maldives Before the Flood

Will the Maldives still exist a hundred years from now?

It’s an often-asked question in the Maldives, an island nation in the Indian Ocean, roughly 600 miles off the southern coast of India. The Maldives is the lowest country on the planet -– the vast majority of it is only about three feet above sea level -– and, if the tides of global climate change continue on their current path, it’s in danger of being flooded into extinction.

The Maldives got a preview of its possible future in 2004, when the tsunami that battered Asia put about 40 percent of its 1,192 islands under water. The nation’s government began to think seriously about buying property in other countries -– Sri Lanka, India, Australia -– so its nearly 400,000 citizens would have a place to live if the oceans continue to rise.

Earlier this year, the government took another step to ensure its future. It hired a Dutch firm, Dutch Docklands, to determine if it could build a “floating” resort -– including some houses, a hotel, meeting space, and a golf course of some kind –- near Male, the nation’s capital and largest city.

We’re betting that the answer is yes. Dutch Docklands specializes in making big things float, using what it calls “intellectual property” that it’s developed through years of experience “in the battle against water” in the Netherlands. The company has built artificial islands in Dubai and floating apartment complexes, restaurants, and beaches elsewhere.

The question, of course, is whether Dutch Docklands could build a floating resort without breaking the proverbial bank. Could the resort attract enough vacationers to justify the expense? And even if it could, would the construction be worth the effort?

Maybe it would if your primary intent is simply to raise awareness about the potential impact of global climate change, which may be the ultimate point of this exercise. The Maldives’ president, Mohamed Nasheed, suggested as much at last year’s United Nations conference on climate change in Copenhagen. “We’re trying to send our message,” Nasheed said, to “let the world know what is happening and what will happen to the Maldives if climate change is not checked.”

The U.N. predicts that the world’s oceans will rise by up to 23 inches by the end of the 21st century. If that’s true, it’s clearly sink or swim time for the Maldives.

DutchDocklands.com