climate change on UAE - Stockholm Environment Institute-US Center

Table ‎4‐3. UAE Coastal Cities.
Arabian Gulf Cities Sharjah Al Batinah Coast Cities
Al Mafra Ajman Hisn Diba
Tarif Umm Al Qaywayn Khawr Fakkan
Abu Dhabi Jazirat Al Hamra Al Fujayrah
Dubai
It is, for example, now accepted that in the wake
of the tsunami that devastated the Indonesian
coastline, ill-conceived and mis-directed relief
efforts contributed to the undermining of local
livelihoods.
One of the findings of this study is that the
risks of sea-level rise are caused not only by the
biophysical impact of high seas, but also by the
social and institutional <strong>change</strong>s that these highsea
events trigger. Abu Dhabi has ambitious
coastal development plans as outlined in
its 2008 Year in Review. One infrastructural
improvement is the underground rail, slated
for 2010, which will need to account for coastal
intrusion of seawater. Also, Saadiyat Island to
the east of the Corniche is being transformed
into a luxury leisure and cultural destination.
Kalba
To provide readers with a sense of the extent of
inundation, the following pages include several
summary maps that depict the vulnerable zones
in each scenario; however, more detailed maps
are included in Annex 2: Inundation maps.
Using the Abu Dhabi Coastal Ecosystems as
our base map, we have overlain the three sea
level rise scenarios listed below on top of the
various coastal ecosystems for inclusion in the
main body of this report. Additional inundation
maps are provided in Annex 4.
Scenario #1: No accelerated ice cap melting
i) 2050: 1 meter above mean sea level
Scenario #2: Accelerated ice cap melting
ii) 2050: 3 meters above mean sea level
iii) 2100: 9 meters above mean sea level
Impacts, Vulnerability & Adaptation for
Coastal Zones in the United Arab Emirates
Yas Island is already the emirate’s sports
and leisure centre, and will be home to a new
Ferrari Theme Park, a Formula One circuit, a
water park and several golf courses, polo fields,
equestrian centre and high-end hotels. With
respect to Dubai, the number of traffic lanes
crossing Dubai Creek is being increased from 19
in 2006 to 47 by 2008, and to 100 by 2020—while
these roads may be okay through 2020 and
beyond, infrastructural improvements beyond
that may need to take into account higher
mean sea levels (UAE National Media Council,
2008). If sea level rises to street or foundational
levels of urban structures then there are several
potential impacts. First, the structure itself
could compact on top of the soil. There may
also be general subsidence of the soil (El Raey
et al., 1999).
Cost implications of a changing coastline with
respect to the tourist industry and other sectors
dependent on coastal infrastructure could be
the subject of additional study. To evaluate
effective anticipatory adaptation, this financial
component is critical, however, outside the
scope of the current study.
4.7.1. 2050: 1 meter above mean sea
level
At a bird’s eye view, it is difficult to tell what
exactly is inundated as the sea rises one meter.
Much of Abu Dhabi remains above water, but
is that because it actually is higher than 1m
above the sea or due to the fact that the way
the data was collected- elevation values were
taken off of infrastructure heights, rather than
using ground truths.
Zooming into Abu Dhabi city center, it is easier
to see where the lower-lying areas of the coast
are and where once certain areas flooded, water
continues to flood inland areas.
4.7.2. 2050: 3 meters above mean
sea level (Accelerated ice cap
melting)
Several more offshore islands are visibly
underwater now; and inland flooding is
extensive. Comparing this with key features
highlighted in Google Maps (below), the 3m
map suggests that Mangrove Village is flooded,
43