100 Places To Remember: Ontong Java Atoll, Solomon Islands
Geschreven op 3-3-2010 - Erik van Erne. Geplaatst in Natuur
A Lagoon of Fishermen at the Edge of the World. People have been fishing and gathering coconuts on the isolated tropical Ontong Java Atoll in the far north of the Solomon Islands for at least 2,000 years.
One of the largest atolls in the world, the total land area is a mere 12 square kilometres, most of it less than two metres above sea level. The 122 small coral islands encircle a lagoon measuring more than 2,500 square kilometres. Only two of the largest islands are permanently inhabited, and with a total population of 2,000, this is one of the smallest, most isolated societies in the world.
The islanders live off coconuts and fish. On the larger islands, they cultivate the tropical plant taro, which also forms an important part of their diet. The taro is grown in freshwater swamps artificially deepened to form mulching pits.
The coral reefs and lagoons are home to a rich variety of seafood, and the inhabitants catch sea cucumber to sell on the Hong Kong market. They also exchange copra the dried meat of the coconut for goods and cash.
Climate change may change the atoll completely in less than a century. The coral, the debris of which serves as the foundation of the atoll, functions as coastal protection. Any rise in temperature or increased acidification of the seawater could eventually kill it. A rise in sea level will also cause saline intrusion into the agricultural land and fresh water, and flood the low-lying parts of the islands. The effects on Ontong Java
Atoll, on its people, the seabirds that breed on the islands and the many species of fish that live among the coral would be devastating.
