Hidden Unseen

The Disappearing Lake Urmia of Iran

Lake Urmia, in north-western Iran, was once one of the largest permanent saline lake in the world and the second largest in the Middle East, after the Dead Sea. At its full size, it extended as much as 140 km from north to south and 85 km from east to west, covering an area larger than 5,200 square km. Historically, the lake attracted many species of migratory birds including flamingos, pelicans, ducks and egrets. The lake itself is home to a unique brine shrimp species, Artemia urmiana, and along with the surrounding wetlands and upland habitat, it supports many species of reptiles, amphibians and mammals. The watershed of the lake is an important agricultural region with 6.4 million people depending on it.

But for the last two decades, the lake has been shrinking drastically. It’s southern end has almost dried up reducing the surface area to 2,000 square km and its water volume has shrunk nearly 95 per cent. Diversion of water for irrigation process and prolonged drought are said to be the causes.

Satellite picture of Lake Urmia, taken on June 23, 2014

Lake Urmia is an endorheic or terminal lake meaning that the lake has no outflow, and the only way water leaves the lake is by evaporation. As many as thirteen rivers dump their waters into the lake, with the largest being Zarrineh Rood River which accounts for the majority of the Lake’s water budget. Additional input comes from rainfall directly over the lake, floodwater and a very small fraction from groundwater flow.

The most significant cause of Lake Urmia's decline is the diversion of water from its rivers. Other contributing causes being reduced rainfall, warmer temperatures and groundwater abstraction. The number of wells pumping groundwater increased from a few thousand in 1973 to over 70,000 in 2005.

Satellite imagery from 1984 to 2014 revealing Lake Urmia's diminishing surface area.

The drying up of Lake Urmia has significantly affected the lake’s shrimp population. Because the lake has no outlet, Lake Urmia is very saline and the loss of water has increased the lake’s salinity to the point that it’s now threatening the survival of the shrimps. The lake's brine shrimp are responsible for the production of the lake's algae and the diverse migratory bird population which feeds on these shrimp. The loss of the brine shrimp would translate into the loss of many of Lake Urmia's migratory bird populations and affect the entire ecosystem's sustainability.

One can draw a parallel between the fate of Lake Urmia and the tragic demise Aral Sea in western Uzbekistan. Once one of the world’s largest lakes, the Aral Sea faded away due to diversion of water for agriculture from the two rivers that fed the lake. Over the course of five decades its surface area dropped to less than 10% of its original extent in the 1960s.

The drying up of Lake Urmia, however, underlies a broader water problem. In recent years, several large Iranian rivers have dried up, and so has Iran's third-largest lake, Hamoun, in the southeast.

New Scientist reported last year that the Iranian government had earmarked half a billion dollars in a bid to restore the once-enormous lake by proper water management, reducing farmers' water use, and restoring the local environment.

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Chan Chan - World’s Largest Adobe City

Located near the Pacific coast in the Peruvian region of La Libertad, 5 km west of Trujillo, Chan Chan was the largest Pre-Columbian city in South America and the largest earthen architecture city in the world. It was the capital of the Chimú civilization, that stretched along the northern coast for a thousand kilometers from just south of Ecuador down to central Peru. The city itself was built around 850 CE and lasted until its conquest by the Inca Empire in 1470.

At the height of the Chimú empire, Chan Chan spread over 20 square km with a monumental zone of around 6 square km in the center, and housed an estimated 60,000 inhabitants. The city had nine large rectangular citadels surrounded by thick earthen walls 30 to 60 feet high. Within these units, were thousands of buildings including temples, residences, storehouses are arranged around open spaces, together with reservoirs, and funeral platforms. The walls of the buildings were often decorated with raised carvings representing abstract motifs and animals.

Outside these nine rectangular units were four industrial sectors dedicated to woodwork, weaving, and the work of gold and silver. The city was deprived of these precious metals by Spanish treasure hunters who plundered the city during the 16th century. An area further to the south was used for farming; the land watered by an intricate system of irrigation.

Chan Chan was established in one of the world's bleakest coastal deserts, where the average annual rainfall was less than a tenth of an inch. It was this dry desert air that allowed the city’s earthen structure to remains to this day. Ironically, due to the changes in weather pattern, today Chan Chan is threatened by too much water, as torrential rains gradually wash away this ancient city.

