The Threat of Sea-Level Rise on Oneop Island

It is a known fact that the warming of the planet has caused the polar ice caps to melt at a very rapid rate that scientists predicted that as a consequence, the sea-level rise will be increased by 1 meter within this century. Well, if  you look at those figures, 1 meter in one century doesn't seem much. But that is if you are living on a continent or at high elevations. But for us on Oneop or on and in any low-lying atolls, where the highest points of our islands are a mere few meters above sea-level, this is BIG! This threatens our very existence and should be given priority over everything else. It is up to us to be creative and try to come up with solutions that will guarantee that our islands are still there for our children and our children's children to live and survive and carry on our legacy as Mortlockese.
Here are a few ideas and suggestions on how to start addressing this threat on a grass-root level instead of waiting for the government or other entities to come and do it for us:

• Radical Landscaping and Shoreline Restructuring - the only way this can work is for every shorelines and tidelands owners to give up the strip of property from shoreline out to 15 meters in the water all around the islands. This property will be obtain by the municipal government through an easement or through an eminent domain scheme. After all, if nothing is done, there won't be any more land or people to hold the deeds to these properties. The island will be gone and everyone will be gone or, if they are fortunate, relocated to another place. At the outer perimeter of this 15 meter strip, this is where the shoreline restructuring will take place. Oneop Island tried to do a similar project in the 90's but it was poorly designed and it met many oppositions by some land and tide-land owners that it, ultimately, failed. This new project will require the cooperation of all the islanders in order for it to succeed. It is a 100-year project and it will take several generations of islanders to finish it and make it work. The people will work on this project with the understanding that their very life and existence depend on the success of this project. It is not a contract so there is no deadline to beat. People will work at their own pace but they should always keep in their minds that they are working on this in order to stay alive. They have to understand that there is no pay. This is purely volunteer work as there is no price on life. There are several methods and types of shoreline restructuring and erosion control that we can adopt for our small and fragile island. Here is a sample of one project. Yes, this is an aesthetic nightmare but it will serve its purpose. Among many, this type of wave breaker/erosion control is ideal for our islands. In fact, one of the benefits of adopting this system is that it not only provide a wave breaker but it also reverses erosion. Because of the shapes of each individual concrete element, when randomly placed, it leaves spaces, nooks and crannies that will dissipate wave force as it breaks on the structure. As the wave recedes, it will deposit sands and coral rocks that it churned up from the sea floor. This constant breaking of waves on the structure will create dynamic sand dunes or beaches beyond the concrete structure. So, that in itself is an island builder. Yes, it is a monumental task or undertaking, but as mentioned earlier, it is a 100-year project and it is doable. If the people are willing to do this project, they can raise some money to purchase the metal forms and then commit themselves to fabricate 10 to 20 elements per year. The government can then provide assistance when it sees that people are committed to this life-saving project. That's how government sometimes work. It needs to see initiatives from the community in order for it to provide support and funding.
• Mitigation and Conservation of Mangroves and Other Shoreline Plants and Vegetation - The decimation of our shoreline ecosystems, primarily the erosion-controlling plants and vegetation (chia, chokiis, net, umaaf, etc.), is one of the reason why we see the rapid disappearance of our shorelines and the acceleration of the encroachment of seawater into our taro patches, plantations and water lens. We often see stumps of coconut trees out in the water and we often wondered why someone planted coconut offshore. In fact, those coconuts were used to be on land and due to erosion of the  beachheads and sand bars, they are now standing in the water. This is a result of the disappearance of our shoreline plants and vegetation which hold the topsoil intact. The mitigation of this ecosystem is essential in the reversal of the erosion of our shorelines. The plants and vegetation also serve as the natural wave and wind breakers for our islands. If we replant or reintroduce these erosion-controlling plants and vegetation, it slowly but surely help restore our rapidly disappearing shorelines.
• Radical Agricultural Practices And Introduction of Salt-water Resistant Crops (Taro, Breadfruits, Bananas and Other Local Staples) -- If we cannot prevent the intrusion of salt-water into our plantation and water lens, it is wise to look at other options that will work well with the building of sea-walls and the replanting of erosion-controlling plants and vegetation. All Oneopese males who often go into the taro patch to plant, cultivate and care for their plants know that there are always controlled seepages of salt-water into our taro patch. In fact, the old men said that the reason why the "konomel" of Oneop is so delicious and popular is because it is "salialela chok" meaning "no need meat". The salt plays a major role in the chemistry and genetic makeup of our taro. The salt-water seepage is controlled by nature so its effects on the whole taro patch is minimal. There are some "weep-holes" from where salt-water seeps into our taro patch all year round. Sometimes the seepage is small, sometimes it is large depending on the position of our planet in relation to the sun and the moon (in other words, TIDES). In addition, the amount of standing fresh water in our taro patch also determines the extend of the salt-water damage. Some of these salt-water "weep-holes" are located at Lukun Lukunopwong, Lukun Kako and Lukun Lukula. Even if we erect a high sea-wall or elevate the land, we may not be able to elevate the taro patch. In fact, it will become lower in relation to dry land and it will be difficult to drain the intrusion of sea water from it. The salt-water seepage from the "weep-holes" will continue to accumulate until the whole taro plantation becomes a murky sea-water lake without any more taro pants. So what is the plan? Well, when all else fail, when we can no longer defeat the intrusion of salt-water into our taro patch, it is only natural that we come up with some radical agricultural practices and techniques in planting our taro. I hate to say this, but we have to start planting our crops in elevated concrete containment like the ones that some of the Yap outer islands experimented with in the 80's and 90's (We'll explore this in detail at other time). We have to work with scientists and experts on developing salt-water resistant crops. The University of Hawaii and other South Pacific institutions are already studying and experimenting on these things. We can also look into hydroponic farming such that some of our allies and friends in the global community are the leaders. We can utilize our close friendship with them and ask them to help us design and build our own hydroponic systems to use to plant our own food.
• We need to address these issues now as the threat of sea-level rise is real and looming over our head. We need to think about our future and the future of our children and their children's children. Once the island is gone, so is our identity. There will be no more "back home" so we will be nomads again.