海平面上升海岸侵蝕 太平洋5座島嶼徹底消失

Five tiny Pacific islands have disappeared amid rising seas and erosion, AustrAlian researchers say.

澳大利亞研究人員近日表示，受海平面上升和海岸侵蝕影響，太平洋上的5座小島已經徹底消失。

The missing islands, part of the Solomon Archipelago, were not inhabited by human beings. But six other islands were found to have seen swathes of land turn into sea, destroying entire villages.

這些消失的島嶼是太平洋島國所羅門羣島的一部分，並沒有人類居住。但是，該國其他6座島嶼的大片土地也已被海水吞噬，並摧毀了整個村莊。

The researchers say it is the first scientific confirmation of the impact of climate change on Pacific coastlines.

研究人員表示，這是首次科學的印證了氣候變化對太平洋海岸線帶來的影響。

The study, published in Environmental Research Letters, looked at 33 islands using aerial and satellite imagery from 1947 to 2014, combined with historical insight and local knowledge.

這項發表於《環境研究快報》上的研究，通過將歷史記載和地方性知識相結合，分析了33座島嶼在1947至2014年間的空中和衛星圖像。

It found that the archipelago had seen sea levels rise as much as as 10mm (0.4in) every year for the past two decades. The five that have vanished were all vegetated reef islands of up to five hectares (12 acres) that were occasionally used by fishermen but not populated.

該研究發現，在過去20年間，所羅門羣島的海平面每年上升約10毫米（0.4英寸）。消失的這5座島礁都長滿植被，其中最大的一座面積達到了5公頃（12英畝）。那裏人際罕至，只是偶有漁民登島。

"They were not just little sand islands", leader author Simon Albert said.

研究團隊帶頭人西蒙·阿爾貝特表示：“這5座島而非僅由沙子構成”。

One of the six islands that have been heavily eroded is Nuatambu Island, home to 25 families. The research says it has lost 11 houses and half its inhabitable area since 2011.

而在其他6個島嶼中，侵蝕最嚴重的Nuatambu島居住着25戶人家。自2011年起，他們已經見證了11座房屋被衝進海里。

However, the report stresses that the inundation does not result from rising sea levels alone. It found that shoreline recession was substantially worse in areas exposed to high wave energy, and that extreme events and inappropriate development are also factors contributing to the erosion.

不過，該報告也強調，這種結果並不單單是海平面上升帶來的。該報告指出，暴露在高波能之下的地區，海岸線的衰退更加嚴重；此外，一些極端事件以及不恰當的開採，都是造成侵蝕的因素。