Fongafale
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Fongafale (also spelled Fogale or Fagafale) is the largest and most populated of Funafuti's islets in
Tuvalu Tuvalu ( ) is an island country in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean, about midway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands (which belong to the Solomon Islands), northeast of Van ...
. It is a long narrow sliver of land, 12 kilometres long and between 10 and 400 metres wide, with the South
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
and reef on the east and the protected lagoon on the west. The north part is the Tengako peninsula, and Funafuti International Airport runs from northeast to southwest on the widest part of the island, with the village and administrative centre of Vaiaku on the lagoon side. On Fongafale, the Funafuti Kaupule is responsible for approval of the construction of houses or extensions to existing buildings on private land, and the Lands Management Committee is the responsible authority in relation to lands leased by government. In 1972, Funafuti was in the path of Cyclone Bebe. Cyclone Bebe knocked down 90% of the houses and trees on Fongafale. The storm surge created a wall of coral rubble along the ocean side of Fongafale and Funafala that was about long, and about to thick at the bottom.


Villages on Fongafale

Fogafale islet is the location of the main village settlements of Lofeagai, Teone, Fakai Fou, Senala, Alapi, Vaiaku and Kavatoetoe, from the northern to the southern point of the islet respectively which appear as one contiguous urban area. Vaiaku is the most important neighbourhood; it includes Funafuti Lagoon Hotel, some shops, a fuel pump station, the general post office, and the
National Bank of Tuvalu The National Bank of Tuvalu (NBT) is the sole provider of banking services in Tuvalu. These services include taking deposits, making loans, and engaging in foreign exchange transactions. In 2020, its assets were AUD$128 million, or 160% of the cou ...
, the nation's only
commercial bank A commercial bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and gives loans for the purposes of consumption and investment to make a profit. It can also refer to a bank or a division of a larger bank that deals with whol ...
. The villages have a surface area of more than 0.65 square kilometres and approximately 4,000 inhabitants.


Parliament of Tuvalu and government buildings

The
Parliament of Tuvalu The Parliament of Tuvalu (called ''Fale i Fono'' in Tuvaluan language, Tuvaluan, or ''Palamene o Tuvalu'') is the unicameral parliament, unicameral national legislature of Tuvalu. The place at which the parliament sits is called the ''Vaiaku man ...
or ''Palamene o Tuvalu'' and the house of the
Governor General of Tuvalu The governor-general of Tuvalu is the representative of the Monarchy of Tuvalu, Tuvaluan monarch, currently Charles III, King Charles III, in the country of Tuvalu. The governor-general performs the monarch's duties in Tuvalu. The Constitutiona ...
are located on Fongafale. Buildings include the offices of the government ministries and the government agencies, such as the Tuvalu Philatelic Bureau, the
Tuvalu Meteorological Service The Tuvalu Meteorological Service (TMS) is the principal meteorological observatory of Tuvalu and is responsible for providing weather services to the islands of Tuvalu. A meteorological office was established on Funafuti at the time the islands of ...
, the
National Bank of Tuvalu The National Bank of Tuvalu (NBT) is the sole provider of banking services in Tuvalu. These services include taking deposits, making loans, and engaging in foreign exchange transactions. In 2020, its assets were AUD$128 million, or 160% of the cou ...
, the offices of the
Tuvalu Telecommunications Corporation Tuvalu Telecommunications Corporation (TTC) is a state-owned enterprise of Tuvalu, which provides fixed-line telephone communications to subscribers on each of the islands of Tuvalu. Each island in Tuvalu relies on TTC for the use of a satellite ...
, and the Tuvalu National Library and Archives. The Tuvalu Media Department, which operates radio services as ''Radio Tuvalu'', is also located on Fongafale.


