When is a missing island NOT a missing island
30/03/10 12:05 Filed in: Personal
Like the famous island in the TV Show LOST we are being told by BBC, Independent, Guardian et al, that the tiny island of New Moore Island in South Talpatti (sometimes spelt Talpatty) has been lost to the ravages of Global Warming.
Yes, this plucky little disputed territory decided to succumb to the rising flood waters resulting from melting ice caps and rising sea levels.
What a tragedy it is for inhabitants of the island to loose their home under such circumstances.
Or at least it would be if the whole story wasn’t a total bit of unsubstantiated propaganda.
Not to mention the worst bit of journalism ever. It’s so unscientifically researched and biased that even Richard Black managed to steer clear from it; which is saying something.
I’m afraid the whole article was a propaganda hit piece, here are the FACTS.
The “island” of New Moore Island, South Talpatti didn’t come into existence until it was washed into being following the devastating cyclone that hit Bangladesh in November 1970.
From the Bangladeshi Daily Star, October 1, 2003
The ownership of the island has been in dispute between Bangladesh and India since it emerged in the estuary of the border river, Hariabhanga, after the devastating cyclone that swept through Bangladesh in November, 1970. The island is located about 4km, south of the Hariabhanga river that divides Bangladesh and India on the west. The approximate geographical location is reported to be at Latitude 21 degrees 36.0 North and Longitude 89 degrees 09.10 East. It is believed to be of U-shaped formation with the eastern arm elongated towards the north and had an approximate area at low tide of about 2 square miles in 1978 which may have further grown since then.
So just to highlight a few things, firstly, this article from 2003 shows that the island had been going through the process of accumulated silting. In that the alluvial deposits that formed it in 1970 had been built upon.
Weather in the region and upstream has been suffering from excessive rain in the last few months. It obviously comes out in the Delta, eroding the already shallow island.
An island that at low tide was only a few inches above sea level.
Now the washed off silt combined with the current high temperatures in the area have sank the island from view (by a matter of a few inches a low tide).
This is then converted into the idea that some akin to the Isle of White has been washed below the waves.
The fact is that the reason the island was uninhabited is BECAUSE it was a sand bank and because it was prone to being washed over.
But this story does serve one good purpose. It shows us with clarity the depths of falsehood the uninformed will go in order to promote the concept that the seas are rising and “Waterworld” is upon us.
Yes, this plucky little disputed territory decided to succumb to the rising flood waters resulting from melting ice caps and rising sea levels.
What a tragedy it is for inhabitants of the island to loose their home under such circumstances.
Or at least it would be if the whole story wasn’t a total bit of unsubstantiated propaganda.
Not to mention the worst bit of journalism ever. It’s so unscientifically researched and biased that even Richard Black managed to steer clear from it; which is saying something.
I’m afraid the whole article was a propaganda hit piece, here are the FACTS.
The “island” of New Moore Island, South Talpatti didn’t come into existence until it was washed into being following the devastating cyclone that hit Bangladesh in November 1970.
From the Bangladeshi Daily Star, October 1, 2003
The ownership of the island has been in dispute between Bangladesh and India since it emerged in the estuary of the border river, Hariabhanga, after the devastating cyclone that swept through Bangladesh in November, 1970. The island is located about 4km, south of the Hariabhanga river that divides Bangladesh and India on the west. The approximate geographical location is reported to be at Latitude 21 degrees 36.0 North and Longitude 89 degrees 09.10 East. It is believed to be of U-shaped formation with the eastern arm elongated towards the north and had an approximate area at low tide of about 2 square miles in 1978 which may have further grown since then.
So just to highlight a few things, firstly, this article from 2003 shows that the island had been going through the process of accumulated silting. In that the alluvial deposits that formed it in 1970 had been built upon.
Weather in the region and upstream has been suffering from excessive rain in the last few months. It obviously comes out in the Delta, eroding the already shallow island.
An island that at low tide was only a few inches above sea level.
Now the washed off silt combined with the current high temperatures in the area have sank the island from view (by a matter of a few inches a low tide).
This is then converted into the idea that some akin to the Isle of White has been washed below the waves.
The fact is that the reason the island was uninhabited is BECAUSE it was a sand bank and because it was prone to being washed over.
But this story does serve one good purpose. It shows us with clarity the depths of falsehood the uninformed will go in order to promote the concept that the seas are rising and “Waterworld” is upon us.