Summary

About 300 families on Gardi Sugdub island near Panama face evacuation due to rising sea levels, making them one of 63 communities expected to relocate. Despite an eight-minute boat ride to the mainland, some residents are reluctant to leave their 200-year-old island home. Panama's housing ministry allows residents to stay until it's unsafe, while those relocating will move to concrete houses on the mainland. Climate change, causing warmer oceans and stronger storms, erodes the island, prompting the relocation effort estimated to cost over $1.2 billion.

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For those who read...

On a small island off the coast of Panama, about 300 families will soon be forced to evacuate in the face of rising sea levels. Gardi Sugdub, an island off the Caribbean coast of Panama, is one of about 50 populated islands in the archipelago. The Gunas of Gardi Sugdub are the first of over 63 communities around Panama that are expected to be forced to relocate by rising sea levels in coming years. 

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With an over 200-year-long history of culture and community on the island, some residents are hesitant to give up their former home and move to the mainland. Although it is only an eight-minute boat ride from Gardi Sugdub to the mainland, it feels far too far for some residents. An official from Panama’s ministry of housing said some residents of the island have chosen to stay until it is no longer safe, and that officials won’t force them to. For residents choosing to relocate, the site will be made up of concrete houses and a grid of paved streets on Panama’s mainland.

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In addition to causing rising sea levels, climate change also initiates warmer ocean temperatures and stronger storms. The Gunas have attempted to solidify the outer edges of the island, but sea water continues to cause damage to the infrastructure of the community.

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Steven Paton, director of the Smithsonian Institute’s physical monitoring program in Panama said the upcoming relocation effort is a “direct consequence” of climate change and the resulting destructive rising sea levels. 

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Climate change causes rising sea levels for two reasons. First, the added water from melting ice sheets and glaciers causes sea waters to rise. In addition, heat causes sea water to expand, leading to high sea levels that can displace people living in coastal areas. 

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Panama estimates that it will cost over $1.2 billion to relocate the residents that will be displaced in the short and medium term due to rising sea levels.

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