Other buildings

The
police service The police are a constituted body of people empowered by a state with the aim of enforcing the law and protecting the public order as well as the public itself. This commonly includes ensuring the safety, health, and possessions of citizens ...
has its headquarters and the jail on Fongafale. The High Court of Tuvalu is also located on Fongafale. Princess Margaret Hospital, the only hospital in Tuvalu, is located on Fongafale. Other significant buildings located on Fongafale are the Rt Hon Sir Dr Tomasi Puapua Convention Center, ''Tausoa'' ''Maneapa'' (community hall), ''Fetu Ao Lima'' (Morning Star Church) of the
Church of Tuvalu The Christian Church of Tuvalu ( Tuvaluan: ''Te Ekalesia Kelisiano Tuvalu'', EKT), is a Christian church and is being the single largest religious denomination in the country. This status entitles it to "the privilege of performing special servic ...
and the Teone Church of the Roman Catholic Mission sui iuris of Funafuti.


Transportation


Air

Tuvalu's only airport, Funafuti International Airport, is located here. All connections are to
Suva Suva (, ) is the Capital city, capital and the most populous city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rew ...
,
Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...
via
Fiji Airways Fiji Airways, formerly Air Pacific, is the flag carrier of Fiji. It operates international services from its hubs in Fiji to 27 destinations, and has an extended network of 108 international destinations through its codeshare partners, includi ...
.


Land

There are four taxis, and motorbikes are available for hire.


Water

Access to the Funafuti Conservation Area is by boat. The Conservation Area is across the lagoon from the main island of Fongafale. There are port facilities on Fongafale. Two passenger/cargo ships, ''Nivaga II'' and ''Manu Folau'', provide round-trip visits to the outer islands every three or four weeks, and also travel between
Suva Suva (, ) is the Capital city, capital and the most populous city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rew ...
, Fiji and Funafuti 3 to 4 times a year.


Aquifer salinization of Fongafale

The investigation of groundwater dynamics of Fongafale Islet,
Funafuti Funafuti is an atoll, comprising numerous islets, that serves as the capital of Tuvalu. As of the 2017 census, it has a population of 6,320 people. More people live in Funafuti than the rest of Tuvalu combined, with it containing approximately 6 ...
, show that tidal forcing results in salt water contamination of the surficial aquifer during
spring tides Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables c ...
. The degree of aquifer salinization depends on the specific
topographic Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the landforms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary scienc ...
characteristics and the
hydrologic Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and drainage basin sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is called a hydro ...
controls in the sub-surface of the atoll. About half of Fongafale islet is reclaimed swamp that contains porous, highly permeable coral blocks that allow the tidal forcing of salt water. During World War II the occupying Japanese conducted extensive swamp reclamation to create an air field. It has been adapted as the Funafuti International Airport. As a consequence of the specific topographic characteristics of Fongafale, unlike other atoll islands of a similar size, Fongafale does not have a thick freshwater lens. The narrow fresh water and brackish water sheets in the sub-surface of Fongafale islet results in the
taro Taro (; ''Colocasia esculenta'') is a root vegetable. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, stems and Petiole (botany), petioles. Taro corms are a ...
swamps and the fresh groundwater resources of the islet being highly vulnerable to salinization resulting from the rising sea level. A survey of the pits that have previously been used to grow Swamp taro (''Cyrtosperma merkusii''), (known in Tuvalu as '' Pulaka'') established that the pits were either too saline or very marginal for swamp taro production, even though a more salt-tolerant species of
taro Taro (; ''Colocasia esculenta'') is a root vegetable. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, stems and Petiole (botany), petioles. Taro corms are a ...
(''Colocasia esculenta'') is grown on Fongafale.


