Abstract
The central Pacific Ocean with its many low lying islands and atolls is under threat from sea level rise and increased storm activity. Here, we illustrate how increasing frequency and severity of large scale storm events associated with global climate change may be particularly profound at the local scale for human populations that rely on lagoon systems for provision of a variety of goods and services. In August 2011 a storm originating in the Southern Ocean caused a large amplitude ocean swell to move northward through the Pacific Ocean. Its arrival at Palmyra Atoll coincided with transient elevated sea surface height and triggered turnover of the lagoon water column. This storm-induced change to the lagoon reflects long distance connectivity with propagated wave energy from the Southern Ocean and illustrates the increasing threats generated by climate change that are faced by human populations on most low-lying Pacific islands and atolls.
Highlights
It has been suggested that the modern era be known as the ‘anthropocene’ because human activity has had, and is increasingly having, a significant influence on the global environment [1,2], with low-lying and densely populated Pacific atolls and islands being vulnerable to such changes [3,4,5,6]
With new storm tracks and with storm activity and weather instability predicted to increase over the century [11,14], our observations at a low lying Pacific Ocean atoll demonstrate that the spatial scale of environmental impact resulting from global climate change may be greater than previously realised
Pre-storm data [25], in conjunction with records made at the time of the storm (August 2011) and subsequently (June and August 2012, June 2013), demonstrate the consequences of long distance connectivity of energy from the storm event: first, a modest increase in sea surface height associated with the storm event disrupted directional surface flow and caused complete water column turnover in the lagoon system, and second, the lagoon water column returned rapidly to its pre-disturbance state
Summary
It has been suggested that the modern era be known as the ‘anthropocene’ because human activity has had, and is increasingly having, a significant influence on the global environment [1,2], with low-lying and densely populated Pacific atolls and islands being vulnerable to such changes [3,4,5,6]. Over the coming years the world will experience a period of environmental challenges, arising from increased anthropogenically-induced global climate change [7,8,9]. With new storm tracks and with storm activity and weather instability predicted to increase over the century [11,14], our observations at a low lying Pacific Ocean atoll demonstrate that the spatial scale of environmental impact resulting from global climate change may be greater than previously realised
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