Building back better in the Pacific
Work completed at Funafuti is now moving to outer islands including Nanumaga. © TCAP.
Since the first shipment of Geotextile Bags arrived in Tuvalu’s capital Funafuti in October 2022, a first-of-its-kind coastal protection project is being pioneered in the Pacific.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in collaboration with the Government of Tuvalu and civil works construction company Hall Contracting, has led the development of 7.3 hectares of new land above the sea in the capital Funafuti, safe from storm waves to 2100. Now, the work continues on other parts of the island.
As one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to sea-level rise, with storms and cyclones intensifying, protecting communities, infrastructure and gardens on the island is a critical goal of the Green Climate Fund-backed Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project (TCAP).
At the forefront of the action, Tap Apisai is a Tuvaluan civil engineer, and the project country manager of the coastal reconstruction work at Hall Contracting. The process of construction is not always straightforward. Progress depends a lot on the weather and the tide movements during the construction phase and this is a challenge that has to be well managed.
Yet despite the challenges, working on this kind of project has been a privilege, he says. “Although I’ve lived abroad for much of my career, it is a privilege to give back to the community I grew up in by working on a project like this at home,” he said.
“There are of course challenges: our team went and arrived in Nanumaga this morning, since we are moving the construction work there, and tried to land the barge. But despite our best efforts, the weather was not very favorable. But that’s just part of the work,” he added.
“I reckon it’s a big deal to be able to come back and contribute to the community where I grew up in this way. I have really enjoyed it, especially being part of the process of finding solutions to the challenges that the community is facing. It’s a good space to be in.”
Drone footage over Nanumaga as work starts. © TCAP.
Since major damage caused by Cyclone Pam in 2015, the island has been rebuilding its infrastructure and recovering from creeping sea water inundation. “The challenges are real in terms of waves during cyclone overtopping the island,” said Tap.
Being coral atolls, Tuvalu’s islands lack rock or other construction materials commonly used for coastal construction. To ensure that the project is environmentally sustainable and cost-effective, large Geotextile Bags were filled with sand dredged from deeper waters along the shoreline, to raise the shoreline in Funafuti.
The strategy provides protection as longer-term climate change adaptation plans are underway. On Nanumaga, the first stage of the construction was to clear coconut trees from the project footprint on the beach, which would later be replanted, and to prepare the foundation for the bags so they could be laid out and filled and covered with sand material to create the Berm Top Barriers.
“Sand from deposits on the island needed to be collected to fill the bags using pumped seawater. Getting seawater from the sea is a challenge when the tide is out,” Tap explains. “We would pump a slurry of water and sand into the bags, and the water flows naturally back into the ocean while the sand is contained in the bags.”
“In our context, the reclamation area on Funafuti is quite a big portion of land that has been added to what we had before by the TCAP project. In that respect, I have had good feedbacks from the community.”
In the future, he hopes that more will be done to preserve culture on the islands, because if they disappear, recreating home traditions will not be possible. “If we don’t keep what we have in Tuvalu, we will lose our identity and culture, even though the island may be small. For me, the kind of happiness that I get here is something that I can’t find overseas,” he said.
“I moved overseas for different reasons, but mainly because of the education of my children. But it is hard to leave your birthplace, and for some people who have never had to leave what they know, it will be harder to accept that people might have to move away from what they are used to because of climate change,” he added.
Drone footage over Nanumanga as work starts on the island. © TCAP.
Now, the land that has been completed in Funafuti has been earmarked for the community, and they will plan what to do with it next. For now, children have already been spotted playing on the sand, and fishermen fishing off the reclaimed land in the lagoon.
“Next, we mobilize to Nanumanga and the aim is to finish it this year,” said Tap. The design of the coastal sea dike or Berm Top Barrier in Nanumanga will run on both sides of the village for 665 meters, raising the beach.
After Nanumaga, the team will mobilize to Nanumea Island to carry out similar coastal projection works for that island. If all goes well and according to plan, the entire TCAP Project should be completed by July 2024.
About the Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project
With US$36 million financing from the Green Climate Fund and US$2.9 million co-financing from the Government of Tuvalu, the 7-year Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project is contributing to strengthening the resilience of one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to climate change and sea-level rise. Implemented by the UN Development Programme in partnership with the Government, the project is improving coastal protection in key locations on the islands of Funafuti, Nanumea and Nanumaga. While new measures will act as a buffer during storms, the project also strives to build the capacity of national and island governments and local communities in adapting to climate change in the longer term. Learn more at TCAP.tv Follow the project on Twitter @TCAP4Tuvalu or on Facebook
About the United Nations Development Programme
UNDP is the leading United Nations organisation fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in 170 countries, we help nations to build integrated, lasting solutions for people and planet. Learn more at undp.org
About the Pacific Community (SPC)
The Pacific Community (SPC) is the principal scientific and technical organisation in the Pacific region, proudly supporting development since 1947. It is an international development organisation owned and governed by 27 country and territory members.
SPC is a key project partner to TCAP, undertaking Environmental and Social Impact, Geotechnical, Sea Level Measurement and Wave Inundation Assessments in support of TCAP’s work programme. SPC will also deliver a hands-on training programme for Tuvalu government officers and other interested parties in 2023. Among various subjects the training will cover use and improvement of the hazards dashboard.
Additional photos from the Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project also available on Flickr: https://flic.kr/s/aHsm6S2Zkw *Please credit as indicated