Rising sea levels are expected to impact part of Chile’s Rapa Nui National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site, by 2080, according to a study recently published in the Journal of Cultural Heritage. Coastal flooding also threatens at least 51 culturally significant artifacts there, including the famed Moai statues.
Those statues were created by a native Polynesian tribe more than 500 years ago. There are nearly 1,000 Moai made of volcanic tuff on the island, with the tallest measuring 33 feet. On average, they weigh between three to five tons, though the heaviest weighs 80 tons.
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A team of researchers from the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa used advanced computer models to simulate the waves along the coastline and mapped projected flooding with future sea levels. The flood extent was then laid atop geospatial layers, with the location of cultural assets provided by local partners.
“This research reveals a critical threat to the living culture and livelihood of Rapa Nui,” said Noah Paoa, lead author of the study and a doctoral student in earth sciences in the UH Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology. “For the community, these sites are an essential part of reaffirming identity and support the revitalization of traditions. Economically, they are the backbone of the island’s tourism industry. Failure to address this threat could ultimately endanger the island’s UNESCO world heritage site status.”
These challenges are not unique to the Rapa Nui people, who face similar concerns to other coastal areas around the world.
“We know that sea level rise poses a direct threat to coastlines globally,” Paoa added. “The critical question was not if the site would be impacted, but how soon and how severely. Our work aimed to set potential timelines by which we could expect the impacts to happen. Finding that waves could reach Ahu Tongariki by 2080 provides the specific, urgent data needed to incentivize community discussion and planning for the future.”
With this data on coastal flooding, Paoa has been examining how this potential rise in sea levels impacts cultural assets in Hawai’i. He and the team, along with local Rapa Nui, are expected to use these discoveries to prepare a mitigation plan to safeguard cultural heritage in these areas in the future.
The island has weathered other recent forms of destruction, including a volcanic eruption damaged the statues. Still, the island has also yielded new archaeological treasures. In 2023, experts discovered previously unknown Moai statues.