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Stingray City in Grand Cayman

Stingray City is an area of shallow sandbars in the North Sound of Grand Cayman, in Cayman Islands, in western Caribbean Sea. It’s Cayman Islands’ most popular tourist attraction where southern stingrays are found in abundance and visitors can pet and interact with the animals.

The stingrays began gathering in the area during the 1980s when fisherman, returning from an excursion, stopped in the area to clean their fish in the calm water of the shallows and sandbar. The fish guts and squid that were thrown overboard attracted the stingrays who normally feed on mollusks and crustaceans, and on the occasional small fish. Soon the stingrays began to associate the sound of a boat motor with food. Years went by, and eventually some local divers realized that the stingrays could be fed by hand.

Today, an estimated 30 to 40 Southern Stingrays have made Stingray City their home, surviving on squid and food offered by snorkelers and divers. Many tour and excursion boats, along with private watercraft, gather at Stingray City in large numbers. The water is three to five feet in depth – perfect for swimming and snorkeling.

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Furore - The Hidden Village

Furore is a small village located in the Coast of Amalfi, in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-western Italy. A long time ago, there was a small settlement here scattered over the mountain overlooking the sea, along a scenic road. There were no central piazza and no tight clusters of houses. The paths and stairs that led to the village were also not visible from the coastline, so that Furore remained practically hidden to the passing traveller. This earned Furore the name of “the village that doesn't exist.” It was then the mayor decided it was time to put his tiny comune on the map. He ordered every house to be brightly painted so that they couldn’t escape the sight of travellers passing down the road. This tradition is maintained till this date, by inviting artists from around the world every September to paint and decorate the local buildings with murals.

Furore’s main attraction is the so-called fjord or Fiordo. It’s actually a ria - a narrow gorge cutting inland from the sea, created by the Schiato stream that runs along the mountain to the sea. A cluster of old fishermen's houses cling to the cliffs. The fjord is also the oldest part of Furore. The main village now stands 300 meters above, in the upper Vallone del Furore.

The fjord is bypassed by an arch bridge over which a state road passes. The 30 meters high bridge is also the location where every summer the International Diving Championship is held.

The local authorities have made the fiord into an appealing tourist spot. An old lime kiln has been converted into a bar and gift shop, the old houses have been renovated, and a museum tells of the industrial heritage and botanical diversity of the fiord. On midday, the sun manages to break through the narrow gorge and shines on the short beach just a few meters wide, attracting a lot of people.

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The Steepest Street in The World

Located in the city of Dunedin, in southern New Zealand, the Baldwin Street has earned the distinction of being the steepest street in the world. This 350 meters long street begins with a moderate slope and then climbs steeply to reach a maximum slope of 1:2.86 or 19 degrees. In other words, the street rises by 1 meter for every 2.86 meters travelled horizontally. The street is so steep that it's surface had to be laid with concrete instead of asphalt otherwise on a warm day the tar would flow down the slope!

Baldwin Street is located in the residential suburb of North East Valley, running east from the valley of the Lindsay Creek up the side of Signal Hill towards Opoho. It rises about 70 meters along its length generating an average slope of slightly more than 1:5. Its lower reaches are only moderately steep, and the surface is asphalt, but the upper reaches are far steeper, and surfaced in concrete.

The street’s unusual steepness was the result of poor planning. Planners in London, who had no idea of the city’s topography, had laid out the streets in a grid pattern with no consideration for the terrain. This resulted in a number of streets that landed right on extremely steep hills. Instead of returning back to the drawing board, or at least, incorporating switchbacks to tame the slope, the roads were simply built at a staggeringly steep grade. Indeed, some of the streets the city planners intended were so steep that were unable to be laid.

Baldwin street ended up becoming the steepest. Other streets running parallel to Baldwin are all quite steep: Arnold Street (1:3.6), Dalmeny Street (1:3.7), and Calder Avenue (1:5.4).

Today, Dunedin residents take pride of Baldwin’s reputation. Every summer a number of charity events and races are organized on the street, including running from the base of the street to the top and back down again, releasing thousands of spherical chocolate-coated confectioneries from the top or sending thousands of tennis balls down the street.

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