The Emirate of Dubai, one of the seven states that make up the United Arab Emirates, is well known for its rapid economic and demographic growth, fueled by aggressive real estate development and extensive land reclamation in the shallow waters of the Persian Gulf.
A number of artificial land projects have been started since the 1990s. While the global financial crisis of 2007 has impacted these projects, the first one, Palm Jumeirah, a group of 6 islands shaped like a palm tree, was completed around 2009. It is home to dozens of hotels and thousands of individual residences.
Three similar highly ambitious projects have been in development: two other Palm-shapes complexes, as well as a group of islands that recreates the World's continents. Economic uncertainty, concerns about raising sea levels, and the sheer complexity of building and maintaining such communities, have slowed development, although authorities maintain their goal of taking these to completion and adding new artificial lands.
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Dubai Artificial Lands
