Why are hotels and luxury condos along Florida coast sinking?

A new study has found that dozens of luxury condos and hotels in Florida are sinking.

The study found that some of the most iconic hotels including the Ritz-Carlton Residences, Trump Tower III, Trump International Beach Resorts and the Surf Club Towers are affected.

“The discovery of the extent of subsidence hotspots along the South Florida coastline was unexpected,” Farzaneh Aziz Zanjani, lead author of the study, said in a statement. “The study underscores the need for ongoing monitoring and a deeper understanding of the long-term implications for these structures.”

But what do we know about the study?

Let’s take a closer look

What do we know?

The study was undertaken by researchers at the University of Miami.

It was published Friday in the journal Earth and Space Science.

Researchers from Florida Atlantic University, University of Houston, University of Hanover in Germany, GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences and California Institute of Technology also participated in the study, as per Fox News.

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As per CNN, the study found that 35 buildings sank two to eight centimeters – a process known as subsidence – between 2016 and 2023.

This occurred along the 19-kilometre stretch from the famed Golden Beach in Florida to Miami beach.

The buildings are home to tens of thousands of people.

As per Fox News, the Miami-Dade County is home to around 2.7 million people.

Over 27.2 million people visited the area last year.

The study began in 2021 after the collapse of the Champlain Towers.

According to Black Enterprise, 98 people were killed in the tragedy in Surfside.

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“While the collapse was primarily attributed to the deterioration of reinforced concrete because of poor maintenance and design flaws, ongoing concerns persist regarding the potential impact of South Florida’s coastal Karst environment on the structural integrity of buildings,” the report on the incident  stated.

As per CNN, though scientists did not find any signals of subsidence before towers crumbled, they uncovered evidence of it at nearby beachfront buildings and along the coast.

Researchers used satellite images to detect changes in the Earth’s surface.

They, for example, tracked balconies and roof ACs and how they shifted ever so slightly over time.

The study showed that almost 70 per cent of buildings sinking are in northern and central Sunny Isles Beach.

Around 23 per cent of the buildings came up this past decade.

As per Fast Company, the Trump Tower III sank four centimeters in that period, while the Ritz Carlton Residences sank five centimeters.

Sunny Isles Beach showed the worst subsidence and Surfside, where the building collapsed in 2021, was second worst.

Miami Beach witnessed the least amount of subsidence.

What is the reason for the buildings sinking?

As per CNN, researchers said the main reason behind the buildings sinking was subsidence – land itself slowly sinking.

But why?

Researchers blamed a surprising factor –  vibrations from nearby construction sites that resulted in soil particles shifting.

Falk Amelung, senior author of the study told CNN, “It’s not a surprise if buildings move during the construction or immediately after the construction, because it’s heavy and the engineers take that into account when they build,.

The surprising part is that it has occurred for years after, the professor of geophysics at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School Department of Marine Geosciences added.

Scientists also said the daily tides – water going in and out of the shore – can result in the ground shifting and buildings sinking.

Researchers also pointed the finger at the area’s make up.

“South Florida’s geology is generally characterized by young, highly porous limestone containing dissolution features like vugs, cavities, and sinkholes,” researchers said, as per Black Enterprise.

“But the geological situation of the barrier islands is complex because the limestone may contain interbedded sand layers.”

But there could be another cause too.

Experts not part of the study told the Miami Herald that rising sea levels could be making limestone erosion worse.

Researchers say more study is needed.

“Our hope is that officials in Florida will recognize the value for continued research on this issue across the state and explore how this novel technology can benefit coastal residents,” Amelung told Fast Company.

“The discovery of the extent of subsidence hotspots along the South Florida coastline was unexpected,”  Zanjani said. “The study underscores the need for ongoing monitoring and a deeper understanding of the long-term implications for these structures.”

Officials in Florida have reacted cautiously.

“The State of Florida and Miami-Dade County have comprehensive regulations in place to ensure building construction and structural integrity,” city officials said in a statement to NBC. “The City of Sunny Isles Beach strictly adheres to these regulations, including compliance with the Florida Building Code and ongoing reinspection requirements.”

A separate study earlier this year showed buildings in major cities along the Atlantic Coast were sinking.

The research from Virginia Tech and the US Geological Survey showed that areas of New York City, Long Island, Baltimore and Virginia Beach were sinking more than the rate of seawater rise.

With inputs from agencies