Nile Delta, the end of the miracle (The)

details

Production
2008, France
Original language
French
Running time
00:43:00
Genre
documentary
Topic
environment
Directed by
Luc Riolon
Written by
Luc Riolon, Philippe Muller
Produced by
bleu Krystal media, ARTE France, IRD
Member page
bleu Krystal media

A serious threat hangs over the Egyptians, they will be among the first to suffer the consequences of global warming: much of the overpopulated delta will be submerged by 2100 with a Mediterranean sea increasingly aggressive. Nearly 40 million people live less than two meters above sea level... Egyptians are studying this phenomenon: Dr. Mohamed Bahnassi, scientist at the University of Alexandria, has demonstrated the progression of the sea of 100 meters per year for 14 years at the forefront of Rosetta.
But global warming is not the only responsible for this pending catastrophe. Since 1963, the Aswan dam holds millions of tons of silt (famous fertilizer) from Ethiopia. This silt allowed the delta to resist the sea in reconstructing it as the waves tore it. In addition, the delta sinks naturally under its own weight, 10 mm per year in the last 10 years of the twentieth century!
Two thirds of the farmers suffer from salinization of their land on which almost nothing grows. Because of the water pollution from fertilizers and the plant's wastes into the Nile, the Egyptian have to face a challenge: finding solutions to these vital issues. Only a few pioneers are offering their country real opportunities for sustainable development, concrete and amazing ingenuity.