According to most climate change scientists, climate change is no longer a development to occur in the future, but is already happening now. Exotic places like the far north and islands in the South Pacific and Caribbean are already experiencing some of the physical effects associated with climate change. These effects will most likely become more noticeable within the years to come. So what are we, the people that call these exotic places “home,” to expect, and how can we adapt to changes that the future holds for us?  

Although climate change is a global event, the changes to come will be distinctly local and personal. Take, for example, small-scale farmers, fishermen, dive operators, taxi drivers, and local business entrepreneurs on St Kitts and Nevis. All will experience stronger winds and more unpredictable weather, but changes in the weather will mean different things to their economic livelihood.

Farmers may lose their seasonal crops, and thus the income or food supply that they and their family rely upon. The fishermen will not go out to sea because rough weather conditions make it unsafe and difficult to harvest fish, conch, or lobster. Again, their income is affected as well as the people and restaurant owners that come to the market on Wednesday and Saturday to buy local fish to make local favorites such as fish fry, fish soup, and conch fritters.

For dive operating businesses catering to tourists who want to experience our beautiful reefs, the rough waters mean reduced underwater visibility, and warmer water temperatures mean decreased coral health. This year, bad weather resulted in several cruise ships not berthing at Port Zante. Cab drivers make a living from taking tourists on scenic rides around the island and to the lovely beaches on the South East Peninsula. Similarly, the livelihood of bar and restaurant owners, both downtown and at the local beaches, strongly depends on a steady influx of tourists that support the economy by enjoying local foods and drinks. Many beach bars also offer other services such as boat and fishing trips, beach chair and snorkel equipment rental. Less tourists means less business.

Climate change has many other faces that go beyond unpredictable weather; including the warming of the ocean waters, rising sea levels, changes in precipitation, and increased beach erosions. Many of these changes will affect us by impacting the conditions of our local marine resources. For example, take coral reefs, coral reef fishes, and sea turtles. Coral reefs of varying sizes are found in many places on the Caribbean and Atlantic sides of St Kitts. Living coral reefs provide shelter and food for many marine organisms, but they also offer protection to the coastline by breaking waves, thus reducing storm impact. Reef-building corals, which are tiny animals that deposit their limestone skeletons, depend on microscopic algae to provide them with food and oxygen. Both organisms depend on clear, clean and moderately warm water. Increased sedimentation due to coastal run off and increasing ocean temperatures threaten their survival. Coral bleaching events due to the loss of the micro-algae have been increasing over the last decade in the Caribbean and have been observed by local dive operators in St Kitts and Nevis after prolonged high water temperatures. Without living coral reefs, the island is bound to lose both land and marine resources, not to mention tourists.
 
Last but not least, what about the sea turtles? The mighty leatherbacks and the much smaller hawksbill and green turtles have come to both islands’ beaches to build their nests and lay their eggs for as long as local people can remember. To successfully nest and subsequently hatch, sea turtles require wide, clean sandy beaches with no artificial lighting during the nesting and hatching season. St Kitts has in recent years experienced a fair share of lasting beach erosions on North Frigate Bay, South Friar, Majors Bay and Timothy Beach. Beach vegetation holds onto the sand with long extending root systems. This vegetation is being removed along the beaches of the South East Peninsula, and it will be additive to climate change-related beach erosion. Without nesting beaches, the future of St Kitts and Nevis-bound sea turtles is grim.

It is important to remember that we will not awake one day to a cataclysmic event that announces, “Climate change is upon us.” Each change comes slowly. For instance, one season, people might comment on the increase of sea blast on the cars. Another year, fishermen might note that rough waters kept them at dock a few more days than the previous year. The changes will not come all at once, which is a blessing, but this does make it all the harder to mentally prepare ourselves.

So how can we respond to changes that the future possibly holds for St Kitts and Nevis? Adaptation is the key word. We live in a world with changing rules, and we have to change with it and adapt to the changes if we want to carve a niche for ourselves and our children. The solutions to address many of the ecological changes will have to be local management solutions. One size will not fit all. However, the challenge also lies in our personal willingness to individually mitigate climate change impacts by reducing our carbon footprint as individuals and as a nation, and by educating our children to be good and conscientious stewards of these islands.
 
As Harry Belafonte sang many years ago about the beauty of the Caribbean:
Oh, island in the sun
Willed to me by my father's hand
All my days I will sing in praise
Of your forest, waters, your shining sand.

Let us remember that we have a lot to lose.

For more information on 'carbon footprint' check these links.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_footprint

http://www.nature.org/initiatives/climatechange/calculator/

http://www.bp.com/extendedsectiongenericarticle.do?categoryId=9015627&contentId=7029058

http://timeforchange.org/what-is-a-carbon-footprint-definition

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 1st, 2008 at 12:10 am and is filed under lifestyle. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.