Over-extraction of groundwater and pollution

In addition to the increased risk of salinization by the sea-level rise, the freshwater lens is at risk from over extraction to serve the large population that now occupies Fongafale islet. The effects of the increased extraction can be exacerbated by a decrease of the rainfall recharge rate associated with climate change. Water pollution is a chronic problem, with domestic wastewater identified as the primary pollution source. Approximately 92% of households on Fongafale islet have access to septic tanks and pit toilets. However, these sanitary facilities are not built per the design specifications, or they are not suitable for the geophysical characteristics, which results in seepage into the fresh water lens and run-off into coastal waters. A project involving the South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission (SOPAC) is constructing composting toilets and improving the treatment of sewage sludge from septic tanks on Fongafale in order to reduce the leakage from septic tanks into groundwater, and the ocean and lagoon. In November 2013 the
World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...
announced US$6 million in funding to improve the operational safety of the Funafuti International Airport and associated infrastructure. An 800,000-litre water cistern will be constructed to improve storage of drinking water.


Borrow Pits Remediation (BPR) project

When the airfield, which is now Funafuti International Airport, was constructed during World War II, the coral base of the atoll was withdrawn to use as fill to create the runway. The resulting
borrow pit Digging, also referred to as excavation, is the process of using some implement such as claws, hands, manual tools or heavy equipment, to remove material from a solid surface, usually soil, sand or rock on the surface of Earth. Digging is actual ...
s adversely affected the fresh-water
aquifer An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing material, consisting of permeability (Earth sciences), permeable or fractured rock, or of unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand, or silt). Aquifers vary greatly in their characteristics. The s ...
. In the low areas of Funafuti, the sea water can be seen bubbling up through the porous coral rock to form pools with each high tide. Since 1994 a project has been in development to assess the environmental impact of transporting sand from the lagoon to fill all the borrow pits and low-lying areas on Fongafale. In 2013 a feasibility study was carried out and in 2014 the Tuvalu Borrow Pits Remediation (BPR) project was approved. It will result in all 10 borrow pits being filled, leaving Tafua Pond, which is a natural pond. The New Zealand Government funded the BPR project. The project was carried out in 2015, with 365,000 sqm of sand being dredged from the lagoon to fill the holes and ultimately improve water and living conditions on the island. This project increase the usable land space on Fongafale by eight per cent.


Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project

Tuvalu has received funding from the
Green Climate Fund The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is a Funding, fund for climate finance that was established within the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Considered the world's largest fund of its kind, GCF's objective ...
(GCF) to develop the
Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project The Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project (TCAP) was launched in 2017 to meet the challenges to Tuvalu resulting from Climate change in Tuvalu, climate change and sea-level rise affecting the islands of Tuvalu. Tuvalu was the first country in the Pac ...
(TCAP) which has the overall objective of reducing the vulnerability of Tuvalu to the impacts of coastal hazards associated with climate change. The TCAP is a plan to construct hard and soft coastal protection infrastructure to reduce inundation and
coastal erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of Wind wave, waves, Ocean current, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts ...
on the islands of
Nanumaga Nanumanga or Nanumaga is a reef island and a district of the Oceanian island nation of Tuvalu. It has a surface area of about 3 km2 with a population of 391 (2022 census). History On 9 May 1824 a French government expedition under Captain ...
,
Nanumea Nanumea is the northwesternmost atoll in the Polynesian nation of Tuvalu, a group of nine coral atolls and islands spread over about of the Pacific Ocean just south of the equator and west of the International Date Line. Nanumea is with a po ...
and Funafuti. The implementation of the TCAP on Funafuti is proposed to be a land reclamation project on Fongafale, which will start from the northern boundary of the Queen Elizabeth Park (QEP) reclamation area and extend to the northern Tausoa Beach Groyne and the development of the Catalina Ramp Harbour. In December 2022, work on the Funafuti reclamation project commenced. The project is to dredge sand from the lagoon, to construct a platform that is meters long and meters wide, giving a total area of approximately 7.8 ha. (19.27 acres), which is designed to remain above sea level rise and the reach of storm waves beyond the year 2100.


See also

* ''''


References


External sources

* {{authority control Islands of Tuvalu Pacific islands claimed under the Guano Islands Act Funafuti