Alan Weisman has a new book coming out soon, The World Without Us — which comes recommended by Tyler Cowen — but you can get a taste by reading Earth Without People, from a couple years ago. A summary of what would happen if humans were to vanish from New York:
- 10 years Sidewalks crack and weeds invade. Hawks and falcons flourish, as do feral cats and dogs. The rat population, deprived of human garbage, crashes. Cockroaches, which thrive in warm buildings, disappear. Cultivated carrots, cabbages, broccoli, and brussels sprouts revert to their wild ancestors.
- 20 years Water-soaked steel columns supporting subway tunnels corrode and buckle. Bears and wolves invade Central Park.
- 50 years Concrete chunks tumble from buildings, whose steel foundations begin to crumble. Indian Point nuclear reactors leak radioactivity into the Hudson River.
- 100 years Oaks and maples re-cover the land.
- 300 years Most bridges collapse.
- 1,000 years Hell Gate Bridge, built to bring the railroad across the East River, finally falls.
- 10,000 years Indian Point nuclear reactors continue to leak radioactivity into the Hudson River.
- 20,000 years Glaciers move relentlessly across the island of Manhattan and its environs, scraping the landscape clean.