Alternatives to Expanding a Nations Economy instead of Land Reclamation - Research Paper Example

Land reclamation Land reclamation commonly recognized as reclamation or landfill is the method of forming new land from lake beds, riverbeds or ocean. The land that has been reclaimed is recognized as landfill or reclamation ground. This process can be attained by numerous methods. The easiest technique involves just filling the region with enormous amounts of cement or heavy rock, then filling with dirt and clay until the preferred height is achieved. The material used to fill the region is termed as infill while the process is termed as infilling. Land reclamation exists in four categories which comprise of Draining of wetlands, Building of artificial islands, Floating platforms built out above the water, and Housing built on poles over water. The draining of flooded wetlands is frequently used to reclaim land for agricultural use, port expansions or industrial use. As the world develops, the population increases and the demand for infrastructures of business, commercial, and housing are on the rise. Countries like Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore, used this method as a way of solving the land problems in their states. In the United States, all techniques of land reclamation have been applied, but the primary one is by irrigation. Under the 1902 reclamation act, the Bureau of Reclamation provides water that has been sponsored by taxpayers to agriculturalists in dry areas in seventeen western states. The aims of reclamation include flood control, recreation, and hydroelectric power generation. Moreover, Land reclamation is not the only way a nation can improve its economy. There exist numerous ways a nation can improve its economy rather than destroying the coastline. A country can decide to major in fish production to improve its revenues, or the rare species that exist in the oceans can be a tourist attraction that will improve a countrys economy through tourism, among others. The purpose of this study is to find out why land refilling is a concern and its historical and global context. Also, we are going to look at the reasons we should act on the landfilling issue as soon as possible and the possible solutions. Lastly, we will relate this issue as it is with Bahrain. The paper will seek to answer the question of alternatives to expanding a nation’s economy instead of land reclamation (Zeballos and Yamaguchi, 690). Establish why the topic is a concern Reclamation is not just a local issue, but also a worldwide issue. Due to this, it has an immense significance in the current days. The landfill has been shown to produce more wealth globally, through altering regions that had been dry into a thriving and industrious community. However, draining the wetlands for agriculture or any other activities is one way of destroying the habitat. In addition, reclaimed land is extremely vulnerable to soil liquefaction in the course of earthquakes, which can intensify the amount of destruction that happens to infrastructure and buildings. Another issue is subsidence, both from enclosing wetlands by levees and drained to form polders and soil compaction on land that has been filled. The drained wetlands will finally sink beneath the adjacent water level, increasing the hazards of flooding. Furthermore, The Ecologist have examined and even pause some of the current projects like the 1991 Bureau in Colorado River for the ecological damage the building of the dam has brought about. Therefore, more efforts are required to assess and monitor the effects of land reclamation on the marine environment, particularly on ecosystem services, habitats and species and the efficacy of existing measures and actions (Tomlinson, 189). Historical context Reclamation of land began way back even before the arrival of the Spanish. However, the motives to gain assistance from the administration to regain the schemes started when the 1894 Carey Land Act was enacted. This act aimed at protecting the natural resources. In addition, it was encouraged for lands that were affected by deforestation, grazing, lands with inadequate rainfall, and injudicious farming. The reclamation act of 1902 stated that the central government must plan and build irrigation schemes by use of the incomes from the community land sales and that users of water must liquidate the price and procure the irrigation activities for 10 years. The program was immensely advocated by the Secretary of the Interior Ethan Allen Hitchcock. Amongst the numerous projects in progress, then were the Salt River project and the Truckee-Carson project. In the 1902 Act, there was a provision for acreage limitation; however, it did not stop the process of assumption in lands to be watered, which made prices to the real farmers high-priced. In the year 1914, the period of ten years that water users had to pay for the schemes was increased to twenty and afterward forty (Powter et al., 50). Interests in land reclamation hastened after awful droughts occurred in the early 1930s and late 20s, and in the community work program of in the New Deal under Franklin D. Roosevelt, land filling project was connected with schemes for the improvement of power and food control. The Bureau of Reclamation started to work in the