AM - Thursday, 5 June , 2008 08:04:00 Reporter: Kerri Ritchie TONY EASTLEY: It's June the 5th, World Environment Day, when many countries, companies and communities look at their environmental problems and try to find some solutions.



But for one tiny Pacific nation the outlook is so grim the President has issued an appeal for Australia and other countries for help. He wants them to provide a home for his people.



New Zealand correspondent Kerri Ritchie reports.



KERRI RITCHIE: Kiribati is made up of three groups of coral atolls. Ninety-thousand people live there, on land which is barely 2m above sea level.



On a map it may look small, but Kiribati has some big problems. With rising sea levels and erosion, many communities have already relocated.



Its President Anote Tong is watching on with sadness.



ANOTE TONG: Every second week when we get the high tides, there's always reports of erosion.



KERRI RITCHIE: Anote Tong has just arrived in New Zealand for talks with Prime Minister Helen Clark. He's appealing to her and other leaders to help relocate his people. He says water supplies are being contaminated by the rising sea and time is running out.



ANOTE TONG: There's a number of scenarios. We are programming for the worst possible case scenario - 50, 60 years. And so we have to think about that.



KERRI RITCHIE: The President says his people have no options left - they must leave.



ANOTE TONG: Well, we have to find the next highest spot. At the moment there's only the coconut trees. But I think we have to, in fact I've appealed to the international community that we need to address this challenge. It's a challenge, I think not for any one single country but I think for the whole global community. Maybe we have a few decades to address this but we believe that we should begin to address the issue yesterday.



KERRI RITCHIE: Anote Tong says other countries should follow New Zealand's lead.



ANOTE TONG: New Zealand in fact offers more opportunity but I think from our own perspective I think it is important that if our people were to relocate, they should do so as trained, skilled people rather than people coming here and adding to the problems, their own problems and to the national problems.



KERRI RITCHIE: He says migration must start now - on World Environment Day - so the people of Kiribati can find a new home and a new future.



ANOTE TONG: We want to deny it, we don't want to believe this, and our people don't want to believe this. But it gives us a deep sense of frustration. What do we do?



If you want to lead the people you must always be in the position to provide options, and so this it the option that we are suggesting, in the belief that if it is going to happen we will have at least addressed part of the problem and it won't be such a severe one to address when the time finally comes.



TONY EASTLEY: The President of Kiribati Anote Tong ending that report from our New Zealand correspondent Kerri Ritchie.