Mental health issues from rising sea level in a remote coastal region of the Solomon Islands: current and future
Abstract
Objective:
There is little published research about mental health and climate change in the Pacific, including Solomon Islands. Solomon Islands has one of the highest rates of sea-level rise globally. The aim of this research was to document mental health issues related to sea-level rise for people in East Malaita, Solomon Islands.
Method:
A cross-sectional study was carried out in six low-lying villages in East Malaita, Solomon Islands. The researcher travelled to villages by dugout canoe. In addition to quantitative, closed-ended questions, open-ended questions with villagers explored individual and community responses to rising sea level.
Results:
Of 60 people asked, 57 completed the questionnaire. Of these, 90% reported having seen a change in the weather patterns. Nearly all participants reported that sea-level rise is affecting them and their family and is causing fear and worry on a personal and community level. Four themes emerged from the qualitative analysis: experience of physical impacts of climate change; worry about the future; adaptation to climate change; government response needed.
Conclusion:
Given predictions of ongoing sea-level rise in the Pacific it is essential that more research is conducted to further understand the human impact of climate change for small island states which will inform local, provincial and national-level mental health responses.
The mental health impacts of climate change are increasingly acknowledged at a global level.1–5 However, there is little published about mental health and climate change from Pacific Island countries. People living across the thousands of small islands of the Pacific experience changes in rainfall patterns, increasing frequency of severe weather and rising sea level.6 An increase in psychological consequences is predicted.1 It is therefore important that research is conducted on the current and likely mental health impacts of climate change in communities most vulnerable to climate change in the Pacific to enable the development of targeted resilience building and mitigation strategies.
Solomon Islands is a small country, lying between 6° and 12°S. Although Solomon Islands is among the world’s lowest emitters of carbon, the country is extremely vulnerable to social, environmental and economic impact of climate change.7 The people of Solomon Islands speak more than 80 different languages and live in thousands of villages across hundreds of coral atolls and volcanic islands within the 1600 km archipelago. Solomon Islands is the second most populous of the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs) with 515,870 people and ranked 157/187 on the Human Development Index.8,9
Solomon Islands has one of the highest rates of sea-level rise globally. While the global average sea level rise has been 3.2 mm per year, Solomon Islands has experienced a rise of more than 8 mm per year since 1993.6 Hence, since the millennium, sea level in the Solomon Islands has risen almost 11 cm. To escape sea-level rise, many villages have been forced to relocate inland or relocate to completely different islands. This has resulted in disharmony in these communities,10 demonstrating that climate change can impact both individuals and communities as sea-level rises erode physical environments and in turn damage social relationships.
The location of this study is the home region of the lead author (JA). JA is a Mental Health Instructor for Malaita Province, based at Atoifi Hospital in East Kwaio.11 Most people in this region live in villages along the coast, on low-lying islands and adjacent atolls. There is no road access to the region, so people travel by boat or canoe or walk. Sea-level rise is directly impacting JA’s village and many other villages in East Kwaio.
Personal and professional observations of the impact of sea-level rise prompted JA to ask the research question: “What are the self-reported and community-reported mental health impacts of sea-level rise on people living in low-lying islands, man-made islands and low-lying villages in the East Kwaio area of Malaita, Solomon Islands?”
The study, which was undertaken as a part of ongoing research capacity strengthening at the Atoifi Health Research Group,12 and seeks:
1.
To document the experience of people living in low-lying coastal villages and islands.
2.
To document the mental health issues of these experiences.
3.
To provide evidence-based recommendations.
Methods
As per cultural protocols, village chiefs from six remote villages in East Malaita were approached to explain the study and invite residents to participate. All villages experience the effects of sea-level rise. Two villages, Kwai and Ngongosilia, are located on low-lying islands (atolls); two villages, Fouoge and Ou, are located on artificial (man-made) islands; two villages, Abitona and Canaan, are located in low lying ‘mainland’ locations (Malaita Island). The researcher (JA) travelled to villages by dugout canoe. After endorsement by chiefs, 10 village residents were approached in each village and invited to complete a questionnaire.
Questionnaires included demographics and both closed and open-ended questions, and were self-administered where possible. Participants unable to read or write in English had their responses recorded (in Solomon Islands Pijin or Kwaio Language) on a digital recorder and later transcribed onto the questionnaire forms.
