Proceedings of International Structural Engineering and Construction, 10(1), 2023

Innovative Theory and Practices in Structural Engineering and Construction

Edited by Karatas, A., Iranmanesh, A., Gurgun, A., Yazdani, S., and Singh, A.
Copyright © 2023 ISEC Press
ISSN: 2644-108X
www.doi.org/10.14455/ISEC.2023.10(1).CEN-02

SEA LEVEL RISE POSE CHALLENGES TO

FOUNDATION CONSTRUCTION IN COASTAL
REGIONS
SYED FAIZ AHMAD
Egis-Saudi Arabia, Yanbu Al Sinaiyyah, Saudi Arabia

Research has shown that climate change has a major effect on rise of sea levels. The
warming of the planet is the principal reason that is directly causing a rise in global mean
sea level (GMSL). GMSL since 1880 has risen approximately 210–240 mm. This is
about a third that is recorded in just the last two and a half decades. The current rate of
rise is approximately 3 mm per year. Red Sea located on the west coast of Saudi Arabia
can be termed as a minor ocean basin that has several distinctive characteristics. It does
not have any river-inflow from outside. A study has recorded that from 1993 through
2000, the sea level rise in the Red Sea has been following a rate of 3.88 mm/year. This
rate follows the pattern of the global rate of 3.3 ± 0.5 mm/year. Nevertheless, as per
study from 2000 until present time, an increased rate of 6.40 mm/year has been recorded
in the “sea-level” of Red Sea. On the other hand, the conditions of the east coast of Saudi
Arabia along Arabian Gulf shows a 1 m sea level rise affects approximately 650 km2 of
the land area. This research paper per se has examined the possibility that these sea level
rise in both the east and the west coasts of Saudi Arabia are expected to affect a
significant rise in the ground water table and hence pose challenges in foundation
construction.
Keywords: Ground water table rise, Red Sea, Arabian Gulf, Saudi Arabia.

1 INTRODUCTION
Saudi Arabia and coastline consist of about 3400 km. Hundreds of islands are additional. It is
imperative to monitor the sea level, particularly along the coastal stretches of the Red Sea and the
Arabian Gulf. The Arabian Gulf is joined with the Indian Ocean through the Thrust Belt of Zagros.
Study has established vertical motion of land in the close-by areas. These are due to the tectonic
motions of Arabian Peninsula structures and also because of oil production activities in the region.
A lot of studies based on the tidal gauge data and altimetry, etc., have been made with regards to
the records of last two decades for global mean sea level rise. However, these global estimates
may not be true representative of the regional trends vis-a-vis the sea levels. Experience has also
shown that the variation in the regional sea level is not simple to comprehend due complexity of
vertical land movement and its circulation. It is known that the rise of sea level impacts
significantly on the beach erosion, delta inundation and also flooding of and loss of a vast stretch
of wetlands and marshlands. It is now established that the rise of sea level is a serious threat to
global coastal life. The outcomes of sea level rise are noted as: possibility of increase in storm
surges, occurrence of floods, damages to the inland precincts, and an eventual rise of ground water
table. It is a fact that in majority instance, this happens where in the areas with large population
centers, including in the wildlife habitats. It is found that about 70% of the world population that

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are expected to be affected by sea level rise happen to be located in just eight Asian countries,
namely: Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Figure 1 represents the coastlines of Saudi Arabia: Arabian Gulf in the East and Red Sea along the
west coast.

Figure 1. Coastline of Arabian Peninsula (GASGI 2022).

