Summary:
Tuvalu is an extremely small, isolated atoll island nation, located approximately halfway between Australia and Hawaii and consisting of widely scattered, low-lying islands. The country rarely exceed 3 metres above mean sea level. At its widest point, Tuvalu only spans about 200 meters. Classified as a least-developed country, the islands contain very few natural resources. The primary economic activities of the country are subsistence farming and fishing; income from foreign aid is an important part of the economy. Tuvalu also sells some stamps, coins and, in the last 10 years, has sold use of their Internet domain “.tv”—an action that contributes a substantial amount of revenue to their overall Gross Domestic Product (CIA, 2011).
With its limited resource base, Tuvalu is extremely vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change, variability and extreme weather events. Some of Tuvalu’s adaptation projects include: the development of a disaster plan, the plant-a-tree programme, community water tank projects and seawall construction. Temperatures in Tuvalu range between 26.0 – 32.0 degrees Celsius. The wet season (October – March) brings tropical cyclones which inflict extensive damage on local infrastructure, agriculture and major food sources. The dry season (June – September) is characterised by an increasing number of droughts which contribute to the depletion of freshwater sources. The main source of freshwater in Tuvalu is rainwater. Groundwater resources are no longer suitable for human consumption due to pollution from saltwater instrusion caused by rising sea levels. Salinity intrusion enhanced by the porosity of soil in Tuvalu has destroyed pulaka crops and decreased the yields of various other fruit trees. Rising sea levels combined with extreme weather events is contributing to the inundation of low lying areas. Coastal erosion is a major problem in Tuvalu, particularly on the western side of the islands. As most Tuvaluans live within coastal areas, additional stress is being placed on the already vulnerable marine ecosystem. Rising sea temperatures are also contributing to coral bleaching and decreasing marine productivity. The marine ecosystem is a vital component of Tuvalu’s economy which is dependent on revenue provided by tuna fishing.
A. Adaptation Needs and Priorities
The main climate change vulnerability of Tuvalu is sea level rise; none of its islands are more three meters above sea level (MNRE, 1999). Other concerns are rising temperatures, a potential increase in the frequency of extreme weather events, increased coastal erosion, and threats to the food supply, freshwater resources and human health. Changes already observed within Tuvalu include saltwater intrusions, collapsed seawalls, enhancement of salt-tolerant trees and less productive land.
Through its Initial National Communication to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Tuvalu identified its main areas for adaptation as being human health, agriculture, and water quality. Actions put forward included: completion of environment impact assessments for all new projects; development of a comprehensive set of policies around climate change; incorporation of climate change issues into primary and secondary schools; and radio programs, leaflets, essay competitions, poster competitions, national workshops and visits to outer islands to promote education and awareness on climate change and sea level rise (MNRE, 1999). More recently, Tuvalu has refined identification of its key priorities for adaptation, which are presented in order of priority as being (MNRE, 2007):
- Coastal Areas: Increasing resilience of coastal areas and settlements to climate change.
- Agricultural: Increasing subsistence pit grown pulaka productivity through introduction of a salt-tolerant pulaka species.
- Freshwater: Adaptation to frequent water shortages through increasing household water capacity, water collection accessories,water conservation techniques, and constuction of seawalls to minimize salt water intrusions.
- Human Health: Strengthening of community health through control of vector borne/climate sensitive diseases and promoting
access to quality potable water.
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Fisheries: Strengthening of community based conservation programs focused on highly vulnerable near-shore coastal shellfish
fisheries resources and coral reef ecosystem productivity.
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Marine Ecosystems: Increase information on the relationship between marine productivity and climate change.
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Disaster Risk Reduction: Strengthening community disaster preparedness and response potential.
B. National Level Policies and Strategic Documents
The Tuvalu Initial National Communication, released in 1999, documents some of the early identified needs and vulnerabilities of the country. It set the stage for development of Tuvalu’s National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA). Released in 2007, the NAPA provides detailed information about the current and possible future impacts of climate change on this island nation. The need to adapt to the impacts of climate change is also highlighted in Tuvalu’s National Strategy for Sustainable Development for the period of 2005 to 2015. Within this document, Tuvalu sets as a goal the establishment of national climate change policy addressing both mitigation and adaptation. To this end, in May 2011, it was announced that the government of Tuvalu will work with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) through the “Pacific Adaptation to Climate Change” (PACC) project to develop a climate change policy. Funding has been provided by the Global Environment Facility, and a project team comprised of governmental and international experts established. The government envisions that a climate change policy will assist in the coordination and implementation of mitigation and adaptation strategies (SPREP, 2011).
C. Current Adaptation Action
A relatively moderate amount of adaptation actions are underway in Tuvalu, predominately through its involvement in a number of regional climate change projects. Most of the programs focus on coastal zone management, agriculture and water—consistent with country’s top three priority areas for adaptation. Tuvalu has also received funding from the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF) to support implementation of the project “Increasing Resilience of Coastal Areas and Community Settlement to Climate Change,” which was identified as the countries more urgent and immediate need for adaptation action in its NAPA.
D. Proposed Adaptation Action
Many of the projects outlined in Tuvalu’s NAPA focus on capacity building in coastal zone management, marine resources management, human health and agriculture. Many of the projects have secondary goals of education or sustainable development (MNRE, 2007).
Publication
Dohan, Rosemary; Hove, Hilary; EcheverrÃa, Daniella; Hammill, Anne, Parry, Jo-Ellen. (2011) “Review of Current and Planned Adaptation Action: The Pacific.” Adaptation Partnership/International Institute for Sustainable Development.
Additional References
Ministry of Natural Resources and Enviroment [MNRE] (1999). Tuvalu Intial National Communication under the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change. Retrieved February 2011.
Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment [MNRE] (2007). Tuvalu's National Adaptation Programme of Action. Retrieved from
Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme [SPREP] (2011). Tuvalu embarks on a mission for a National Climate Change
Tuvalu