Quantitative data were tabulated using MS Excel and descriptive statistics produced. Qualitative question were analysed using open coding and thematic analysis.
Results
Of the 60 people approached, 57 completed a questionnaire (participation rate 95%). Of the 57 participants, 54% (31/57) were male and 62% (35/57) were married. Religious affiliation of participants was South Sea Evangelical Church (63%), Catholic (21%) and Seventh Day Adventist (16%). There were a range of village roles represented including six chiefs, five teachers, eight students and four pastors.
Participants’ responses to questions regarding individual perceptions and responses to sea-level rise, and community responses are presented in Tables 1 and 2, respectively.
| Question | Yes (%) | No (%) | Not sure (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| In your lifetime, have you seen the patterns of the weather change? | 89% | 11% | – |
| Can a sea-level rise experience lead to mental health effects? | 95% | 2% | 4% |
| Does this worry about sea-level rise affect the way you think, your family think and your community think? | 98% | 2% | 0 |
| Does this worry affect the way you think towards your family and your community? | 100% | 0 | 0 |
| Does this worry affect the way you act towards your family and community? | 100% | 0 | 0 |
| Does this worry change the way you think in your everyday life? | 98% | 2% | 0 |
| Question | Yes (%) | No (%) | Not sure (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Are you doing anything to help decrease your worry about sea-level rise? | 58% | 33% | 9% |
| Are other people in your community worried about sea-level rise? | 91% | 7% | 2% |
| Does this worry in other people have negative effects for themselves? | 58% | 14% | 28% |
| Does this worry in other people have negative effects on their families or communities? | 53% | 16% | 32% |
| Are other people doing anything to help decrease the worry? | 39% | 47% | 14% |
| Can someone develop physical impacts as a result of sea-level rise? | 33% | 39% | 25% |
Four themes emerged from qualitative analysis of open-ended questions: (i) experience of physical impacts; (ii) worry about the future; (iii) adapting to sea-level rise; and (iv) government action.
Experience of physical impacts of climate change
The impact on daily lives by inundation of gardens and villages:
Mi fala faraeti and wari wari olowe nomoa taem mi fala lukim olsem solo wata em Kam apu bigi ani hemu kamu insaed lo haosi belong mifala.We were afraid and worried all the time when we saw the sea water rise up and it came into our houses.
Meeting areas within villages have been damaged leaving no appropriate place for important community meetings.
Pelesi mi fala safe sidaoni na toko toko aboutim olketa gud fala toko toko lo komiuniti blo mifala emu no guti nao.Our place where we sit down to talk about all the good things in our community, this is no good now.
Inundation has spoiled fresh water sources.
‵Ka‵o ameeru ‵e asila no‵o suria nga ‵Asi e ba‵ita.Our drinking water is now salty because of the rising sea level.
Worry about the future
Fear that not enough space would be available to build houses:
Mi faraeti bikosi nomoa pelesi fo wakemu haos bilongo mi bikosi Solowata emu kamu olowe nomoa inisaeti lo pelesi bilongo mi.We are afraid because there is no place to build my house because the saltwater has come all the way to my place.
Wanting to move to higher ground:
Mi fala wari nao eni mi fala laeki fo go apu lo felesi wea emi sefu foromu solowataWe are worried and therefore we want to go up to a place that is safe from the sea water.
Concerns about food security:
Mi wari olowe nomoa taem mi lukim solowata emi sipoelem nao gadeni ana haosi blo mifalaI am full of worry because when I see the sea water destroying our garden and our houses.
Night-time worries:
Nau ku ma’u furi furi mola suria nga ‘asi e baita na alata lo’ori ma ruruafe ka baita. Ki ‘ame ‘eno ‘eno le’a le’a no’o na logo.I’m always afraid during high tides because the sea level increases reaches places that had never reached in the past therefore it worries me a lot at night time.
Adaptation to climate change
Wanting to move to higher ground because of inundation of gardens and villages:
Mi fala faraeti no guti na bikosi si emu sipoelemu oloketa samutingi bilongo mi fala and mi fala laeki mufu apu lo pelesi emi hae.We are worried because the sea spoils all of our things and we want to move away from here to a place where it is high.
