Artificial island

The Flevopolder in the Netherlands is 970 km² and is the largest island formed by reclaimed land in the world.

An artificial island or man-made island is an island that has been constructed by people rather than formed by natural means. They are created by expanding existing islets, construction on existing reefs, or amalgamating several natural islets into a bigger island.

Early artificial islands included floating structures in still waters, or wooden or megalithic structures erected in shallow waters (e.g., crannógs and Nan Madol discussed below). In modern times artificial islands are usually formed by land reclamation, but some are formed by the incidental isolation of an existing piece of land during canal construction (e.g. Donauinsel and Dithmarschen), or flooding of valleys resulting in the tops of former knolls getting isolated by water (e.g. Barro Colorado Island). The largest artificial island, René-Levasseur Island, was formed by flooding of two adjacent reservoirs.

Some recent developments have been made more in the manner of oil platforms (e.g., Sealand and Republic of Rose Island).

Artificial islands may vary in size from small islets reclaimed solely to support a single pillar of a building or structure, to those that support entire communities and cities.

History

Despite a popular image of modernity, artificial islands actually have a long history in many parts of the world, dating back to the reclamed islands of Ancient Egyptian civilization, the Stilt crannogs of prehistoric Scotland and Ireland, the ceremonial centers of Nan Madol in Micronesia and the still extant floating islands of Lake Titicaca.^[1] The city of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec predecessor of Mexico City that was home to 500,000 people when the Spaniards arrived, stood on a small natural island in Lake Texcoco that was surrounded by countless artificial chinamitl islands.

Reef Island off North Malaita.

The people of Langa Langa Lagoon and Lau Lagoon in Malaita, Solomon Islands built about 60 artificial islands on the reef including Funaafou, Sulufou and Adaege.^[2][3] The people of Lau Lagoon build islands on the reef as these provided protection against attack from the people who lived in the centre of Malaita.^[4][5] These islands were formed literally one rock at a time. A family would take their canoe out to the reef which protects the lagoon and then dive for rocks, bring them to the surface and then return to the selected site and drop the rocks into the water. Living on the reef was also healthier as the mosquitoes, which infested the coastal swamps, were not found on the reef islands. The Lau people continue to live on the reef islands.^[2]

Many artificial islands have been built in urban harbors to provide either a site deliberately isolated from the city or just spare real estate otherwise unobtainable in a crowded metropolis. An example of the first case is Dejima (or Deshima), created in the bay of Nagasaki in Japan's Edo period as a contained center for European merchants. During the isolationist era, Dutch people were generally banned from Nagasaki and Japanese from Dejima. Similarly, Ellis Island, in Upper New York Bay beside New York City, a former tiny islet greatly expanded by Land Reclamation, served as an isolated immigration center for the United States in the late 19th and early 20th century, preventing an escape to the city of those refused entry for disease or other perceived flaws, who might otherwise be tempted toward illegal immigration. One of the most well-known artificial islands is the Île Notre-Dame in Montreal, built for Expo 67.

The Venetian Islands in Miami Beach, Florida, in Biscayne Bay added valuable new real estate during the Florida land boom of the 1920s. When the bubble that the developers were riding burst, the bay was left scarred with the remnants of their failed project. A boom town development company was building a sea wall for an island that was to be called Isola di Lolando but could not stay in business after the 1926 Miami Hurricane and the Great Depression, dooming the island-building project. The concrete pilings from the project still stand as another development boom roared around them, 80 years later.

Dejima, not allowed direct contact with nearby Nagasaki  Eighty-year-old sea wall pilings from the failed Isola di Lolando construction project in Miami Beach, Florida  Our Lady of the Rocks (Gospa od Škrpjela) in Montenegro

Largest artificial islands according to their size (reclaimed lands)

Modern projects

Netherlands

In 1969, the Flevopolder in the Netherlands was finished, as part of the Zuiderzee Works. It has a total land surface of 970 km², which makes it by far the largest artificial island by land reclamation in the world. The island consists of two polders Eastern Flevoland and Southern Flevoland. Together with the Noordoostpolder these form Flevoland, the 12th province of the Netherlands, which completely consists of reclaimed land.

Qatar

The Pearl-Qatar is in the north of the Qatari Capital Doha, home to a range of residential, commercial and tourism activities. Qanat Quartier is designed to be a 'Virtual Venice in the Middle East'.

Dubai, UAE

Dubai is home to several artificial island projects. They include the Palm Islands projects (Palm Jumeirah, Palm Jebel Ali, and Palm Deira); and The World, The Universe and the Dubai Waterfront. Of all these, only the Palm Jumeirah is complete and inhabited so far. Also, the Burj Al Arab is on its own artificial island.^[7] The Universe, Palm Jebel Ali, Dubai Waterfront, and Palm Deira are on hold.

China

China has conducted a land reclamation project which had built at least seven artificial islands in the South China Sea totaling 2000 acres in size by mid 2015.^[8] One artificial island built on Fiery Cross Reef near the Spratly Islands is now the site of a military barracks, lookout tower and a runway long enough to handle Chinese military aircraft.^[9]

Airports

Kansai International Airport is the first airport to be built completely on an artificial island in 1994, followed by Chūbu Centrair International Airport in 2005 and the New Kitakyushu Airport and Kobe Airport in 2006. When Hong Kong International Airport opened in 1998, 75% of the property was created using Land reclamation upon the existing islands of Chek Lap Kok and Lam Chau.

Gallery

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  A view of Kansai International Airport from space

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  Palm Jumeirah in Dubai

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  A more close up view of the Palm Jumeirah

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  Northstar Island, an artificial island for oil drilling in the Beaufort Sea

Political status

Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea treaty (UNCLOS), artificial islands are not considered harbor works (Article 11) and are under the jurisdiction of the nearest coastal state if within 200 nautical miles (370 km) (Article 56).^[10] Artificial islands are not considered islands for purposes of having their own territorial waters or exclusive economic zones, and only the coastal state may authorize their construction (Article 60); however, on the high seas beyond national jurisdiction, any "state" may construct artificial islands (Article 87).

See also

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Artificial islands.

• Artificial Islands in The Law of the Sea