US Energy Secretary warns that islands could disappear

Steven Chu, the US Energy Secretary, has used a trip to the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago to warn that if drastic action isn't taken to stem the effects of global warming, some of the world’s island nations could "simply disappear."

This won't come as news to the leaders of two of those island states Kiribati and the Maldives. Last year President Anote Tong of Kiribati said that his country could be doomed. With an average elevation of just six feet above sea level, the South Pacific nation is already dealing with widespread erosion and loss of cropland. Tong feels that moving people to what little high ground exists in Kiribati may just be delaying the inevitable.

President Mohamed Nasheed has a similar assessment of his nation (average elevation, five feet), but has a more proactive plan for the future. His government has begun a Sovereign Wealth Fund, fueled by money generated by the Maldives tourism sector. He said the nation could one day use this pool of money to just buy a new homeland for the Maldives 300,000 citizens.

Secretary Chu said the Obama administration was encouraging other nations to adopt new energy efficiency standards to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.