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December 2, 2008 9:13:16 AM CST

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8 Stories

 Island Paradise 
 Seeks New Home 

Low-lying islands divert tourist funds to buy land

Guardian (UK) Guardian (UK) Nov 10, 08 11:02 AM CST
(Newser) - Under serious threat from rising sea levels, the government of the Maldives is saving funds from the islands' biggest industry—tourism—to finance the purchase of a new national home, the Guardian reports. Much of the country, near India, rises less than 5 feet above the water, and the UN predicts that global warming will raise sea level by up to nearly 2 feet by 2100. More »

More about:  climate change • global warming • island • Maldives • sea level • homeland

 Traces of the Real 
 Crusoe Unearthed 

Character was based on marooned Scotsman

BBC BBC Nov 1, 08 1:38 PM CDT
(Newser) - A dig has unearthed remnants of the real-life Robinson Crusoe’s stay on an island west of Chile, the BBC reports. Daniel Defoe’s character is said to have been based on a sailor who was rescued from the island in 1709. Traces of his four-year presence include post-holes from shelters he built and navigational instruments from his era. The island, Aguas Buenas, was renamed Robinson Crusoe Island after Defoe’s novel. More »

More about:  literature • archaeology • novel • island

ANALYSIS

 Ike's Message: 
 Don't Build on Sandbars 

The costs of living seaside on a barrier island can be huge

LiveScience LiveScience Sep 14, 08 3:37 PM CDT
(Newser) - The barrier islands along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts entice inhabitants with their balmy beachfronts, but prove an equal draw for often devastating tropical storms. As Hurricane Ike's path of destruction across Galveston Island shows, building houses on what amounts to an oversized sandbar can be a critical mistake—though one that is becoming more and more common, reports LiveScience. More »

More about:  Hurricane Ike • natural disaster • flooding • Galveston • island

Lost Divers Fight Off Indonesian Dragon

Europeans pelt lizard with rocks during 36-hour ordeal

CNN CNN Jun 7, 08 5:58 PM CDT
(Newser) - European divers battled a Komodo dragon while waiting 36 hours to be rescued from a deserted Indonesian island, CNN reports. The group, which scavenged for shellfish and pelted the giant lizard with rocks, is dehydrated but suffered minor cuts. Asked if the dragons are dangerous, one expert responded, “Of course! They eat almost everything, including human beings.” More »

More about:  rescue • Indonesia • island • diving • dragon • Komodo dragon

Dutch Float Plans for Island in North Sea

If Dubai can do it, why not the Netherlands? Tulip-shaped, of course.

Reuters Reuters Dec 10, 07 6:35 PM CST
(Newser) - The Dutch are seriously considering building a tulip-shaped island in the North Sea to expand the severely crowded nation and shield the coast from the rising ocean, Reuters reports.  "People live on top of each other in the Netherlands," said a politician.  "We are hungry for land." More »

More about:  global warming • Netherlands • island • North Sea

11,000 People With No Place to Go... Yet

Global warming will put Polynesian island underwater in 50 years

Der Spiegel Der Spiegel Sep 16, 07 6:03 PM CDT
(Newser) - Legal experts are debating what to do with the people of Tuvalu, a Polynesian island state which will be underwater in 50 years if the globe keeps warming. Many residents have found homes in New Zealand but others have met resistance in Australia, where immigration is an election issue. International law has no provisions for so-called “climate refugees," Der Spiegel reports.  More »

More about:  climate change • United Nations • global warming • island

As Ice Shrinks, Islands Emerge

New, unclaimed territories raise fears of accelerated global warming

Reuters Reuters Aug 21, 07 7:44 AM CDT
(Newser) - The melting of ice in the Arctic Ocean has revealed previously undiscovered islands, one approximately the size of a basketball court. Reuters reports that the formerly submerged islands are unclaimed by any government but lie near Svalbard, the Norwegian territory north of the Arctic Circle. The discoveries raise fears that scientists have underestimated the accelerating pace of global warming. More »

More about:  climate change • global warming • Arctic • Norway • ice • island • Svalbard

Israelis Eye Building Islands

Israel approves plans for new international airport on artificial island

Jerusalem Post (Israel) Jerusalem Post (Israel) Aug 17, 07 4:02 PM CDT
(Newser) - The Israelis want to build artificial islands in the Mediterranean, off the coast of Tel Aviv, and put an international airport on one of them. It's been talked about, on and off, for more than a decade; the project has finally been deemed feasable by a planning committee. The panel’s chair said the island chain is needed to support Israeli’s surging economy. More »

More about:  Israel • environmentalism • tourism • airport • eco tourism • island • Tel Aviv • Mediterranean Sea

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