The water is getting closer to the inhabitants of the San Bernardo archipelago in Colombia. Two meters above sea level, they are used to having their houses flooded at regular intervals.
A few kilometers off the coast of Colombia, they have long worried about sea levels. Now more than ever.
– It is very worrying. We are concerned that our islands are disappearing, says Adrián Caraballo The Guardian.
Gloomy verdict: – The battle is lost
– Our only choice
It is not the first time that the island paradise in the Caribbean Sea has received attention. Climate change has meant that those who want to visit the islands have limited time. Slowly but surely they are disappearing.
– In the long term, flight is our only choice. We need an evacuation plan. We still have time for that, before the tragedy occurs, says Juan Manuel Díaz, head of the environmental protection organization Fundación MarViva Colombia, to The Guardian.
The archipelago also houses one of the most densely populated islands in the world, Santa Cruz del Islote. But even a spring tide can be enough to flood the island’s narrow streets.
By 2050, the sea level is expected to rise by up to 30 centimeters. In that case, it will threaten both San Bernardo’s inhabitants and ultimately the very existence of the islands. Two of the islands have already, so to speak, disappeared into the sea.
– This is madness
Gone in ten years
– San Bernardo is now a completely different world to what I grew up with 40 years ago, says Diaz.
Both the islands of Ceycén and Panda are about to be swallowed by water. So much has disappeared that the inhabitants of San Bernardo expect them to be completely gone within the next ten years.
The archipelago’s largest island, Múcura, is also threatened by the water masses. It is also the island with the best developed infrastructure, the most tourism and the most hotels. Everything is in danger of disappearing.
Parallel to the tide, the island is threatened by both storms and erosion. More and more of the mangrove forest is disappearing. This also increases erosion.
Scientists shocked: – Impossible
– Nobody does anything
In 2014, local authorities calculated in a report that 45 percent of the islands’ coastline was affected by erosion. In addition, it was calculated that 22 percent of Múcura will be flooded by 2040.
No new calculations have been made since then. The authorities are accused of ignoring the challenges the citizens face.
– Nobody does anything. I don’t see any authorities taking these challenges seriously, says Diaz.
2023-11-03 08:17:19
#Escape #choice
