Improving the water security situation of every Niue household
- Niue
- Pacific
ENTRY DATE: 09.03.2012 | LAST UPDATE: 09.03.2012
SCALE:
- Community Level
TARGET AREA:
BEST PRACTICE IN:
- Project Implementation
KEY SECTOR:
- Water Resources Management
FUNDING AMOUNT:
- USD 500,001 - USD 1,000,000
Description of Intervention
This project focuses on enhancing, and where necessary, developing water resources infrastructure to increase the reservoir storage capacities to provide adequate supply of water to the communities, farmers and industries in times of natural disaster and climate variability. Thus the project would be piloted in 14 villages/communities throughout Niue.
The impact and experience of Cyclone Heta on Niue in 2004 has been extremely severe. Niue is expected to experience more intense cyclones and drought conditions in the future, adding to pressures brought up by El Niño occurrences. The people of Niue depend largely on agricultural produce for food and it is already under threat from extreme events and decline in precipitation. Water supply in Niue comes from groundwater sources and limited rainfall catchments is thus very vulnerable to climate change effects. As with many small islands developing States, water resources management poses a serious sustainable development challenge for Niue Island.
Problems to be Addressed
• The freshwater lens is very vulnerable to contamination from the surface, posing a health risk to the population;
• There is inadequate rainwater catchment infrastructure to cater to the needs of the communities in case of a shortage of groundwater; and
• Existing water tanks have deteriorated over the years and often suffer from leakages, which affect household consumption.
Aims
Make the population of Niue secure in terms of water, and prevent saltwater intrusion into the water supply system.
Objectives
• To provide water-catchment systems to every household on Niue;
• To address vulnerability to natural disasters, droughts and power cuts;
• To provide adequate backup systems for the community water supply;
• To develop community-level guidelines for the management of Niue’s water resources;
• To prevent the overexploitation of boreholes;
• To repair and build new water storage facilities for Niue households; and
• To identify, repair and prevent leakages in the water reticulation system.
How it fits into the EbA concept
This project aims to enhance and develop the water resources infrastructure of Niue to increase the storage capacity of reservoirs and provide adequate supply of water to the communities, farmers and industries in the long term. The focus is on empowering communities with the knowledge and tools to adapt to the effects of climate change on their water supply.