ALM UNDP

Summary:

Samoa is an archipelago in the South Pacific, consisting of two large mountainous islands, Upolu and Savai’I, and seven other small islands. The majority of Samoan people live within one kilometer of the coast leaving them highly vulnerable to climate change hazards such flooding and sea level rise. This holds true for Fagamalo village located in the northern most point of the island of Savai’i. This site is home to threatened ecosystems including coral reefs, mangroves and mixed herbaceous coastal marsh. The marine biodiversity includes over 40 coral species and 60 fish and marine invertebrates.

Fagamalo’s 700 residents depend largely on plantations and fishing for their livelihoods. The village fronts the sea with the outer reef break approximately 200 meters from the beach. Due to its proximity to the coast, Fagamalo and its wetlands are vulnerable to climate variability and extreme weather patterns that can result in coastal erosion and flooding. Cyclones, like those of the 1990’s, can cause damage to critical ecosystems, agricultural crops, livestock and homes leaving areas unsafe for permanent habitation.

Climate change projections for Samoa predict an increase in average temperatures, a decrease in total precipitation, more high intensity rainfall events, a rise in sea level, and a perceived increase in the severity of tropical cyclones. During the rainy season, coastal erosion and flooding events have adversely impacted the project area. Beginning in the early 1990’s, climate change started to be felt in this part of the country. The village is now facing rapid coastal erosion driven by increasing storm intensity and declining resilience of buffering coral ecosystems and littoral plants. As a result, homes that used to be located farther from the sea are now closer to the coast. In addition to coastal erosion, erratic and heavy rainfall results in the flooding of over 70% of the village area, damaging homes, crops, livestock and roads. Faced with heightened climate change risks, residents who rely upon natural ecosystems will find it increasingly difficult to sustain their livelihoods.

The CBA project seeks to reduce the vulnerability of Fagamalo village and its surrounding ecosystems to adverse impacts of climate change in general, and to flooding and coastal erosion in particular. The project emerged from the Samoan Government’s Coastal Infrastructure Management (CIM) planning initiative. It was prepared through a participatory process involving all segments of the community. The project is designed to increase the adaptive capacity of the community to climate change through the following activities:

* Upgrading the current walking path to an unsealed access road to expedite upland evacuation when cyclones, high waves and flooding affect the village. This also acts as a natural barrier to wetland flooding, while reducing pollution by stopping the dumping of rubbish behind homes, and helps rehabilitate and improve the habitat of marine and wetland species
* Removal of the existing rock jetty to allow for the natural flow of sand and inshore currents, thus reducing coastal erosion and associated effects on the coral reef

The project also contains an awareness-raising programme to help community members better understand climate change and its associated risks and impacts. All together, these activities provide the village with human and infrastructure capacities necessary to increase the resilience of the ecosystems and households to climate change variability.