The World (archipelago)

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Construction projects in Dubai (as of 2010)
Jumeirah Beach from space, July 2006, left The World, right The Palm Jumeirah
Model island, built on by the project executing agency, December 2007
Islands from The World in October 2007

The World is an artificial archipelago in Dubai , United Arab Emirates , 4–10 km off the coast of the Jumeirah district, washed up on the basis of rock beds made of compacted sand .

Project idea

The 300 islands are arranged in the form of a world map and represent continents and countries of the world, with several smaller countries being grouped together. The freely available islands will be between 23,000 m² and 87,000 m² in size and can only be reached by boat or helicopter.

The "The World" project is the second largest man-made island project in the world, larger than The Palm Jumeirah and the other so-called palm projects in Dubai. The state is having this project cost a total of US $ 7.6 billion, with the small islands costing US $ 11–40 million each. After the construction of the infrastructure and the development of all islands, a total of at least US $ 14 billion should be spent have been. The small archipelago is surrounded and protected by several artificial, oval-shaped breakwaters similar to an atoll . The total area of ​​the project is approximately 9 × 6 km with a sea depth of 11 to 16 meters.

Dates and deadlines

After the project was announced in the spring of 2003, the pouring and flushing work began in the late summer of 2003. The main mass movements were completed by 2006, after which the individual islands were modeled in detail.

Due to the global financial crisis from 2007 and its aftermath, the islands and the infrastructure were not expanded as planned and work was suspended. At the end of 2010 around 200 of the 300 islands had been sold, but building work only started on two islands. The islands are increasingly silting up and have lost value due to the real estate crisis. At the beginning of 2011, the first consequences of the construction shutdown can be seen: the smaller culverts between the islands are starting to silt up and the necessary excavation has been stopped. In addition, islands are being affected by rising sea levels, storms and breakwaters that are too permeable. If the project should be finally abandoned, it can be assumed that all sand deposits will be removed again in the medium term and become part of an artificial lagoon. In the summer of 2012, the Royal Island Beach Club opened on the model island that represents Lebanon and is now receiving day tourists who are crossing over from the Palm Jumeirah.

As part of the sub-project The Heart of Europe, which is limited to six islands, the first completions are planned for 2020.

Infrastructure

The smaller islands are each around 100 m apart and are to be connected to one another by a marine transport system.

In the planned landside “gateway marina” 10,000 parking spaces are to be created between Port Rashid and “The Palm, Jumeirah” in order to facilitate the journey between Dubai and The World. It is estimated that The World will require between 100 and 140 ferries with a capacity of 50-100 passengers for inter-island traffic alone. Another 60 ferries, each carrying 150-200 people, are expected to be required for crossings to mainland Dubai.

The project is being implemented by Nakheel , a state project developer who has already developed the palm tree projects off the coast of Dubai. To acquire one of the islands, you have to apply to the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Muhammad bin Raschid Al Maktum , with a concept. He then decides on the acquisition of the island. Sheikh Muhammad gave the racing driver Michael Schumacher an island in 2006. A go-kart track that can only be reached by helicopter or boat was discussed for their use.

Structural features

The World 2010 from an airplane

The project is the largest attempt to date to build an artificial archipelago from the seabed, which by means of a surrounding breakwater correspond to an atoll and its lagoon . The breakwater was originally planned to be 25 kilometers long, but is now 28 kilometers long because the water passages were built larger and overlapping in three of the six places. Contrary to the computer simulation, it was feared that with relatively small, unprotected passages, the water exchange could be too low, which would have led to the water quality overturning . In order to keep the water healthy and “blue” in all parts of the lagoon, the main channels between the islands were subsequently deepened.

View from the Burj Khalifa in December 2015

The breakwaters are modeled on a natural reef : Outside, under the water level, there is a first rock sill that allows the lower part of larger waves to collide so that the wave breaks before the main ridge. The wave, which has broken down to about half the height, can then flow more gently through the stones at the visible breakwater edge. Although the client asked to make the breakwater as low as possible in order to keep the optically separating effect low, the hydraulic engineers were able to enforce a higher embankment. You want to be sure that you can intercept a major storm event expected from the north every 20 years.

However, recent developments show the opposite: due to rising water levels and strong storms, the archipelago is threatened with submergence. The islands have to be "looked after" regularly, but due to the real estate crisis there is a lack of money. Work on the islands ceased at the beginning of 2011.

Environmental issues, ecology

Such a huge embankment area poses a special challenge for marine ecology. Hundreds of thousands of tons of material were heaped up on the previously almost uniformly flat seabed, creating a completely new underwater structure. The planners also felt it was important to use only natural building materials such as rocks and sea sand; even concrete carries the risk of chemical pollution. The project sponsor had this conversion process scientifically monitored, because ecologically harmful projects can hardly be marketed. Result of the first accompanying investigations: The rock formations correspond in their function to natural reefs, flora and fauna have approximated those of a natural reef. In the lagoon there are the first signs of seagrass growth, which promotes biological water pollution control.

More artificial islands in Dubai

Individual evidence

  1. http://www.emirates247.com/news/emirates/no-islands-repossessed-on-the-world-nakheel-2011-01-27-1.347651
  2. Dubai fears "world" decline , Spiegel Online, January 25, 2011
  3. Dubai's monument to megalomania silted up , Stern online, January 27, 2011
  4. Frederik Obermaier: Blubb - Sheikh Mohammed had the megalomaniac idea to create a second world from 300 small islands in the middle of the sea. But the project "The World" is currently swimming.
  5. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimdobson/2020/05/24/dubai-set-to-open-heart-of-europe-with-6-outrageous-themed-islands/
  6. Farewell: Sheikh gives Schumi Trauminsel as a present. In: Spiegel Online . October 24, 2006, accessed June 10, 2018 .
  7. Alexander Smoltczyk: Sinking prestige project: Dubai fears the "world" decline. In: Spiegel Online . January 25, 2011, accessed June 10, 2018 .

Web links

Commons : The World  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 25 ° 14 '  N , 55 ° 10'  E