Cotone, a small fishing village in Ivory Coast, is at a very critical juncture. The Atlantic waters rising at the behest of human-induced climate change are threatening to wash it off the map. Beyond the dam’s safety concerns, for over half a century, unyielding erosion has feasted upon the land. This is where generations of the villagers’ family members have been laid to rest. Their residents are going through an existential crisis. They’ve begun the slow, painful process of moving their dead to a new, larger cemetery that sits further inland, far removed from the encroaching sea.
Yet Lahou-Kpanda is located only 140 kilometers (85 miles) west of Abidjan, Ivory Coast’s bustling economic capital. This tiny but stunningly gorgeous sliver of sand, water, foliage, and topography makes for a truly special and memorable place to visit. To the north, a gorgeous lagoon, Baker’s Lagoon, extends for miles. To the east runs the Bandama River, and to the south, the endless Atlantic Ocean. This geographical vulnerability has made it evermore vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change, particularly sea-level rise.
The Erosion Challenge
The erosion crisis currently affecting Lahou-Kpanda is not unique. More than two-thirds of Ivory Coast’s coastline is currently at risk of high degradation. On average, the coast walks back one to two meters every year. Academics and ecologists alike are sounding the alarm over the frantic disappearance of Lahou-Kpanda. They caution that absent rapid protective action, this neighborhood could lose all of its homes by 2050.
Yet in recent years, the narrow channel that links Lahou-Kpanda’s sea and lagoon has experienced a shocking transformation. In fact, it has moved the remarkable full 1.5 kilometers since 1993. This shift has greatly increased the severity of the erosion crisis. Consequently, families are being forced to abandon land that has acted as their ancestral burial grounds for centuries. Time is running out, and villagers are in a desperate race to save their cultural heritage. They need to save their community from fading away completely.
Reburial Efforts
The original burial site has been inundated, consumed by encroaching waters. The villagers immediately started moving their deceased loved ones with diligence and reverence. This process is a major logistical hurdle. In addition to the major emotional impact that many residents are experiencing as they confront the danger that looms over their ancestral home, residents have lost their lives. Unlike her old resting place, the new cemetery is located far away from the encroaching sea. It is a gloomy testament to the effects that climate change has had on their lives.
As community leaders, we are profoundly saddened that this outcome of reburial is even necessary. For many, these graves are more than just physical resting places, but links to their ancestral history and African American culture. In the face of rising sea levels and intensifying storms, coastal communities around the world are undertaking large-scale relocations. They are facing the existential reality of what climate change means for them and their lifestyle.
Future Solutions
To address the impacts of rising sea level and shoreline erosion, we are also recently released designs for a new navigation channel. This new channel will open the sea to the lagoon at Lahou-Kpanda. The World Bank funds this program. The project’s goal is to address long-standing coastal erosion and help protect the struggling village of 135 residents. Slated to start next year, this undertaking is an important step toward protecting the future of Lahou-Kpanda.
Advocates echo experts in saying that these measures can only offer temporary relief. They are not an enduring answer to the more complex problems that come with climate change. The story unfolding in Lahou-Kpanda represents the larger widespread picture of the world. Coastal communities everywhere now face the same impending dangers as rising sea levels irrevocably alter shorelines and threaten means of survival.