2 SEA LEVEL RISE – CASE OF GLOBAL ISSUE

In recent years sea-level rise has invited attention of the global experts that that the phenomenon
of higher future sea levels rise will have potential to seriously affect a number regions around the
world. Research has shown that the planet warming is the principal cause for the global mean sea
level (GMSL) to rise in the following two reasons:
(1) Glaciers and polar ice sheets melt and add water to the ocean,
(2) Water in the sea and in the ocean warm up.
The above is represented in Figure 2 below. Historically global mean sea level (GMSL) has
been recorded to have risen approximately 210–240 mm since 1870. Approximately a third of it
occurred during the recent decades. The current rate of rise is recorded to be about 3 mm per year.
Owing to global temperatures rise, the “sea level” will continue to rise for a sustained period due
to delayed time for attaining an equilibrium. Studies have established that the quantum of sea level
is dependent on the rate of carbon dioxide emissions and the trend of global warming. Obviously,
the rate of occurrence of the same would depend on the rate at which melting of ice sheet and
glacier occurs (Env Agency-UK 2011).
It has been established that sea levels rise has effect on both the coastal ecosystems and the
physical conditions of the coastlines. The intrusions of saltwater are the reason for the
contamination of aquifers of freshwater. Many of these freshwater aquifers help sustain the water
supplies of municipal and agricultural entities. They also help preserve the natural ecosystems.
This also results in rise of the ground water table (GWT), especially in and around the coastlines.
Figure 3 below presents the global mean sea level from 1870 to 2008 and from 1950 to 2000.

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 Proceedings of International Structural Engineering and Construction, 10(1), 2023
Innovative Theory and Practices in Structural Engineering and Construction

Figure 2. Major causes of sea level rise (UNESCO/IOC 2010).

Figure 3. Global sea level rise from 1870 to 2008 (Church et al. 2008).

3 SEA LEVEL RISE – CASE OF RED SEA COASTLINE

The Red Sea happens to be a minor ocean basin that has a number of distinctive characteristics.
Some of the attributes are noted below:
1. The surface is greatly evaporative and receives a minimal freshwater flow from rain.

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2. It does not have any river-inflow from outside, that is it has no any external source of water.
3. It is located in a climate zone that happens to be very hot and arid.
4. The Red Sea connects with the Indian Ocean via the strait called Bab-el-Mandab which is
narrow and also shallow depth of 137 m only.
Three decades (1993 through 2020) of the satellite altimetry sea-level data has been made use
to comprehend the phenomenon vis-a-vis the variance and its related phenomenon of Red Sea sea-
level rise. As per one research studies, during the period December through January, the “sea-level
rise” is usually higher while the same is lower during the month of August. This noted pattern has
been found to be consistent from South to North. Red Sea “sea-level” has observed to follow a rise
of 3.88 mm per year – from the year 1993 until now. This rate is in line with those of the globally
recorded rate of 3.3 ± 0.5 mm per year. Nonetheless, from yet another studies, a comparatively
elevated rate of 6.40 mm per year has been recorded in “sea-level” rise of Red Sea from 2000 until
the current time (Alothman et al 2010).

5 SEA LEVEL RISE – CASE OF ARABIAN GULF COASTLINE

On the other hand, Arabian Gulf geographically is a confined ocean area surrounded by hinterlands.
Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman are connected with each other via the Strait of Hormuz. The
evaporation rate in this area is found to be in excess of precipitation. As such the gulf is believed
to be a negative estuary. Studies establish that the sea levels are dependent on the conditions of the
tidal motion, wind stress, atmospheric pressure gradients, the phenomenon of the currents and the
distribution of water density. The Arabian Gulf has a length of 850 km that stretches to the Strait
Hormuz. Its mean width is 250 m and has a mean depth of 50 m. The projected and predicted
values for Arabian Gulf show that the water level rise during the 2nd and the 3rd 25 years – after the
year 2020 – will experience a faster growth rate in comparison with the that during the first 25
years after the year 2020. The rate of sea level rise to be experienced during the years 2075 to 2100
is projected to grow comparative at a much faster rate than the other noted periods of the time (Irani
et al. 2018).
The phenomenon of sea level rise has been proven to be the cause of numerous impacts that
include land loss, environmental degradation, destruction of infrastructure and a significant rise in
ground water table (GWT) in the Arabian Gulf coasts. Moreover, the facilities related to human
development namely, ports and harbors, desalination units, industrial complexes, commercial
bases, fish farming etc., are also prone be hit which may result in significant impact on economic
indices. An analysis and critical review of the current situation vis-a-vis that of the Saudi East
Coasts vis-a-vis the existing infrastructure settings has established that only a minimal 1 m sea-
level rise in the Arabian Gulf is likely to affect to the tune of 650 km2 along its coastline, stretching
to about 1,800 km (Babu et al. 2012).

