THE GREENHOUSE EFFECT AND THE SALVATION OF THE COASTAL CITIES OF THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA IN CASE OF THE MELTING

OF THE POLAR ICE

THE GREENHOUSE EFFECT AND THE SALVATION OF THE COASTAL CITIES OF THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA IN CASE OF THE MELTING OF THE POLAR ICE THE DESCRIPTION OF THE PROBLEM One of the biggest danger that humanity is currently facing is the Greenhouse Effect. The continuous rise in temperature of the planet has already been verified by meteorologists. The detachment of huge ice-chunks from the Poles into the sea has been verified, too. The simulators and the models that have been made in computers confirm that if todays emission of CO2 and tetrachloride carbon continues, the temperature will rise to such levels that the ice of the poles will, inevitably, melt. This is only one of the repercussions of the Greenhouse Effect and is the point that I am going to deal with in this article. The articles goal is to suggest a practical way of meeting the floods that will follow in the countries that are round the Mediterranean Sea. Prevention is, of course, better that any cure, but we should ready to face any unfavorable development. A great number of world leaders have dealt with the above matter and there have taken place World Conferences, the most significant of which is that of Rio De Janeiro, to suggest solutions to the problem. The results have, unfortunately, been very poor, as most of the countries give first priority to their economy development and to their short-term, national interest. For other countries, however, this is a matter of survival as a great number of them will lose considerable fertile land, as well as ports, and parts of coastal cities and towns will submerge and disappear.

The countries which are round the Mediterranean and the black sea will, considerable suffer, as their economies are closely associated with the sea-life, and almost all their capitals and major cities have been built on the sea. It must also be stressed that the largest and the most fertile land stretches have been formed at rivers Deltas and at an altitude close to zero. COPING WITH THE PROBLEM- SUGGESTION- ADDITIONAL PROBLEMS- CONSEQUENCES The Mediterranean Sea has had, however, a significant advantage. It is, almost, a closed Sea with two contact openings to the rest of the world sea system. The Gibraltar Straits, and the Suez Canal. The first is natural, with its narrowest opening measuring only 14 KM, whereas the second is man made. By creating locks which will close the two aforementioned openings, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Black Sea, too, will transformed into closed Seas, as the locks will prevent the inflow of water into them. A similar protection system has been working successfully in the Netherlands. If the above suggestion is implemented, a number of problems will naturally emerge that should be successfully overcome. In the first place, there will arise significant politico-economic problems. Namely, as the project should be financed by the 27 countries involved, there should be, at the start, agreement on each countrys contribution to the whole scheme. Taking into consideration, however, the tremendous repercussions of the Greenhouse Effect, the cost is regarded insignificant. Furthermore, there may be created a problem by Great Britain, which occupies a part of the European side of the Gibraltar Straits, although the project can be fulfilled without any use of Great Britains territory in Gibraltar.

Great Britain has, admittedly, no benefit whatever from the implementation of the project (except some place in Cyprus). On the contrary, this Country, as well as the rest, non-Mediterranean coastal countries, will have inevitable damage. The damage will accrue from the rise of the water levelin the other Seas. Indeed if the melting of the polar ice will leave the Mediterranean Sea waters unaffected, The water level of the rest world Seas will be aggravated. This aggravation, however, is small, amounting only to 0,69%, as the surface of the Mediterranean is 2500000 km2, while that of the Ocean is 364000000km2. In other words, for every 100cm of the water level rise, the additional upsurge, in the rest world seas, will be only 0,69 cm, if the work is carried out. From the technical point of view, navigation, to and from the Mediterranean, will keep on going via the present routes. This will be feasible because the hypsometrical difference to be created will be solved through the application of a navigation system similar to that in operation in the Panama Canal Zone. The Mediterranean is, fortunately, deficient in water, because the big irrigation projects that have so far been carried out in the Mediterranean Countries have reduced the water inflow in it. The shortage is now offset by incoming water from the Atlantic and the Indian Oceans. The Mediterranean water deficiency, on the one hand economizes on the use of pumps to channel water out of the Mediterranean basin, and, on the other hand, there will be provided some mechanism to regulate, through proper water channel, the inflow of the necessary water from the two neighboring Oceans, when the suggested project is materialized. Taking this opportunity, I would like to put forward another relevant problem looming ahead which is gradually increasing, independently of the Mediterranean being or not a closed Sea. This is the problem of the rising saltiness of the Mediterranean water. In the future, the problem of the salt percentage in the Mediterranean water will take much greater dimensions: 1. When Libyas desalinization project, currently under way, for irrigating the desert, comes into operation. 2. If the irrigation works continue round the Mediterranean basin, and, 3. If the average world temperature, and, therefore, the greater sea water evaporation continues, on account of the Greenhouse Effect. Here, there may be mentioned two additional points, concerning the saltiness of the Mediterranean water. a. First, the salt that will be returned from the Libyan desalinization Plant should be stored and, in no way, should be dumped into the sea, if we want not to turn the Mediterranean into a new Dead Sea. b. Secondly, at the channels I have mentioned previously for the inflow of ocean water into the Mediterranean, there must be installations to withhold and store, at least, part of the salt of the incoming ocean water. This function will be another service the locks can render to the Mediterranean. Further to the problem related to the rise of the saltiness that I have already mentioned, there may be some additional problems from the point of view of the environment, such as fish migration, pollution during the locks construction and, perhaps, others that cannot foreseen at this moment. It must also be pointed out that similar projects can be carried out in the Dardanelles Straits, (if the Mediterranean is not to become a closed Sea), in the Baltic Sea and in other similar seas CONCLUSION I hold the opinion that humanity has the determination and the know-how to meet danger and disaster. I however, believe that if we to encounter the Greenhouse Effect, then we shall be made to proceed to the above project. Athens, September 7, 1998 CONSTANTINE VALIDAKIS MECHANICAL ENGINEER (NATIONAL TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY OF ATHENS) Validakis@hotmail.com http://homepages.pathfinder.gr/BALKOS2