United States Army Engineers Corps in constructing dams and advancing multipurpose schemes. The 1944 Flood Control Act widened the authorities of the central government in these problems. The Bureau in 1991 had to limit the quantity of water distracted to protect spawning salmon because of the damage a dam that was built in Colorado River brought to the environment. The 1992 Bureau restricted the water subsidies that went to family farms as a result of critics who claimed the bureau has been disproportionately assisting the enormous, rich farms (Krolikowska et al., 1140). Global context Land reclamation is an issue worldwide for a large number of species have become instinct because of reclamation, and there is a need to curb this issue immediately (Spedding, 465). The threat has affected numerous countries globally, including Lebanon, Germany, Bahrain, Russia, and also the United States of America. Through reclamation, so as to gain space for developments a lot of effects are brought to the environment. Through land reclamation, water is polluted and becomes unfit for consumption, this leads to a nation having problems with water. For instance, water in the southwest states in the U.S. is an issue that has been brought about by reclamation. Other countries also follow suit and are having similar water problems. Additionally, when a nation reclaims the land, sea transportation that involved Seaways will be hindered and this would impact a nations economy indirectly. Also, the fishery ecosystem will be affected, and this may bring poverty to the fishermen who relied on fish for survival. More and more effects on the environment and the humankind exist with the activities of reclamation. Therefore, land reclamation is a major issue globally that needs immediate action to look into it and the possible measures to curb its numerous effects. Why we need to act and act now We need to act with immediate effect, since the issue of reclamation has turned out to be a worldwide concern. This is because land is seriously affected by the activities of humankind (Misiolek and Noser, 67). Thus, the procedure of altering this land that is said to be infertile need to be effected. Such methods and mechanisms comprise changing the organic and mineral content of the soil, irrigation, and flood control. All these techniques have so far been implemented; however, the primary effort behind the exercise is by land irrigation (Taylor, 31). Although, this process of reclamation has some advantages like the availability of more land for development, more infrastructure and buildings can be constructed, among others, there exist numerous effects compared to the advantages. To begin with, Land reclamation might have serious effects on the aquatic environment. Those activities that happen alongside the coast and largely influence near-shore and coastal habitats like mudflats, sandbanks, salt marshes, estuaries, and halophytic habitats, along with species happening in these habitations like black sea ducks, terns, and grey seals. These marine inhabitants are completely lost when land is infilled from the ocean, hence becoming distinct. Also, reclamation may also bring about alterations in the coastal currents, long-lasting loss of habitats. In addition, reclamation increases noise and reduced quality of air at the levels of PM10, N02 and SO2 in the course of the construction period as well as serious effects in benthos habitats and organisms from elevated fine silts concentration, sand extraction. The infilled land will also minimize the shoreline fishing ground, primarily for local fisherman. But the process of reclaiming infertile land that had no use and converting it to meaningful use is considered a good practice. Actions are required to be put in place so as to minimize these adverse effects brought about by land reclamation. Possible solutions The central government required to develop and plan irrigation projects by means of the incomes from vending the community lands and the water users require to liquidate the cost and purchase that emanates along by irrigation work over a period of ten years (Wallace, 107). Consequently, under the 2012 reclamation act. The Bureau of Reclamation must supply subsidized water to the farmers in all the stated dry areas (Wheeler, 37). Additionally, awareness of the ecological effects of reclamation in present days is limited, and it is hard to examine whether the regulations existing are sufficient. Therefore, knowledge on the effects should be increased and make people adjust their activities in a way that will have lesser effects on the ecology. Also, the national regulations governing land reclamation should be implemented so as to compensate and minimize the ecological effects. National ecological laws and regulations are put into action both during the period of planning and the understanding of land reclamation undertakings. Applicable legislation acts comprise of nature conservation and protection acts, planning acts, environmental acts, and public works act. To ensure these activities have minimal effects on the area surrounding, it is significant to perform an Environment Monitoring and Management Plan (EMMP). The EMMP examines the negative impacts of the reclamation process on the islands. Also, there is need to carry out