6 RISE OF GWT – HYDROSTATIC PRESSURE UNDER FOUNDATIONS

Studies show that flooding results when the level of water within the rock or soil – also termed as
the ground water table (GWT) – rises. And the level of the ground water table (GWT) varies from
season to season owing to the variations in the long-term rainfall and water collection. Water starts
to emerge on the surface when the water table rises and reaches the ground level, and due to which
the flooding results. It is known that flooding from groundwater usually occurs in the areas where
the sub-surface bed rock is chalk. However, it is also known to occur in the locations with deposits
of sand and gravel in the river valleys. Figure 4 below shows the bathymetry status of Red Sea and
Arabia Gulf, the two coastlines of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

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 Proceedings of International Structural Engineering and Construction, 10(1), 2023
Innovative Theory and Practices in Structural Engineering and Construction

Figure 4. Red Sea and Arabian Gulf and its bathymetry (El-Gindy and Eid 1997).

The ground water table in the coastal regions of Saudi Arabia range – on the average – from 2
m to 3 m from the natural ground level. It is imperative that the foundation and basement slabs
should be founded at a grade above the ground water table so that ground water will not exert
pressure on the foundation or cause a dampness of the formation levels. From experience it is
known that the areas where a local ground water table rises to the formation level, then water exerts
pressure against the underside of the foundation. This phenomenon is known as “hydrostatic
pressure”. If this so happens then this may cause water to infiltrate and permeate through the
bottom of the foundations. Figure 5 below demonstrates the scenario vis-a-vis how rise of sea level
can affect the ground water table at the coastal regions of Saudi Arabia (Siddig et al 2019).
Figure 6 and Figure 7 below show the details about the bathymetric survey conducted at the
Yanbu Al Sinaiyyah (Royal Commission of Yanbu) Waterfront area.

Figure 5. Ground water table and mean sea level – case of Yanbu Waterfront (RGF-2022).

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Karatas, A., Iranmanesh, A., Gurgun, A., Yazdani, S., and Singh, A. (eds.)

Figure 6. Bathymetric survey of Yanbu Waterfront (RGF 2022).

Figure 7. Bathymetric survey of Yanbu Waterfront – coordinates of Tide Pole (RGF 2022).

References
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GNSS Measurements and in situ Tide Gauge Data, Proceedings of the 38th COSPAR Scientific
Assembly, Bremen, Germany, July 15-18, 2010.
Babu, D. S. S., Sivalingam, S., and Machado, T., Need for Adaptation Strategy Against Global Sea Level
Rise: An Example from Saudi Coast of Arabian Gulf, Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global
Change, Springer, 17(7), 821–836, October, 2012.
Church, J. A., White, N. J., Aarup, T., Wilson, W. S., Woodworth, P. L., Domingues, C. M., Hunter, J. R.,
and Lumbeck, K., Understanding Global Sea levels: Past, Present and Future, Sustainability Science,
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El-Gindy, A. A., and Eid, F. M., The Seasonal Variations of Sea Level due to Density Variations in the
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Resource Centre, University of Karachi, 6(1&2), 1-12, June, 1997.
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Irani, M., Bavani, A. M., Bohluly, A., and Lahijani, H. A. K., Sea Level Rise in Persian Gulf and Oman Sea
due to Climate Change in the Future Periods, Physical Geography Research Quarterly Journal,
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RGF (Riyadh Geotechnique and Foundations CO), Bathymetric Survey Report for Yanbu Al Sinaiyyah
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Siddig, N. A., Al-Subhi, A. M., and Alsaafani, M. A., Tide and Mean Sea Level Trend in the West Coast of
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UNESCO/IOC, Sea Level Rise and Variability – A Summary for Policy Makers, May, 2010.

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