science

03:35Foundation and NASA, giving it global credibility. So the bottom line is this. Science tells us that China's

03:42coastal cities and many others worldwide must adapt fast. Sea level rise is no longer a distant future threat.

03:49It's happening now and for many, it's a matter of survival.

China’s Coastal Cities Sinking Faster Than Ever | Shocking Study on Sea Levels Rise at Record Speed

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