the requisite Environment Quality Objectives (EQOs). Founded on the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), the EQOs show the maximum level of effect permitted in each and every significant marine habitation nearby the reclamation activities so as to minimize loss of habitats. These legislations also examine the effects on the national heritage and water quality. The EIA normally reflects this impacts, and the results should determine whether the land reclamation process will have positive of negative effects on the humans, habitats, and the species. Therefore, enforcement authorities should make sure the reclamation activities are according to the stated procedure of working, and legislative acts are implemented accordingly (Gruiz, Katalin, and Meggyes, 4) The issue as it relates to Bahrain According to Zainal et al., (1454), at the demand of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BHRS), the human rights projects and geospatial technologies of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) applied a time sequence of satellite imagery to study land cover changes and land use that have occurred in Bahrain since 1987. BCHR has showed concern for the ecological change happening in the country, specifically the effects of such alterations on the non-rich citizens, comprising with concern to access to the coastline and water; changes in vegetation; and massive urbanization, comprising land reclamation schemes. Bahrain is situated in the Persian Gulf between Qatar and Saudi Arabia; the kingdom contains thirty-six Islands. The nation was traditionally recognized for its natural springs and palm trees. The biggest Island, al-Awal Island encompasses the capital city, Manama and is a habitat for economic activity and a majority of the Bahrain inhabitants. Over the last forty years, there has been an increase by 487% in the population of Bahrain. This swift growth in population has strained the environmental resources of the Bahrain Kingdom. For instance, the water consumption levels increased enormously. Additionally, numerous land reclamation schemes have augmented the country’s size while impacts negatively on the environment. Bahrain carries on to develop as a result of reclamation of land. But the subject brought criticizes from all angles of economic, political, and social perspectives (Misiolek and Noser, 67). It is said that land reclamation breached the sweet water canals located beneath the seabed, closing the fresh water supplies feeding the fertile land and the palm gloves (Bardos, 403). According to a study done in the year 2011, Bahrain is among the nations ranked as being stressed by problems of lack of water. Thus, the debate on reclamation of land devastated at the same time restored, causing life to change overwhelmingly. Man-made beaches that have been established in locations like Amwaj Island have remained empty (Maiti, Shee and Ghose, 65). The effort has not been on reclaimed land that has been stolen, but also reclaiming the present and future. Conclusion As the world is evolving at this fast rate, land reclamation is turning out to be an option to numerous nations. However, reclamation of dry land that had no use can boost the economy of a state. But there also exist negative effects of land reclamation as seen and the best way is to find measures on how these actives can have minimal effects on the environment by implementing rules and regulations. Work cited Bardos, Paul. "Report of the NICOLE/SAGTA workshop: Sustainable remediation." Land Contamination & Reclamation 16.4 (2008): 381-403. Gruiz, Katalin, and Tamas Meggyes. "Introduction: smart environmental management." Land Contamination & Reclamation 17.3-4 (2009): 3-4. Krolikowska, Karolina et al. “Institutional and Environmental Issues in Land Reclamation Systems Maintenance.” Environmental Science and Policy 12 (2009): 1137–1143. Web. Maiti, Subodh Kumar, Chandan Shee, and Mrinal K. Ghose. "Selection of plant species for the reclamation of mine-degraded land in the Indian context." Land Contamination & reclamation 15.1 (2007): 55-65. Misiolek, Walter S., and Thomas C. Noser. "Coal surface mine land reclamation costs." Land Economics (1982): 67-85. Powter, Chris et al. “Regulatory History of Alberta’s Industrial Land Conservation and Reclamation Program.” Canadian Journal of Soil Science 2012: 39–51. Web. Spedding, Linda S., and Adam Rose. Business risk management handbook: A sustainable approach. Elsevier, 2007. Taylor, Maurice C. "Considerations for Reclamation Policy." Land Economics 27.1 (1951): 31-40. Tomlinson, Paul. “Evaluating the Success of Land Reclamation Schemes.” Landscape Planning 1984: 187–203. Web. Wallace, Steve. "Sustainable waste management in contaminated land redevelopment." Land Contamination & Reclamation 12.2 (2004): 101-108. Wheeler, David L. "Land Reclamation in the Po River Delta of Italy." Land Economics (1965): 376-382. Zainal, Khadija et al. “The Cumulative Impacts of Reclamation and Dredging on the Marine Ecology and Land-Use in the Kingdom of Bahrain.” Marine Pollution Bulletin 64 (2012): 1452–1458. Web. Zeballos, Carlos, and Keita Yamaguchi. “Impacts of Land Reclamation on the Landscape of Lake Biwa, Japan.” Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. Vol. 19. N.p., 2011. 683–692. Web. Read More