Australia and New Zealand have teamed up to deliver 450,000 litres of drinkable water to the drought-stricken Pacific island of Tuvalu. Australia's Parliamentary Secretary for Pacific Island Affairs Richard Marles said the shipment to Tuvalu's main island of Funafuti was delivered today. "This much-needed water will fill government storage facilities and enable households to access more water in Tuvalu," Mr Marles said.
Australia also has provided two delivery trucks to help distribute water to communities. Tuvalu declared a state of emergency in September after months without rainfall forced its government to start rationing the water supply. Mr Marles said Australia and New Zealand would provide a second shipment of 600,000 litres of water if the drought worsens. Australia also is providing two small desalination units, with the first due to arrive in Funafuti this month. It also is teaming up with the US and the UK to build 40,000-litre-a-day desalination plants to be up and running in December. Last month the New Zealand Defence Force started up a desalination unit on the island. Tuvalu is one of the world's smallest independent nations with fewer than 11,000 residents. It relies heavily on rainwater which has been scarce because of the La Nina weather pattern.