Over 100 Micro Dams Installed in Jamaica to Limit Flood Water

More than $244 million was granted by the government to improve and increase Jamaica's climate resiliency initiatives through prioritized sectors.

The grant is part of the Climate Resilience 11 (PPCR11)-Adaptation Programme and Finance Mechanism. It outlines specific projects which are highlighted in the 2021/2022 budget projection currently presented before the House of Representatives.

The program, which launched in 2015 and is being initiated by the Ministry of Housing, Urban Regeneration, Ecology and Climate Change, aims to make it easier for Jamaica to respond to climate change and to help government agencies' inclusion of climate change problems into development planning.

It also offers to fund for work on climate change adaptation in small and medium-sized enterprises as well as in island-wide populations.

Funding and Achievements

Micro-check Dams Among Others Are Funded by Jamaica's $244 Million Climate Resiliency Budget Photo by Jeff T. Green/Getty Images

The government and the Inter-American Development Bank are supplying the financing.

Activities completed by the end of December 2020 include crop resilience/sustainability modeling activities, the Upper Rio Minho Watershed Sediment budget monitoring program, seven technical papers to endorse the National Spatial Plan's development, and the policymakers and government ministries' climate change awareness program.

In addition, 1,595 micro-check dams have been installed to limit the influx of flood waters in the Upper Rio Minho Drainage Region on slopes and rivers (drains).

2021-2022

The plans for the 2021/2022 financial year include the introduction of vulnerability assessments for five sectors, the development of a policy and action plan for the climate change market, and the installation of an additional 205 micro-check dams in Upper Rio Minho Watershed Area.

Capacity building preparation on climate change adaptation and mitigation will be undertaken by workshops and other awareness-building events.

Local community representatives will also undergo greenhouse farming and maintenance training.

A post-harvest storage and processing facility will be built to provide the system's operators with training and technical assistance.

In addition, under the project, 250 rainwater collection ponds and water system construction will be conducted.

Jamaican Climate Change Policy

Coconut Trees in Jamaica — Chris Howell on Unsplash

A Climate Change Policy Framework was adopted by Jamaica in 2015 to promote Vision 2030, incorporate climate change into sectoral and financial preparation, and create capacity for sectoral organizations to establish and execute their own climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies. The country ratified and sent its Nationally Defined Contribution (NDC) in 2017 to the Paris Agreement.

AP&FM

The Adaptation Program and Financing Mechanism (AP&FM) Initiative helps Jamaica adapt to climate change quickly. It encourages the incorporation by government authorities of climate change concerns into growth planning. It also offers to fund for work on climate change adaptation in small and medium-sized enterprises as well as in island-wide populations.

The AP&FM Initiative is part of Jamaica's Pilot Program for Climate Adaptation (PPCR). The Ministry of Economic Development and Job Creation is introducing it. There is USD19, 869,963 in financing from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) from the Environment Investment Fund for its introduction.

Three key components were used to implement the AP&FM Project.