Land reclamation

Land reclamation, usually known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a landfill), is the process of creating new land from ocean, riverbeds, or lake beds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamation ground or land fill.

In a number of other jurisdictions, including parts of the United States, the term "reclamation" can refer to returning disturbed lands to an improved state. In Alberta, Canada, for example, reclamation is defined by the provincial government as "The process of reconverting disturbed land to its former or other productive uses." In Oceania it is frequently referred to as land rehabilitation.

Methods

Land reclamation can be achieved with a number of different methods. The most simple method involves simply filling the area with large amounts of heavy rock and/or cement, then filling with clay and dirt until the desired height is reached. The process is called "infilling" and the material used to fill the space is generically called "infill". Draining of submerged wetlands is often used to reclaim land for agricultural use. Deep cement mixing is used typically in situation in which the material displaced by either dredging or draining may be contaminated and hence needs to be contained.

Deira Island

Coordinates: 25°20′00″N 55°16′05″E / 25.33333°N 55.26806°E / 25.33333; 55.26806

Deira Island is a group of artificial islands in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The project was initially planned to be part of the Palm Islands and was called 'Palm Deira'.

Overview

By early October 2007, 20% of the initial palm island's reclamation was complete, with a total of 200 million cubic metres (7 billion cubic feet) of sand already used. Then in early April 2008, Nakheel announced that more than a quarter of the total area of the Palm Deira had been reclaimed. This amounted to 300 million cubic metres (10.6 billion cubic feet) of sand. Since the planned island was so large, it was being developed in several phases. The first one was the creation of Deira Island. This portion of the Palm sits alongside the Deira Corniche between the entrance to Dubai Creek and Al Hamriya Port. By early April 2008, 80% of Deira Island Front's reclamation was complete.

A new redesign was quietly introduced in November 2008, further reducing the size of the project. Since 2008 the project was on-hold.

Palm Jumeirah

The Palm Jumeirah is an artificial archipelago in United Arab Emirates, created using land reclamation by Nakheel, a company owned by the Dubai government, and designed and developed by Helman Hurley Charvat Peacock/Architects, Inc. It is one of three planned islands called the Palm Islands (Palm Jumeirah, Palm Jebel Ali and Palm Deira) which would have extended into the Persian Gulf, increasing Dubai's shoreline by a total of 520 kilometres (320 mi). The Palm Jumeirah is the smallest and the original of three Palm Islands originally under development by Nakheel. It is located on the Jumeirah coastal area of the emirate of Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Transportation

Palm Jumeirah Monorail is a 5.4-kilometre-long (3.4 mi) monorail connecting the Atlantis Hotel to the Gateway Towers at the foot of the island, opened on 6 May 2009. located on Palm Jumeirah island in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The monorail connects the Palm Jumeirah to the mainland, with a planned further extension to the Red Line of the Dubai Metro. The line opened on 30 April 2009. It is the first monorail in the Middle East.

Palm Islands

For the islands in Lebanon see Palm Islands Nature Reserve

Palm Islands are two artificial islands, Palm Jumeirah and Palm Jebel Ali, on the coast of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. As of November 2014, only Palm Jumeirah has been completed. This island takes the form of a palm tree, topped by a crescent. When complete, Palm Jebel Ali will take a similar shape; both islands will be host to a large number of residential, leisure and entertainment centres and will add a total of 520 kilometres of non-public beaches to the city of Dubai. The creation of the Palm Jumeirah began in June 2001. Shortly after, the Palm Jebel Ali was announced and reclamation work began. A third island was planned and construction started, but this project was later remodelled and renamed to Deira Island.

Construction

The Palm Islands are artificial islands constructed from sand dredged from the bottom of the Persian Gulf by the Belgian company, Jan De Nul and the Dutch company, Van Oord. The sand is sprayed from dredging ships, guided by a Global Positioning System, onto the required area. The spraying process is known as rainbowing because of the rainbow-like arcs produced in the air when the sand is sprayed. The outer edge of each palm's encircling crescent is a large rock breakwater. The breakwater of the Palm Jumeirah contains over seven million tons of rock; each rock was placed individually by a crane, its position signed off by a diver, and given a Global Positioning System coordinate.