Lack of options – land in the area is not government land, but customary land necessitating a relationship to the traditional customary owners. If there are no family linkages then it is not possible to move.
Wari nomoa bigi lo mi bikosi no moa pelesi fo mi go lo hemu nao. Lani ino blo Gafumanu so hemu hati for go sitafu lo hemu.My worry is big because there is no place for me to go. The land is not government land [rather it is customary land], so it is not possible to go and settle there.
Government action required
Expectations of the national and provincial governments:
Oloketa biki mani bilongo Gafumani masi gifimu kamu helopu blilongo oloketa tu fo helopemu mifala pipolo solowata sipoelemu pelesi bilongo mifalaThe leaders in government must give us some help to help us people where the sea water has spoiled our place.
Discussion
This is the first study to investigate mental health and climate change in villages directly affected by sea-level rise in East Malaita. It provides a stark reminder of the individual and community impacts of rising sea-level in some of the most vulnerable communities in the Pacific. Of 57 participants, 56 stated that the worry about sea-level rise affected their thinking and behaviour and that of their families and communities. More than half identified negative effects on themselves and their communities.
Participants described direct and indirect physical and social consequences, persistent worry and thoughts of relocation. For many, relocation was not an option because customary ownership precluded access to suitable land without familial and tribal linkages. Although participants highlighted their desire for provincial and government assistance, many were aware of the limitations to this because of land tenure systems and minimal government infrastructure/systems in remote East Malaita.
Given predictions that sea levels in Solomon Islands will rise by over 30 cm by 2090,6 comprehensive climate change adaptation responses are critical, including mental health consequences. Further research is essential to document the mental health experiences of villagers and the social, cultural and governance structures that can facilitate (or impede) local level responses. Social disharmony as a result of climate change has begun in Solomon Islands;10 so mental health professionals need be informed about the issues and carefully consider policy and health service responses.
This study has a number of limitations. The study included a relatively small number of participants from only six villages (which was constrained by the time taken to access communities via dugout canoe). However, because the researcher was the local mental health professional, known to village chiefs, and all were concerned about sea-level rise in their villages the study was supported by community leaders. Although there was a high participation rate (95%) some villagers did not participate because they thought the researcher was being paid to conduct the study and they themselves would not benefit financially (which challenges many survey-based studies in Solomon Islands). As the only mental health professional in East Malaita, the researcher was also responsible for clinical needs in all study sites. This combination of service and locally relevant research is consistent with the model of research capacity strengthening at the Atoifi Health Research Group.12
This study is the first to document individual and community mental health concerns that result from sea-level rise in East Malaita, Solomon Islands. Concern is universal and this research raises social, cultural and governance issues that must be considered in adaptation to climate change. More research is urgently required in the Pacific to further understand the human impact of climate change for small island states to inform local, provincial and national-level mental health responses.
Ethical approval
Ethics approval was provided by the Human Research Ethics Committee of the University of Papua New Guinea.
Disclosure
The authors report no conflict of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.
References
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6. Australian Bureau of Meteorology and CSIRO. Climate change in the Pacific: scientific assessment and new research. Volume 1: regional overview. Volume 2: country reports. www.pacificclimatechangescience.org/publications/reports/ (2011, accessed 18 August 2015).
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9. UNDP. Solomon Islands Human Development Index. http://hdr.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/SLB (2015, accessed 18 August 2015).
10. Beck C. Solomon Islanders relocate to flee effects of climate change, www.ecoearth.info/shared/reader/welcome.aspx?linkid=234335&keybold=climate%20AND%20%20refugees%20AND%20%20resettle (2011, accessed 18 August 2015).
11. MacLaren D, Asugeni J, Asugeni R, et al. Incorporating sociocultural beliefs in mental health services in Kwaio, Solomon Islands. Australas Psychiatry 2009; 17(Suppl 1): S125–S127.
12. Redman-MacLaren M, MacLaren D, Harington H, et al. Mutual research capacity strengthening: a qualitative study of two-way partnerships in public health research. Int J Equity Health 2012; 11: 79
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Article first published online: December 3, 2015
Issue published: December 2015
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PubMed: 26634663
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