Severe drought impacted these remote Micronesian islands. Now they’re drought-proofing

Photo: ABC / Carl Smith. Retrieved from rnz.co.nz

After a severe and prolonged drought, communities across the state of Yap and its outer islands in the Federated States of Micronesia are future-proofing water supplies – and their way of life – amid a changing climate.

A state of emergency was declared earlier this year as a result of the drought, and although it has since ended, it’s still extraordinarily dry in some parts.

By June the situation was dire, and the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported that teams and residents from islands across Yap State were seeing “taro patches drying up, coconuts drying out, and many reports of yellowing crops” associated with the drought.

For many, this latest drought raised deeper concerns about what is still to come as the climate continues to change.

Victor Nabeyan, the man in charge of the government-owned water and power operation, said they were doing all they could to adapt.

“Small islands in the Pacific are most affected by climate change, and so we are very mindful of that,” he said.

“Our whole planning revolves around that.