By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific Journalist
The Chief Administrator of the Federated States of Micronesia’s most remote island is calling on senators in the Congress to approve funds to build a major seawall.
Solomon Lowson says Kapingamarangi Atoll, which has a population of about 500, has been battered by climate-related disasters for decades.
“Without seawall, our crop will not grow well because this happens every year, especially in the months of November and December,” Lowson told RNZ Pacific.
In January, homes were washed away and their taro patches damaged by salt water.
He said his island is extremely vulnerable to the impacts of the climate crisis.
“We’ve been having this problem for so many years; we’ve been hit by a tidal wave and it caused a lot of inundation of water into our taro patches,” he said.
“So we’re trying to get some money to help build and make it safe for the future.”
Pohnpei State Governor, Stevenson Joseph, is due to arrive in Kapingamarangi on Friday (local time) to discuss the issues.
Lowson said the type of seawall needed would need to be built from rocks and concrete.
‘Our budget is very small’
Kapingamarangi is an atoll and a municipality in the state of Pohnpei of the Federated States of Micronesia.
The community is allocated around US$87,000 (NZ$147,000) each year for the municipal operation, but the seawall is expected to cost around US$80,000, Lowson said.
“We have only small projects like renovating our office, because we don’t have enough money to to make a big project [like the seawall],” he said.
Around 150 people currently reside on Kapingamarangi, and there is a diaspora of around 2000 living in Pohnpei, in mainland Hawaii, Guam and many other places, Lowson said.
With sea surges wrecking their taro crops Lawson issued a declaration calling for food assistance.
He said he does not want to keep relying on shipments of rice, ramen and flour because local produce is much healthier.
Drought another threat
While the small remote atoll gets battered by the ocean, there is another threat, drought.
Thousands of people have been impacted by drought in the Federated States of Micronesia over the past year, including Kapingamarangi residents.
Earlier this year, the Australian vessel Reliant dispatched 116,000 liters of fresh water for drought response in Pohnpei, while the US Coast Guard aided in transporting relief supplies and RO units to Kapingamarangi and Nukuoro, the Office of the President said via a statement.
Lowson is hoping this week’s visit from Joseph will end in solutions and a plan to fund a seawall.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
