Pacific island sea levels rising faster than global average, WMO says

FILE PHOTO: Local resident Tomasi Dioni looks after a bull at the inland relocated site of Vunidogoloa Village, Fiji, July 19, 2022. REUTERS/Loren Elliott/File Photo

GENEVA (Reuters) - Sea levels in the South-West Pacific are rising faster than the global average, threatening low-lying islands while heat damages marine ecosystems, the U.N. meteorological agency said on Friday.

In its State of the Climate in the South-West Pacific 2022 report, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said water levels were rising about 4 mm per year in some areas, slightly above the global mean rate.