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Adapting to climate change

Climate change is already having an impact on poor communities around the world. For low-lying Pacific countries, more frequent, more intense storms, higher tides and coastal erosion are taking their toll. Photo: Toby Parkinson/Oxfam

• Protective planting
• Crop diversification
• Water harvesting
• Irrigation and water reservoirs
• Community climate-proofing programmes
• Elevated seed beds
• Disaster risk reduction
• Other climate change adaptation methods

Protective planting

In low-lying Pacific nations like Kiribati, mangrove planting along the vulnerable coastline will help protect the land from erosion. Photo: Nic Maclellan/Oxfam

In Tuvalu, work is being done in response to the flooding of agricultural land. Communities are drawing on local knowledge, with a strong focus on planting mangroves to stabilise the coastal environment. Activities like this are developed using local people’s traditional methods rather than new and unfamiliar ones.

In Fiji and Kiribati, mangroves are being planted to stabilise coastlines and riverbanks to help combat the effects of erosion.

A similar approach is being undertaken in Pakistan. Embankments of pressed earthwork will protect more than 20 coastal villages from sea intrusion. On the land side of the embankment, crop fields will be protected by
planting flood tolerant plants and trees.

Vietnam's fertile Mekong Delta is also threatened by rising sea levels. The region's mangrove forests, which act like a natural impediment to erosion, have been cut down for timber and to make way for shrimp farming, and their reforestation will be an effective way to protect the vulnerable ecosystem from the effects of climate change.*

Mangrove reforestation work is also being undertaken in the Philippines, with 390,000 trees being planted each year to protect the coastline.*

*Source: www.dw-world.de

Crop diversification

As a low-lying Pacific nation, Tuvalu is extremely vulnerable to climate change. Salt water is now affecting root crops and adaptation is essential. Photo: Jocelyn Carlin

Members of the Tuvalu Climate Action Network (TuCAN) are looking at climate adaptation initiatives to address issues like coastal erosion and food security. Root crops like taro take years to be harvested; with the current sea surges, the salty water gets into the taro pits and kills the plants. The group is looking at bringing in species from other countries to help overcome this problem.

In Cambodia, research conducted by the Climate Change Office of the Cambodian Ministry of Environment has proven that agricultural productivity has gone down during the past five years because of increased flooding, drought and sea water intrusions. People living in lowland areas are the most vulnerable to these changes. To adapt, diversified and integrated farming such as cattle raising and vegetable planting is being introduced so that rice is not the only source of income. Irrigation systems are being improved to help make these changes.

Water harvesting

Simple rainwater harvesting systems like those installed after the Samoa tsunami in 2009 mean ongoing access to clean water and protect against future shortages. Photo: Jane Ussher

Climate change adaptation in the Pacific involves, among other projects, rainwater harvesting and desalination. The Tuvalu government's Water and Sanitation Strategy includes the construction of around 300 large rainwater tanks in the capital, Funafuti. Households are instructed in the maintenance of roof catchment and guttering and the management of the collected water for domestic use.

Following the Samoa tsunami in 2009, Oxfam provided affected families with rainwater harvesting materials. Guttering and collection tanks were provided for families who had relocated inland, and the system was incorporated into the design of new homes. This means an ongoing supply of clean water, with communities able to respond to future water shortages.

Small grant schemes in Fiji, Vanuatu, Samoa, Tonga and Solomon Islands provide funds for community-initiated climate change adaptation projects. In Tonga, Samoa and Vanuatu, communities have increased their water storage capacity by constructing rainwater tanks. On the drought-prone island of Aniwa in Vanuatu, communities have built small solar desalination stills capable of producing enough fresh water for drinking.

Pakistan

In Pakistan, Oxfam has undertaken research to better understand the implications of climate change for poverty-stricken communities living in the Badin coastal region. People here have seen profound changes to their environment. Large areas of what was once productive land are waterlogged, saline or parched. Seawater intrusion is a fact of life and coastal habitats are under enormous stress.

Communities, like those in the Pacific, are experiencing an increase in the incidence, frequency and intensity of extreme climatic events, which here includes heavier rainfall in coastal areas. Traditional coping methods used to deal with water shortages, declines in fish catch and reduced agricultural produce are no longer enough to counter the impact of climate change.

To adapt, existing water ponds will have strengthened linings and will be expanded in size to increase water collection for drinking. Installation of solar panel pumps will deliver water from the ponds into the agricultural fields. To help with this process, degraded land is being reclaimed.

