Reclaiming
Land from the Sea
Oceans, seas, rivers and the resources from within
them have always been a challenging ownership debate. These challenges are made
more complicated by countries that extend their boarders artificially through land reclamation from the ocean.
This is not a new concept. Land reclamation has
been the solution to many countries economic, political, and social
insecurities. For many, land reclamation is to be expected. Over many years
oceans eat away at beaches and rivers carve through rocks or change paths on
their way to the sea. Raising water levels and plate tectonics can turn
peninsulas into islands and sink islands into reefs. All countries lose land
through this natural process of erosion.
As far back as 6,000 year ago, Sumerians
where practicing land reclamation from the rivers in Mesopotamia for
agriculture. In 11th century Netherlands, land reclamation from
swamps and bogs were used to provide more farm land for communities and
reclamation from the sea expand political territory. More recently land
reclamation projects occur throughout the United States for tourism
along beach fronts and cities like Hong Kong, Singapore,
and Dubai rely on this practice for housing
space and economic zones.
The situation in the South China Sea has obvious globally and regional importance such
as military security, political influence, resource access, trade routes, etc.
The decision to reclaim land in these waters has added to the debate over
China’s intentions over the past few years. But, while political impacts of
China's activates are an important and necessary discussion, less attention has
been paid to the environmental implications of the reclamation projects or the
impacts these environmental changes will have on economics and the communities
in the region. (More on this issue here).
impacts:
Reclamation of any kind, by its very nature,
changes an area’s natural systems ranging from aquatic, terrestrial, biological
and in some cases atmospheric, though the latter is less oblivious. Reclaimed
islands are usually built on shallow reefs that may have at one time been
islands or at some point in the future become islands. This process, however,
is usually slow, allowing for adaptation in the area of natural systems. So,
the aquatic impacts of reclamation, while unseen, are often large and the
potential impact of the 1,170ha of land reclaimed by China is no small thing.
Ocean currents are a major consideration for
impact. Currents will be disrupted and slowed as islands impede the path of
water over shallow reefs. Additionally shallow reefs provide a large area for
ocean heat absorption and dissipation into moving water. This is incredibly
influential in storm systems in the tropics as energy released into the
atmosphere is directly affected by shallow reefs. Currents also impact coastal
erosion and sand deposition. Building reefs and islands is often a technique
used to reduce this effect, but this simply displaces erosion and deposition to
another region. This has serious international impacts. (This link has more on reef heat budgets.)
Island building creates more land. In the ocean,
building land means a continual battle against constant erosion and continual
replenishing of lost land from an external source. Typically this source will
come from dredged sea floor but top soils and other materials will necessarily
come from land, which again displaces the strain of resources.
Atmospheric change as a result of land reclamation
is much less known. This, in part, is because atmospheric changes are typically
large scale and a result of major inputs over time. As building islands disrupt
water currents, islands do the same for air currents. They create a new path
for wind and in some cases can redirect storm systems by adding a physical barrier.
In the South China Sea this can be a blessing or a curse depending on the
routes a storm takes. Additionally, islands create a new input for atmospheric
heat and greenhouse gasses. This creates a new input for nutrients that were
once trapped in the sea bed back into the atmosphere. Reclaimed land
specifically for human populations have the same impacts as they would on
mainland regions, simply displaced onto an island.
Biological impacts of land reclamation from the
ocean are huge. Reefs are an ecological hotbed for biodiversity. Coral, fish,
and microorganisms are impacted in a number of ways. Disruption of their
habitat from dredging leads to stress and death, migration into different
areas, and the introduction of new species. Suspended particles and sediment
introduced into the water column reduces light availability for
photosynthesizing organisms, which disrupts the beginning of the food chain. Changing currents also reduce the availability
of food entering the region which further strains the ecosystem. New inputs
into the ocean from human and animal habitation, such as fossil fuels,
plastics, human and animal waste, etc., brings about changes to the aquatic
system.
Above the water, there are huge biological changes
as well. The ocean provides a natural barrier to plant and animal migration.
Creating islands reduces the distance invasive species must travel by air or
floating in water. Seeds and spores transported from non-local soils introduce potentially
invasive species as well and can challenge the survival of local species near
land. (More on this can be found here, here, and here)
Environmental impacts are an important
consideration, but they are not separate from the economic or sociocultural
spheres. The reclamation projects have huge economic effects in this region
that are closely tied to the environment. Damage caused by dredging, displacing
aquatic life, and altering the ecosystems reduces availability of fish
resources. China’s claim to islands and their reclamation projects further
reduces access to fishing waters that are necessary to many countries in the
region. The impacts on tourism may also be felt in the future. Many communities
rely on the pristine beach experience or on the aquatic life in the waters.
Increased beach erosion displaced to these communities at risk will damage
their tourism – either through direct loss of income from a drop in tourism or
the cost of re-sanding lost beach fronts. The same argument can be made with
the loss of aquatic life.
Loss of livelihoods and culture is another consideration.
The most visible impact will be to fisherman. Financial burden to fisherman
will become evident as fishing channels, trade routes, and viable fishing areas
change. Expenses such as fuel and boat upgrades will increase as distances to
fishing grounds move and loss of traditional fishing grounds and even methods
will be impacted. Inevitably, communities will be forced spend more on fishing
or change livelihoods. These will have effects on local communities’ access to
food and market prices will change in response to fishing. Countries that rely
on this area of the sea (predominantly the Philippines) will be impacted the
most.
The arguments for why land reclamation is needed in
the South China Sea hold some valid arguments. However, they may
go against international agreements
(that are being brought to court), undermine economics of ASEAN countries,
directly impact livelihoods of citizens from other nations, and have
environmental repercussions too numerous to count.
For an interesting read that argues for the
benefits of land reclamation, check this link out (note it is by
the International Association of Dredging Companies)