Water

Water Actions
National Water Resources Assessment and Management Project (Kiribati)

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As a remote string of coral atolls, Kiribati is critically dependent on underground floating freshwater lenses and rainwater for its water supplies. Unfortunately, these water supplies are now threatened due to, among others,

• increasing population, which has already spilled out into the water reserves where replenishment of the water lenses takes place, bringing with it sewage and pesticides
• rising sea levels due to global warming, bringing with them the threat of saltwater intrusion

In South Tarawa, the capital city, the population density has now reached a critical high of 2,300/km2. The increasing population has not only increased demand for water, but also for land. Being a nation of atolls, no point of land on any of the islands (except Kiritimati, the largest) is more than 200 - 300 meters from the ocean on one side or the lagoon on the other. The whole country may therefore be described as a coastal zone. On the sparsely populated outer islands, the coastal zones are not under threat except from natural phenomenon. On South Tarawa, however, the coastal zones and their resources are threatened by human intrusion, pollution and the consequent degradation of their environment.

The planning and management of the long and narrow coastal zones of the atoll is therefore essential to

• lower the pollution levels
• ensure the orderly development of the few remaining undeveloped areas
• identify suitable areas for reclamation

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Objectives

This project aimed to contribute to sustainable growth and poverty reduction in Kiribati through efficient and effective management of water resources and coastal zone planning.

Its immediate objective was to provide a comprehensive strategy and action plan to implement a water management and coastal planning (WACP) action plan. The action plan may lead to the identification of future investment needs.

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Scope

The project involved the following:

• preparation of a comprehensive integrated water resources assessment
• preparation of a sustainable coastal zone profile
• identification of an action agenda, and assessment of institutional options to implement the identified action agenda
• promotion of sustainable management of water and coastal zone resources
• strengthening of coastal zone planning and participatory social development capabilities
• synthesis of outputs into a WACP strategy and action plan

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