Ten Disappearing Places

Written by Mary Fleming

Ready for this interesting list from MSN?  Fascinating!  See how many of these you have already seen and how many you plan to see….before they disappear, of course!  I can scratch five of these off my own list (highlighted numbers).  But, any one of them I would go back to.

#10  The Maldives.  These islands lie south of the Indian continent and rise just eight feet above sea level!  Rising seas could submerge these picture-perfect, white sand pearls.
#9.  The Florida Everglades.  Home to many diverse species, the Everglades have steadily been shrinking; the area is 50% smaller than in 1900.
#8.  Olympia, Greece.  Dry weather has spawned fires in this place where the Olympic Games first began.
#7.  Valley of the Kings, Egypt.  These famous tombs and treasures of pharoahs are being eroded by both fungus and tourism.
#6.  Venice, Italy.  This exquisite, historical city, famous for so many unique sights including St. Mark’s Basilica and Square, continues to sink.  Floods and higher seas are hastening the water’s encroachment.
#5.  Dead Sea, Israel and Jordan.  In four decades, this mineral-dense Sea has shrunk by a third.  Water diversion and drier weather are the causes.
#4.  The Poles.  Ice continues to melt at both the North and the South poles.  Scientists are watching closely – currently, it appears that no new ice is forming in the south, particularly, and many species are at risk.
#3.  Great Barrier Reef, Australia.  Pollution and warmer waters are bleaching the Reef which can be seen from space.
#2,  Taj Mahal, India.  Exterior deterioration and structural rot have caused some to predict that this iconic mausoleum will collapse in five years.
#1.  Amazon Rainforest.  Of all plant and animal species in the world, 20% live here.  And yet, in just 30 years, the Rainforest shrank by 373,000 miles.