Plans for sustainable floating cities discussed at UN

The settlements are expected to power themselves and produce their own food

Plans for sustainable floating cities that would power themselves and produce their own food were discussed in a recent meeting at the UN.

Designed with the threat of sea-level rise in mind, these nautical communities would be moored near to coastal cities that are set to be submerged in the future to accommodate for residents fleeing disaster.

They would be built of several connected hexagonal platforms with each serving as a village housing 300 people. Current plans account for a whole city to house 10,000 people.

Residents would grow their own food both above and below the surface, with underwater cages growing kelp and other seafood.

Oceanix, the company pitching the idea, claims its design is flood-proof and can withstand storms. If extreme weather makes life too hazardous, the entire city can simply be unmoored and towed to a safer location.

Co-founder Marc Collins Chen denied that the cities would be damaging to ocean life, saying: “It is not a question of one or the other. The technology exists for us to live on water, without killing marine ecosystems.”