Hans Lindberg, a 56-year-old Swede, points towards a low, muddy area of reeds that has risen from the Baltic Sea, forming a land bridge to what used to be an island nearby when he spent his summers here, close to the city of Lulea as a child in the early 1960s in this picture from November 16, 2012. In contrast to worries from the Maldives to Manhattan of storm surges and higher ocean levels caused by climate change, the entire northern part of the Nordic region is rising and, as a result, the Baltic Sea is receding. In the Lulea region just south of the Arctic Circle, mostly flat with pine forests and where the sea freezes in winter, tracts of land have emerged, leaving some Stone Age, Viking and Medieval sites inland. That puts human settlements gradually out of harm's way from sea flooding. Picture taken November 16, 2012. To match Feature ENVIRONMENT-SEAS/ REUTERS/Alister Doyle (SWEDEN - Tags: ENVIRONMENT SOCIETY) 

A man walks along the streets in the old town of Lulea November 14, 2012. In contrast to worries from the Maldives to Manhattan of storm surges and higher ocean levels caused by climate change, the entire northern part of the Nordic region is rising and, as a result, the Baltic Sea is receding. In the Lulea region just south of the Arctic Circle, mostly flat with pine forests and where the sea freezes in winter, tracts of land have emerged, leaving some Stone Age, Viking and Medieval sites inland. That puts human settlements gradually out of harm's way from sea flooding. Picture taken November 14, 2012. To match Feature ENVIRONMENT-SEAS/ REUTERS/Alister Doyle (SWEDEN - Tags: ENVIRONMENT ANIMALS SOCIETY) 

A sheep grazes on land that used to be part of the seabed until the 15th century, near the old town of Lulea in northern Sweden November 15, 2012. In contrast to worries from the Maldives to Manhattan of storm surges and higher ocean levels caused by climate change, the entire northern part of the Nordic region is rising and, as a result, the Baltic Sea is receding. In the Lulea region just south of the Arctic Circle, mostly flat with pine forests and where the sea freezes in winter, tracts of land have emerged, leaving some Stone Age, Viking and Medieval sites inland. That puts human settlements gradually out of harm's way from sea flooding. Picture taken November 15, 2012. To match Feature ENVIRONMENT-SEAS/ REUTERS/Alister Doyle (SWEDEN - Tags: ENVIRONMENT ANIMALS SOCIETY) 

Hans Lindberg, a 56-year-old Swede, shows a black and white family photo from the early 1960s of two girls playing in a sandpit that used to be at his parents' summer cottage near Lulea November 16, 2012. In contrast to worries from the Maldives to Manhattan of storm surges and higher ocean levels caused by climate change, the entire northern part of the Nordic region is rising and, as a result, the Baltic Sea is receding. In the Lulea region just south of the Arctic Circle, mostly flat with pine forests and where the sea freezes in winter, tracts of land have emerged, leaving some Stone Age, Viking and Medieval sites inland. That puts human settlements gradually out of harm's way from sea flooding. Picture taken November 16, 2012. To match Feature ENVIRONMENT-SEAS/ REUTERS/Alister Doyle (SWEDEN - Tags: ENVIRONMENT SOCIETY) 

A view of the Swedish Baltic Sea port of Lulea November 14, 2012. In contrast to worries from the Maldives to Manhattan of storm surges and higher ocean levels caused by climate change, the entire northern part of the Nordic region is rising and, as a result, the Baltic Sea is receding. The uplift of almost a centimetre (0.4 inch) a year, one of the highest rates in the world, is part of a continuing geological rebound since the end of the Ice Age removed a vast ice sheet from regions around the Arctic Circle. Lulea is planning to deepen its port by 2020 to let in bigger ships and offset land rise at a cost of 1.6 billion Swedish crowns ($237.86 million). Picture taken November 14, 2012. To match Feature ENVIRONMENT-SEAS/ REUTERS/Alister Doyle (SWEDEN - Tags: ENVIRONMENT MARITIME BUSINESS SOCIETY) 

Jeanette Lestander, construction manager at the Swedish Baltic Sea port of Lulea, stands on the dock November 14, 2012. In contrast to worries from the Maldives to Manhattan of storm surges and higher ocean levels caused by climate change, the entire northern part of the Nordic region is rising and, as a result, the Baltic Sea is receding. The uplift of almost a centimetre (0.4 inch) a year, one of the highest rates in the world, is part of a continuing geological rebound since the end of the Ice Age removed a vast ice sheet from regions around the Arctic Circle. Lulea is planning to deepen its port by 2020 to let in bigger ships and offset land rise at a cost of 1.6 billion Swedish crowns ($237.86 million). Picture taken November 14, 2012. To match Feature ENVIRONMENT-SEAS/ REUTERS/Alister Doyle (SWEDEN - Tags: ENVIRONMENT MARITIME BUSINESS SOCIETY) 

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