Irrigation and water reservoirs

Warmer temperatures and decreasing rainfall mean diminishing water supplies in the Ancash region of Peru. To adapt, farmers like Pascual Cochachi are using drip irrigation methods and are storing water in reservoirs. Photo: Gilvan Barreto/Oxfam

The Ancash region of Peru is home to the Cordillera Blanca, a 200km chain of mountains that form part of the Peruvian Andes. It also contains a quarter of the world’s tropical glaciers. Between 1970 and 1997, the Cordillera Blanca lost an estimated 15 per cent of its glaciers, and in just 15 years most glaciers will disappear altogether. As journalist and climate change researcher James Painter says: “Of particular concern is water availability during the dry season, when the glaciers act as a very significant source of water for drinking, irrigation for agriculture, energy, and industry.”

Farmers here are experiencing warmer temperatures and decreasing rainfall, but are introducing new drip irrigation techniques to make the best use of diminishing water supplies. They are also starting to store water in reservoirs, which use a geo-membrane plastic sheet to store the water. Before they introduced the new techniques, farmers would flood their land when the rain came, wasting water and washing the nutrients away.

Community climate-proofing programmes

Climate researchers Patrina Dumaru (left) and Lavinia Tawake from the University of the South Pacific are working with rural villagers in Fiji to 'climate proof' their homes, addressing problems of water, food security and coastal erosion. Photo: Nic Maclellan/Oxfam

Fiji

The Fijian village of Korotarase is located on low-lying, swampy land alongside a river and beach on the northern island of Vanua Levu. In March 2007, heavy upstream rainfall combined with a king tide and the village was flooded. The people of Korotarase have since joined with five other Fijian villages and are working to climate-proof their homes and communities in preparation for future impacts caused by tidal surges, coastal erosion or flooding. They are trialling salt-resistant varieties of staple foods such as taro; planting mangroves, native grasses and other trees to halt coastal and riverbank erosion; protecting fresh water wells from salt-water intrusion; and relocating homes and community buildings away from vulnerable coastlines.

Kiribati

The Republic of Kiribati is one of the world’s least developed countries. The low-lying nation is made up of 33 atolls and reef islands stretching 5000 kilometres across the central Pacific. The Kiribati Adaptation Program is made up of a range of actions, including raising awareness, improving the Tarawa weather station and meteorological services, protecting key government infrastructure such as the maternity wards at Tarawa Hospital (which can flood at high tide) and securing water supply.

Thailand

Oxfam has been working with local organisation Earth Net Foundation (ENF) since 2004, promoting organic agricultural production and Fairtrade marketing with farmers in Yasothorn Province, Thailand. Men, women and children were educated about climate change and its potential impacts. Using this information, participants shared ideas about how they could adapt their farming practices to cope with these changes, and they designed their own on-farm water management systems. A fund was established that provided loans to each household to assist in the construction of these systems.

In total, 23 stock ponds, 24 wells, 44 water-drainage systems (ditch, sprinkle, pipe) and 14 water pumps were designed, built and installed. Given the uncertain impact of climate change on rice production, farmers also diversified their food crops. Many farmers, especially women, grew vegetables and planted fruit trees as alternative crops. Female and male farmers who took part in the project met with other farmers and households to share their experiences and help others to find better solutions to the problems posed by a changing climate. Several workshops took place, including one on agricultural models and techniques to reduce climate risks; three on the impact of climate change on the roles of female farmers; and three on on-farm product management and seed management for female farmers.

Elevated seed beds

The lowland Beni district of Bolivia is prone to flooding. To protect crops, farmers are returning to an ancient local technique and planting in elevated seed beds, which means they can harvest and replant despite the floods. Photo: Jane Beesley/Oxfam

An ancient method of agriculture has been reinstated in Bolivia as a means of climate change adaptation.

Floods severely affected many people in the district of Beni, Bolivia, in 2007. During the rainy season, shallow floodwater can cover much of the low-lying land. In the dry season there can be droughts and raging fires can sweep across the savannah. Equally challenging to local farmers are the poor soil conditions and lack of drainage.

Up until recently it was believed that sustainable agriculture supporting a large population wasn’t possible here and that conditions were only suitable for hunting and gathering and slash-and-burn agriculture. With slash-and-burn the land might be good for three years before production starts to decline and farmers have to move on to a new area of land – cutting down the rainforest.

Then archaeological research made a stunning discovery, revealing that around 3000 years ago, before the Incas, this and other areas were densely populated by a highly organised civilisation that carried out vast modifications to the landscape and developed an agricultural system that coped with the environmental challenges, improved soil fertility and made the land very productive. One aspect of this system was the construction of elevated seedbeds, known locally as camellones.

Today, Oxfam, together with the Kenneth Lee Foundation (which has carried out extensive research on camellones), is working with a local community to replicate the elevated seedbeds. In this system, the planted land is an island that doesn’t get covered with floodwater, which would result in considerable plant and seed loss. Now farmers can still harvest during flooding and can immediately sow seeds again. The system not only offers an alternative to cutting down the rainforest but, as Oscar Saavedra from the Kenneth Lee Institute points out, ‘it creates a balance between the dry and wet seasons, enabling people to live with the process of nature rather than challenging it’.

