“Building Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Change while Reducing Disaster Risk in Peckham, Clarendon and Surrounding Communities”

Background/Situation Analysis

The community of Peckham lies approximately 70kms from the parish capital of May Pen and comprises of four (4) districts. These are Peckham Proper, Fearon District, Tweedside and Wisbeach. (Peckham Summary profile 2013). According to a STATIN census (2011), the estimated total population for the community of Peckham is 926 spread across approximately 293 dwellings. The project area will encompass bordering communities of Peckham which includes Johns Hall, Morgans Forest, Grantham, Sanguinetti, Frankfield, Silent Hill and Top Alston in the west with a population of 3,203 (STATIN 2011). Also, the farming community of Peckham is a protected area and forms part of the Clarendon watershed which supports the cycling of clean water supply to surrounding communities (Jamaica NEGAR, pg.39, 2009). The importance of Peckham to the Clarendon watershed is of utmost important for the natural resources that exist in the area such as the fertile farmlands, springs, rivers, tributaries, sand and the indigenous flora and fauna in the area.

According to Mapping Poverty in Jamaica 2001-2002, Peckham has a significant poverty rate of 45% with a high dependence on agriculture and limited availability of alternative livelihoods. Hence the community’s vulnerability to the impacts of climate change. The agricultural practices of the Peckham community has exacerbated the effects of climate change within the community. These includes deforestation, land slippage, bush fires, drought, hurricanes and soil erosion. Many farmers practice unsustainable techniques of clearing farm lands such as slash and burn and charcoal burning. Additionally, intense intermittent rainfall coupled with impacts of drought has severely threatened the yield and diversification of crops and expose them to diseases which in turn threatens their livelihood.

In an effort to reduce the effects of climate change within the community the project aims to strengthen the resilience of community and farming systems to climate change, building on the priorities, knowledge and capacity of local people. This will reduce their vulnerability to climate and disaster risks and improve and secure their livelihoods. Similarly, a Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) strategy will be implemented within the community so that residents become more resilient and adaptive to climate change through a range of activities including improved land and water management, improved farming practices, community awareness and the promotion of sustainable livelihoods.

About the Project

The project, which is funded by the Community Disaster Risk Reduction Fund (CDRRF), a multi-donor trust fund administered by the CDB, with cost-share from the Environmental Health Foundation (EHF), and implemented by EHF, aims to build the community’s capacity for climate change resilience and adaptation strategies. This will be implemented through several adaptive mechanisms such as training of farmers in sustainable land and water management techniques, implementation of an aquaponics system which will be fuelled by renewable energy, the preparation of disaster plan for the community, among others.

Project Value: Cash funding from CDRRF – US$621,500.00 | Cash and in-kind contributions from EHF – US162,350.00 | TOTAL VALUE:US$783,850.00

Project Goal: To contribute to sustainable national development within the Peckham community through various climate change initiatives.

Overall Objective: To build resilience and adaptation to climate change, while improving the management of land and other natural resources in the community, while enhancing and securing the livelihoods and quality of life of the farmers through agriculture, water storage and conservation and the protection of natural resources

Specific Objectives:

• Enhanced food security and livelihoods through the establishment of an aquaponics system (climate resilient infrastructure), powered by renewable energy by the 15^th month.
• Improved land and water management through the procurement and distribution (to direct project beneficiaries) of water tanks (200) and farm tools (400) by the 18^th month.
• Conduct hazard mapping, vulnerability assessment and disaster risk reduction strategies for the community by the 18^th month of implementation to reduce the impact of climate change.
• Increased public awareness and resilience to climate change impacts through training on agriculture, irrigation, fire management and livelihoods diversification for at least 150 farmers by the 18^th month of implementation.

Key Activities:

• The aquaponics system will be powered by renewable energy to enhance its sustainability.
• Land management will be assisted with contouring using live barriers (such as pineapples) and slope stabilization using Vetiver. Water management will be achieved through rainwater harvesting using the water tanks to be provided.

• Direct project beneficiaries will be selected based on a schedule of criteria, which will be developed specifically for the project and factors based on the farmers’ level of vulnerability to certain hazards associated with climate change (eg. Flooding).

• Training will be accomplished by engaging the services of consultants and partner agencies with the requisite expertise.

 Implementation & Project Steering Committee

The project will facilitate the formulation of strategic partnerships with public and private sector agencies to ensure the success of the programme. The organizations forming the Project Steering Committee (PSC) are EHF, Peckham Jamaica Agricultural Society Group (Peckham JAS Group), Tweedside Farmers’ Group, Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), Social Development Commission (SDC), Parish Disaster Coordinator of the Clarendon Municipal Corporation, Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), and the College of Agriculture, Science and Education (CASE).