Scientists say New York City is sinking by up to four millimetres a year under the weight of all its skyscrapers. A team of geophysicists from the United States Geological Survey calculated that there are 1,084,954 buildings in the city, weighing around 764 billion kilograms. This weight does not include fixtures and fittings in buildings, the transport infrastructure, or the weight of the city's 8.5 million inhabitants. Lead researcher Dr Tom Parsons said the gradual subsidence, coupled with rising sea levels, could make New York prone to natural disasters. He warned that "every additional high-rise building could contribute to future flood risk," especially along coastal and riverfront areas.

科学家们称，由于所有摩天大楼的重量，纽约市每年下沉多达四毫米。来自美国地质调查局的一组地球物理学家计算出该城市有1,084,954座建筑物，重约7640亿千克。这个重量不包括建筑物中的装置和配件、交通基础设施或城市850万居民的重量。首席研究员汤姆·帕森斯博士表示，逐渐下沉加上不断上升的海平面可能会使纽约易受自然灾害影响。他警告说，“每增加一座高层建筑都可能会加剧未来的洪水风险”，特别是在沿海和河岸地区。

The researchers compared what is happening to New York to the problems Venice and Jakarta are having. Venice is experiencing more floods despite the construction of a $5.3 billion system of sea walls. Indonesia is building a new capital city from scratch because Jakarta is sinking. The United Nations has forecast that 70 per cent of the world's population will inhabit cities by 2050. Parsons said: "When you build a city and it gets full of people, you end up with subsidence." He warned that New York City was "emblematic of a place that people migrate to and that obviously has a high concentration of construction." Increasing urbanisation will exacerbate problems for cities.

研究人员将纽约所发生的情况与威尼斯和雅加达的问题进行了比较。尽管威尼斯修建了价值53亿美元的海堤系统，但仍然面临更多的洪水问题。印度尼西亚正在从头开始建设一个新的首都，因为雅加达正在下沉。联合国预测到到2050年，全球70%的人口将居住在城市中。帕森斯表示，“当你建造一个城市，它充满了人，你最终会面临下沉的问题”。他警告说，纽约市“象征着一个人们移居并且显然有高密度建筑的地方”。城市化的增加将加剧城市面临的问题。