Eco-Development Response to Climate Change and the Isostatic Uplift of Southwestern Finland

• Published in: Sustainability
• Main Authors: Guido J.M. Verstraeten, Willem W. Verstraeten
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2019
• Subjects: isostatic uplift; sea regression; development paradigm; ecosystem shift; climate change; Environmental effects of industries and plants; TD194-195; Renewable energy sources; TJ807-830; Environmental sciences; GE1-350; Canada; Fennoscandia
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3390/su11216098; https://doaj.org/article/1696bcc57af148fe8dcb959b2d4dde17

To date, care for our planet is mainly focused on the remediation of climate change induced by the huge amount of anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gasses and its precursors. Transforming fossil combustion to more sustainable energy worldwide is a wellknown example. In contrast, what is little known is that the environment shaped by humans is also challenged by relatively fast geological dynamical phenomena such as the isostatic uplift of Fennoscandia, parts of Canada and northwestern Russia. Due to this uplift, the archipelago along the coast of southwestern Finland and Sweden changes rapidly to mainland. This phenomenon deeply affects both nature as well as the environment, resulting in the relocation of human activities. Here, we interpret the on-ground observed regression of the Gulf of Bothnia on the coasts of southwestern Finland and its implications on countryside activities in the framework of the eco-development paradigm. Furthermore, remotely sensed data on surface wetness confirms this sea regression and the silting-up of the nearby lakes that drain precipitation to the Gulf. We show that this eco-development paradigm may rebalance nature, environment, humans and culture and that it is a valid alternative against the past and present-day socioeconomical approach that has accelerated the change in the Earth’s climate.