Rising Sea Levels Threaten Egypt's Ancient Cities

In Egypt's ancient city of Alexandria, waves from the Mediterranean Sea send foam crashing over the sea wall and onto hundreds of concrete barriers built to protect the city from the rising waters.

The crumbling barriers of Alexandria's Eastern Harbor, however, are no match for a sea that scientists say will rise between one and three feet by the end of this century. They predict that rural towns and urban areas along Egypt's northern coast will be flooded, turning millions of people into environmental refugees and threatening some of the country's ancient landmarks.

A City Slowly Submerges

Fishing boats and pleasure crafts dot the water off the Eastern Harbor, hiding the jetties, buildings and sculptures from past civilizations that lie just beneath the surface. More than 2,000 years ago, the Macedonian conqueror Alexander the Great established Alexandria as his capital. The city played host to a cast of historical heavyweights: the Ptolemies, Julius Caesar, Cleopatra and Marc Antony. Many of the places they walked are now under water — the result of earthquakes and the natural settling of the land.

In 1994, a team of underwater archeologists discovered what they believe to be the remains of the Pharos Lighthouse, one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. The tower, which was more than 350 feet high, guided ships into Alexandria's Harbor with a beacon of fire. Emad Khalil, an underwater archeologist at the University of Southhampton in the United Kingdom, says the antiquities that are still above ground may one day suffer the lighthouse's fate.

"One of the … issues we are facing is not just the sea level rising, but the violence in the sea and the waves affecting the corniche, the wall surrounding the Eastern Harbor," Khalil says.

Salt's Corrosive Creep

Alexandria's residents might not notice the change, but rural farmers say they're already living with the consequences as salty water from the rising Mediterranean pushes into the fertile Nile Delta and contaminates the groundwater used to irrigate crops. Just a few miles from the city's port, Khamiesa Abdelsalam Tuto says the sand that covers the trunks of her family's date palms and tomato plants is quickly being replaced by salt.

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