Many major cities face alarming rates of subsidence, with Mexico City sinking by about 21-25 cm per year, Tulare in the US by 28 cm per year, and Rafsanjan in Iran by 30 cm annually. The most visible signs of this are the over 700 sinkholes observed in agricultural areas in Turkey.
The climate change crisis is exacerbating these problems, as extreme weather events make water management even more challenging. For instance, dams now must choose between keeping water levels low to prevent flooding or storing more for drought periods.
As glaciers—vital sources of freshwater—melt more rapidly, water shortages will become more pronounced. Glaciers have shrunk by 30% since 1970, and global warming is increasing crop water demand,…