Another Pacific Island Sinks Due To Global Warming

Another Pacific country is vanishing because of rising sea levels caused by global warming. The latest casualty is Kiribati, a small country in the South Pacific near Australia. Anote Tong, president of Kiribati said, "We can't out-move the changes in the weather and the sea level rise. We have to consider leaving rather than wait.''

The small country is comprised of several low lying islands whose population lives close to the shoreline. Government officials are trying to make plans to relocate the 105,000 people off the islands to safer locations. According to estimates the entire country will be uninhabitable by mid-century

The government is currently building retaining walls to protect the Taro crop, one of the primary foods of the islands, but that is only a temporary measure. In an interview with Bloomberg News Tong said, " Some villages have already had to relocate." Of one island he said, " If we keep moving back from the shoreline on the lagoon side then we will eventually get to the ocean side. We live on very narrow strips of land, so adaptation is not so relevant.''

So now Kiribati joins Lohachara as the latest in the line of islands now uninhabitable because of global warming. And what are we doing about it? Bush administration toadies continue to call for more research, etc, anything but do something about it! Maybe when Florida begins to sink, the White House might listen.