Over half of India\u2019s major deltas are sinking, driven by groundwater extraction: Study
<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ganga-Brahmaputra, Brahmani, Mahanadi and Godavari among deltas where land subsidence now outpaces sea-level rise<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nSubsidence outpacing sea-level rise
Among the various threats, land subsidence \u2014 the gradual sinking of the Earth\u2019s surface \u2014 has emerged as a major contributor to risk in river deltas.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nThe researchers selected deltas based on subsidence rates and horizontal land motion measured at 75-metre resolution, focusing on areas with populations exceeding three million, historically recognised sinking deltas, and less-populated but ecologically and economically important regions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Their analysis shows that between 2014 and 2023, more than half of the deltas experienced subsidence rates exceeding 3mm per year. In 13 deltas (Nile, Po, Vistula, Ceyhan, Brahmani, Mahanadi, Chao Phraya, Mekong, Red, Ciliwung, Brantas, Godavari and Yellow River) average subsidence rates exceeded current estimates of global mean sea-level rise of about 4 millimetres (mm) per year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The study found that 35 per cent of the total delta area analysed is sinking, and in 38 of the 40 deltas, more than half of the area showed subsidence. Nearly 50 per cent of the deltas \u2014 including India\u2019s Brahmani, Mahanadi and Ganga-Brahmaputra \u2014 showed widespread subsidence affecting more than 90 per cent of their area, including Brahmani, Mahanadi and Ganga-Brahmaputra in India.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Brahmani and Mahanadi stood out among the fastest-sinking deltas, with 77 per cent and 69 per cent of their respective areas subsiding, and large portions sinking at rates faster than 5 mm per year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The researchers calculated that around 460,370 square kilometres of delta land worldwide is exposed to subsidence. When set against an estimated 710,000 to 855,000 square kilometres of habitable delta terrain globally, this means between 54 per cent and 65 per cent of the world\u2019s deltas are now sinking, based on analysis of 40 river deltas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Large deltas dominate total land loss<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Seven major deltas \u2014 Ganga-Brahmaputra, Nile, Mekong, Yangtze, Amazon, Irrawaddy and Mississippi \u2014 account for about 57 per cent of the total subsiding delta area worldwide, covering roughly 265,000 square kilometres.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In 18 of the 40 deltas analysed, including India\u2019s Brahmani, Mahanadi, Ganga-Brahmaputra and Godavari, the study found that local land subsidence is occurring faster than regional geocentric sea-level rise, compounding flood risk even in the absence of extreme sea-level change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Several major cities located in delta regions are also sinking at rates equal to or higher than their surrounding landscapes. Kolkata, located in the Ganga-Brahmaputra delta, is among the cities experiencing significant subsidence, alongside Alexandria in the Nile delta, Bangkok in the Chao Phraya delta, Dhaka, and Shanghai.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This increases their vulnerability to flooding, infrastructure damage and long-term displacement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Groundwater extraction a key driver<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
The study identifies excessive groundwater extraction as a primary cause of subsidence in the Ganga-Brahmaputra and Cauvery deltas, largely driven by unsustainable use for agriculture, industry and domestic supply in densely populated regions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When groundwater is extracted faster than it can be replenished, underground sediments compact under their own weight, leading to irreversible surface-level decline. While natural geological compaction occurs slowly, the authors of the paper noted that human activity has accelerated the process into an urgent environmental crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Mahanadi and Kabani deltas are affected by a combination of groundwater depletion, reduced sediment supply due to upstream dams and levees, and population-driven land-use changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Like many deltas worldwide, Indian deltas are increasingly deprived of the seasonal silt deposits that historically maintained their elevation, as river regulation and infrastructure disrupt natural sediment flows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The study points out that this pattern mirrors what has already occurred in the Nile, Po and Mississippi deltas, where dams and flood-control systems have caused severe sediment deficits and rapid elevation loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Low preparedness, high risk<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
The researchers classify many Indian deltas as \u201cunprepared divers\u201d \u2014 regions facing high rates of relative sea-level rise but with low adaptation readiness due to institutional and financial constraints.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This lack of preparedness disproportionately affects Indigenous and rural communities, who often live in the lowest-lying areas \u2014 below one metre above sea level \u2014 and face significant barriers to relocation due to cultural, economic and subsistence ties to the land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The authors warned that without urgent action to regulate groundwater extraction, restore sediment flows and strengthen adaptation planning, India\u2019s deltas \u2014 and those elsewhere \u2014 will face escalating risks from flooding, land loss and displacement in the coming decades.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Over half of India\u2019s major deltas are sinking, driven by groundwater extraction: Study Ganga-Brahmaputra, Brahmani, Mahanadi and Godavari among deltas where land subsidence now outpaces sea-level rise Subsidence outpacing sea-level…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":66,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-53","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles"],"yoast_head":"\r\n
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