RNZ News (Wellington, New Zealand) Work is underway on Tonga's main island, Tongatapu, to restore a critical important lagoon.
Fanga'uta Lagoon, which is the size of some smaller countries in the Pacific, is adjacent to the main town, Nuku'alofa.
As part of the Ridge to Reef programme efforts are being made to boost an area that had been become badly degraded and polluted.
The R2R project manager, Ta'ahiriih Hikafonu told Don Wiseman how they are going about the work.
TA'AHIRIIH HIKAFONU: So that the rejuvenating and the proper management of the ecosystem could be maintained and could be improved. In order to improve the current situation it has five interventions on good areas such as the restoration and rehabilitation of the mangroves, vegetation of Fanga'uta. The proper management of sustainable fishing areas in the community surrounding Fanga'uta as well as re-planting coastal vegetation and improving waste management, but that is just one aspect of the project which is about the improvement of the ecological services of Fanga'uta and knowing that over 40-thousand of the Tongatapu Island surrounds this catchment area and there is a heavy load of domestic waste from individual homes during flooding times. So this programme is looking to improve the health and wellbeing of the community, to reducing poverty as well as more climate resilient preparation for the people.
DON WISEMAN: The main town of Nuku'alofa is right on the edge of it. For many years there are people who have effectively been squatting there haven't there? In terms of sewerage systems and whatever, they've been non-existent for them.
TH: With regard to the squatter settlement, that particular area has improved tremendously over the past decade and a half almost two decades now, compared to their situation in the past. The sewage system in Tonga, we don't have yet a national sewage system that links all of these wastes somewhere you know these are private holdings and then we have the waste authority limited assist in the disposing of this waste. But in the flood zone we have these critical issues that the homes at the coastal areas are vulnerable and are affecting the lagoon with storm surge and sea level rise and when we have high rain fall, some of these septic tanks in these vulnerable areas is about almost under the water level when he have high flooding.
DW: You talk about sustainable livelihoods, what are you talking about there in terms of this area?
TH: Because this lagoon, 28 kilometres square, this whole lagoon is still an area where people depend on for sustainable fisheries as well as mangroves accessibility for handicrafts, so the sustainable livelihood is about the accessibility of the marine resource as well the extra resources available to them.
DW: Talk about the pollution that's in the lagoon while that pollution has been there, are people still depending on the lagoon for fish and so on?
TH: Yes they're still depending on the lagoon for sustainable fishing and for their needs for some of the women and the men that are depending on fishing.
DW: The condition of the fish must be very poor.
TH: Yes, there is increased counts in some sites of the lagoon while in other sites of the lagoon it's not an issue.
Original Publication: https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/programmes/datelinepacific/audio/201824501/major-tonga-lagoon-being-restored
