Environmental Science
How Groundwater Depletion Drives Land Subsidence in Coastal Delta Cities
Quick fact
In many coastal deltas, land subsidence from groundwater pumping can exceed sea-level rise by several centimeters per year, making the ground itself the biggest contributor to relative sea-level increase.
Why this is interesting
The ground beneath your feet slowly sinks every year. In some coastal cities, the land is dropping faster than the sea is rising.