Sea level rise in Tuvalu

The news from Tuvalu is not good. A set of small islands in the distant South Pacific ocean, about as far from Scotland as it is possible to get on the surface of the earth are now at critical risk. Why? Because of a life threatening drought that has been added to the combination of a rising and warming sea which together are making life on these small islands inhospitable.

Why should this be of concern to us in Scotland with all the problems we have to worry about here? There are after all less than 12,000 people living on the islands of Tuvalu and there are others closer to hand, like New Zealand who can help out. I think the reason is a bit like the story of the canary in the coal mine. What is happening in Tuvalu is a wake up call to all of us.

When the climate changes and sea levels rise low lying places will be hit hardest and among the first to suffer are the atoll islands of the South Pacific. The reasons are not difficult to see when the highest point in the Tuvalu archipelago is less than five metres above sea level. A rising and warming sea, both caused by global warming, and a climate that appears to becoming drier spell trouble. The protective coral is bleached by warmer water and if damaged then the risk of storm damage increases; the islands’ limited supply of fresh water is reduced; ground water becomes more saline and a traditional way of life becomes more difficult.

The Church in Tuvalu, the Ekalesia Kelisiano Tuvalu has been warning of the risks for some time but now the risk has become a crisis due to a prolonged drought that has endured for months. I can do no better than quote from a message sent to us by the Rev. Tafue Lusama, General Secretary of the Church in Tuvalu a few days ago:

"… for the past 5 to 6 months there has been no rain at all, and that caused shortage of water, trees are dead, traditional plantations are all dead, land is so dry that even the crabs cannot survive.

"This is the worst experience of a drought we have ever faced in history.

Because even our underground water is salinated and is no longer viable for any use."

They have brought in desalination machines, but even that does not assist the land and the plantations for they only give out enough water for drinking and cooking for a family a day.

Tafue asks us to remember the people of Tuvalu in our prayers, which we will do. He is gracious in his plea for help and does not point the finger of accusation against those us who may be causing the misery that they must endure. But we can read in the experience of the people of Tuvalu the slow and inexorable pressure that makes the land less hospitable and the earth and sea less sustaining. Where Tuvalu is now suffering others will follow, and as the impact of climate change spreads many more will experience conditions that challenge life and wellbeing. In our own worries about the economy and our own prosperity we must find time to remember these distant islands and the warning call they make to all of us.