Yap Joint State Action Plan for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change
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Federated States of Micronesia Federated States of Micronesia Federated States of Micronesia Yap Joint State Action Plan for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Yap Joint State Action Plan for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Yap Joint State Action Plan for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change a Federated States of Micronesia Yap Joint State Action Plan for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change i Federated States of Micronesia ©Copyright Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) 2015 All rights for commercial/for profit reproduction or translation, in any form, reserved. SPC authorises the partial reproduction or translation of this material for scientific, educational or research purposes, provided that SPC and the source document are properly acknowledged. Permission to reproduce the document and/or translate in whole, in any form, whether for commercial/for profit or non- profit purposes, must be requested in writing. Original SPC artwork may not be altered or separately published without permission. Original text: English Secretariat of the Pacific Community cataloguing-in-publication data ii Yap Joint State Action Plan for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Federated States of Micronesia Federated States of Micronesia FOREWORD Yap State has been experiencing the impacts of climate change related disasters more than any of the three other states in the Federated States of Micronesia. The patterns of typhoons are changing, bringing uncertainty regarding local impacts such as heavy rainfall and storm surges which affect the fragile environment that has sustained our past generations. Our strong social and cultural systems, which have been an important source of our resilience, is under immense pressure, partly due to increased frequency and magnitude climate change impacts and climate variability events, thus contributing to accelerated resource depletion, as seen in various sectors in Yap. The salt water intrusion into taro patches, the damages sustained to breadfruit and coconut trees are examples of impacts that have limited the sharing of such food crops. The State needs to act now and identify activities that will reduce the potential negative impacts in the future since scientific predictions show that that the changing climate cannot be reversed but will continue in its current trend resulting in sea-level rise, increased sea-surface temperature, intense rainfall and less frequent but more intense typhoons. I commend the Joint State Action Plan (JSAP) for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change for all our communities and population. Our joint effort in its implementation is vital so that our future generations can continue to enjoy a resourceful and sustainable and safer place. Let us all mainstream disaster risk management and climate change adaptation through integrated risk approaches in our families, communities, decision making and work places to ensure a resilient and safer Yap. Hon. Tony Ganngiyan Governor Yap Joint State Action Plan for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Yap Joint State Action Plan for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change iii Federated States of Micronesia ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The State leadership is forever indebted to the efforts of all those who contributed to the development of this Joint State Action Plan for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change. The active participation of the various segments of our community was encouraging and reaffirms the concerns they are now facing and the eagerness of enhancing their safety and resilience. The contributions made by the government representatives, chiefs, mayors, church leaders, women groups, youth groups and persons with disabilities were very valuable and ensuring that the plan is realistic and relevant. The leadership displayed by the FSM’s national Office of Environment and Emergency Management (OEEM), Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) is commendable. Their professional input and guidance had been captivating and engaging hence encourages the full participation of the stakeholders in developing the plan. The funding support from the European Union through the EU ACP Building Safety and Resilience in the Pacific (BSRP) project being implemented by SPC is greatly appreciated without which the development of the plan would have been impossible. We would also like to acknowledge the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) for reviewing of this plan. iv Yap Joint State Action Plan for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Federated States of Micronesia Federated States of Micronesia TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword.......................................................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgements......................................................................................................................................... iv Tables............................................................................................................................................................... 2 Figures............................................................................................................................................................. 2 Acronyms......................................................................................................................................................... 3 Executive Summary......................................................................................................................................... 4 1 Country and state context.................................................................................................................... 6 1.1 Geography.................................................................................................................................................... 6 1.2 Population and culture................................................................................................................................. 6 1.3 Economy...................................................................................................................................................... 7 1.4 Governance.................................................................................................................................................. 8 1.5 Risk and resilience context.......................................................................................................................... 9 1.5.1 Natural vulnerability........................................................................................................................................ 9 1.5.2 Human-induced vulnerability and resilience................................................................................................... 9 1.5.3 Recent damaging events............................................................................................................................... 10 1.6 Sector and policy context............................................................................................................................ 11 1.6.1 National policy context.................................................................................................................................. 11 1.6.2 State sector policy context............................................................................................................................ 13 1.6.3 Key sectors - background context................................................................................................................. 14 2 Climate change in Yap.......................................................................................................................... 19 2.1 Climate change projections for Yap............................................................................................................. 19 2.1.1 Observations................................................................................................................................................. 19 2.1.2 Future climate................................................................................................................................................ 19 2.2 Sector vulnerabilities.................................................................................................................................... 21 2.3 FSM’s institutional response........................................................................................................................ 22 2.3.1 Disaster and climate change policy context................................................................................................... 22 2.3.2 Disaster risk management and climate change responsibilities...................................................................... 23 2.3.3 Gaps in Yap’s institutional response to disasters and climate change............................................................. 23 2.4 Linkages to national, regional and international policies and frameworks.................................................. 23 3 Approaches to risk reduction............................................................................................................... 25 3.1 Current and recent approaches................................................................................................................... 25 3.2 Gaps and future needs