Disaster risk reduction

In the aftermath of the 2009 Samoa tsunami, local organisation WIBDI is advocating for the planting of fetau trees on the coastline. The trees will help to protect communities from sea surges and erosion.

Climate change has led to a dramatic and continuing rise in the number of small- and medium-scale climate-related disasters; since the 1980s, the average number of people reported as affected by these has doubled. By 2015, Oxfam’s projections suggest that this number could grow by more than 50 per cent.*

The United Nations’ Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction (2009) concludes: ‘Climate change magnifies the interactions between disaster risk and poverty. On the one hand it magnifies weather-related and climatic hazards. On the other hand it will decrease the resilience of many poor households and communities to absorb the impact and recover from disaster loss due to factors such as decreases in agricultural productivity, increases in disease and shortages of water and energy in many disaster-prone regions.’*

Disaster Risk Reduction includes reducing exposure to hazards, lessening the vulnerability of people and property, the wise management of land and the environment, and improving preparedness for adverse events.

As part of the ongoing response to the tsunami that devastated the south coast of Samoa in September 2009, local organisation Women in Business Development Incorporated (WIBDI) is advocating for a fetau tree planting programme in an attempt to minimise the potential adverse impacts of climate change and to further reduce the vulnerability of families living in coastal areas.

In the Kratie province of Cambodia, Oxfam has supported the implementation of a Disaster Risk Reduction project for people living in coastal areas. Oxfam has helped to provide boats, fishing nets, rain water catchment containers and vegetable seeds in 19 villages. We have also raised homes above flood levels and improved an existing safe area where people can shelter for weeks with clean water and sanitation facilities. We have provided early warning and evacuation training and are assessing the challenge of supporting the people of Kratie in coping with the new problems being created by climate change through adapting existing programmes.

*Sources:
- Oxfam International (2009) ‘The Right to Survive in a Changing Climate’, p. 2 – based on CRED data for droughts, extreme temperature events, floods, mass movements (wet), storms, and wildfires, and comparing the average for 1980–9 and 1998–2007. For details of this projection, please see ‘Forecasting the numbers of people affected annually by natural disasters up to 2015.’
- United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction.

Other climate change adaptation methods

Examples of what we’re doing to help people adapt to climate change and so reduce its impact on their lives. None of these on its own is enough, but each one can help people thrive in spite of a changing climate.

Raising homes

In areas where floods are getting higher, lasting longer and threatening more lives, we’re working with local people to raise homes above the flood level. Literally moving houses onto higher foundations.

Faster maturing crops

Speedy seeds that take just 70 days to mature can be used to schedule an extra growing season or make sure crops are grown and harvested before expected droughts or floods.

Weather forecasts

With traditional farming calendars becoming unreliable, we work to ensure communities can access the information they need to stay on top of the weather – radios to access met office information and training on how to interpret short- and long-term forecasts and climate change reports.

Seed and food storage

A ridiculously simple solution – waterproof plastic tubs with lids protect seed and food, making it quick and easy to transport if families need to move to safety fast.

Flood shelters

When extreme weather hits, life has to go on. Flood shelters on raised ground provide a safe space for clinics, schools, families and livestock to wait out the worst.

Raised wells

When floods hit, contaminated water supplies mean diseases spread – so we’re working with communities to rise above it and raise wells above flood levels.

Drought-tolerant seeds

We work with local people to identify the ideal crops for the worsening conditions, including some less thirsty seeds that take just 70 days to mature.

Portable clay stoves

Lightweight and easy to carry to higher ground during flood alerts, the portable clay stoves used in Bangladesh give families the means to prepare food whatever happens.

Farmer field schools

Knowledge is power. We help farmers understand what climate change means to them and provide a buffer zone for them to take risks and try new farming methods and crops, guaranteeing income or food if their experiments don’t work.

Disaster preparedness training

Swimming lessons, First Aid courses, search and rescue training, evacuation planning… Learning lifesaving skills when the going’s good means communities are better equipped to help themselves in harder times.

Roof platforms

For families in Vietnam, sometimes it’s good to be left high and dry. Raised platforms in the roofs of homes provide safe storage for dried foods and important documents in the event of a flood, and a safe, dry place for families to wait out the waters.

Raising latrines

Low-level toilet facilities create an unsanitary soup when floods strike, contaminating water sources with severe water-borne diseases like diarrhoea and cholera. By building latrines on higher ground, waste stays where it should when the waters come.

Reforestation

Trees are lifesavers. They help to regulate local rainfall, smoothing out the extremes of drought and deluge, and also help prevent floods and landslides by absorbing the waters that would otherwise run off.

Floating vegetable gardens

Rafts of bamboo, plant-material and dung make a brilliant base for growing fruit and veg. So even during floods, families have food to eat and a means to make a living.

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