But the changing climate and sea levels linked to global warming are affecting their water supply, food production, fisheries, and coastlines. At least two motu , or small islets, have already disappeared in Kiribati. The country's ancient oral history says that one of them, Tebua Tarawa, was the first motu to be formed in the Tarawalagoon. Until a decade ago, fisherman used it as a resting place where they could beach their boats and slake their thirst on coconut water. Then the coconut palms disappeared, after that, the sandbanks, and now the fishing boats skim over the islet, which is totally submerged.
Coastal erosion is a continuing problem in most low-lying Pacific Islands.
Some can be blamed on poor land use, but the undeveloped coasts of outer islands are also eroding. These recent changes in climate and sea level are creating major problems for water supplies and food production in the Pacific. In 1998, the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, the Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, and Tonga were all hit by devastating droughts. Fiji's sugar cane production, normally 40 percent of its export earnings, fell by two-thirds. Tonga's squash crop, about half of its export earnings, was cut in half.