Coastal areas and oceans are complex and fragile environments with many different functions linked to public health, food security, and other economic and social benefits. These are also decisive elements in the alleviation of poverty. Healthy estuarine, near-shore and oceanic systems provide cultural heritage, food, building materials, traditional livelihoods, tourism opportunities, transportation routes, storm protection, organisms for biotechnology and many more benefits that are frequently overlooked or abused.
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Forests and other wooded land together cover about
one-third of the Asia and the Pacific region.
Excluding the Russian Federation, forest area in 2005
was estimated at 734 million hectares, accounting for
about 19 percent of global forest area. The region as a
whole experienced a net increase in forest area of about
633 000 ha annually during 2000-2005. This
is an important breakthrough, since the region had
experienced a net loss of forest cover during the 1990s. The improvement was largely the result of an increase of more
This disposal project is the second stage (Phase II) of an AusAID-fiuided project developed in conjunction with South Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) to manage persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in Pacific Island Countries (PICs). The Phase I project, which was implemented between April 1997 and April 2000. involved an inventory of hazardous chemicals, and a discussion of management options for obsolete chemicals and containers, in the PICs. Although many obsolete agricultural and other chemicals can be disposed of safely locally, others cannot.
Small island states present a significant challenge in terms of sustainable tourism development. On a small island there are limited resources, economic and social activities tend to be concentrated on the coastal zone, and the interconnectivity between economic, environmental, social, cultural and political spheres is strong and pervasive. Consequently the sustainable development of tourism is more a practical necessity than an optional extra.
Canton Atoll has a single passage between the ocean and lagoon and lias conspicuous environmental gradients from that passage to the back lagoon. These gradients include the physiography of the lagoon floor, water quality, and the diversity and abundance of corals, fishes, and mollusks. The gradients can apparently be attributed either directly or indirectly to circulation
and water motion within the lagoon. Those oceanographic characteristics can, in turn, be attributed to the geological history of the atoll, including some human modification of the pass configuration.
The Gilbert Islands are a part of the- Gilbert and Ellice
Islands Crown Colony of Great Britain, They lie in the
Pacific Ocean directly southeast of the Marshall Islands
and straddle the equator from 3 degrees North Latitude to
3 degrees South Latitude. All are low islands and most are
atolls. They are densely inhabited by Micronesian people
who are greatly dependent on the sea for food.
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Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 259 p.
The avifauna of the Marshall and Gilbert Islands and the sur-
Rarotonga and Aitutaki form the summits of separate
volcanic masses rising from depths of 4000 m, at which depth
the cones are 45-55 km in diameter (Summerhayes and Kibblewh
1966, 1967).The lower slopes of the cones average 15-25
increasing to 30 in the upper 750 m and becoming very steep
the surface reef is approached. The Mauke-Aitutaki line of
islands is thought to be of early Tertiary age: the surface
volcanics are much eroded, with a subdued topography, or are
capped with limestones (Wood, 1967; Wood and Hay, 1970). On
Caroline Atoll (Frontispiece) is situated at 10°00'S latitude and 150°13'W longitude in the south-central Pacific Ocean. Caroline is the southeasternmost of the Southern Line Islands, a group of 3 islands which also includes Vostok and Flint, lying 230 km to its west and southwest, respectively. Although archaeologically and geographically within Polynesia, Caroline is owned by the Republic of Kiribati (formerly Gilbert Islands).
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Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 309 p.
Majuro Atoll has been a center of activity for the Marshall Islands since 1944 and is now the major population center and port of entry for the country. Previous to the accompanying study, no thorough documentation has been made of the vascular plants of Majuro Atoll. There were only reports that were either part of much larger discussions on the entire Micronesian region or the Marshall Islands as a whole, and were of a very
The oceanic dispersal of plants and animals has been the focus of studies ever since organized natural history started in the Pacific, and the dispersal of terrestrial by sea rafting has been given due consideration. The finding of drift materials such as glass floats, tree trunks and seeds, is a common occurrence on the shores of Pacific Islands, but in most
cases the origin of such material is unknown or at least equivocal. Thus while the principle of sea rafted dispersal is known and reported at length, there is a need to document those
The Gilbert Islands are a north-south chain of low coral islands, lying across the equator at about 172°-177° E longitude. The atolls, from north to south are Little Makin, Butaritari, Marakei, Abaiang, Tarawa, Maiana, Kuria, Aranuka, Abemama, Nonouti, Tabiteuea, Onotoa, Beru, Nikunau, Tamana, and Arorai. They are densely populated, and were under British Colonial Government until 1979, when they were granted independence, and now are the principal archipelago in the new republic of Kiribati.
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Call Number: [EL]
This paper is a somewhat revised and updated version of a report, written in 1973 after our 9-day visit, at the request of Mr. Marlon Brando, proprietor of Tetiaroa Atoll, and published here with his accord. The original version was based on that visit to the atoll, as explained in the introduction. It was supplemented by a few observations called from herbarium specimens and field notes of Dr. Gerrit Wilder, who visited the island briefly on March 12, 1925 and August 30, 1929, and of E. H. Quayle, of the Whitney Expedition, who stopped there on November 19-21, 1921.
It has been over twenty years since UNCLOS came into existence and twelve years since it came into force, in addition to fourteen years since the historic "Earth Summit" was convened in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, yet the Pacific Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are finding it extremely difficult to deal with many cross-cutting and multiple issues relating to ocean management. The challenge for the Pacific SIDS is clear, successive international, regional and national initiatives
This report lias been prepared on behalf of the Environment Service, Cook Islands as part of an ongoing monitoring programme of reef health of the fringing reef of Rarotonga. The
initial work was earned out in 2000 and this is the first subsequent sampling and report since that baseline study.
Available online|Report for the Environment Service, Tu'anga Taporoporo, Cook Islands
Call Number: EL]
Physical Description: 21 p.
This report presents results from the Supplementary Livelihoods Options for Pacific Island Communities (SLOPIC) study, carried out by the Foundation of the Peoples of the South Pacific
International (FSPI) using New Zealand Aid (NZAid) core
funds.
The main aim of this study was to review supplementary livelihood (SL) projects that have taken place across the South Pacific over the past 5 to 10 years, with a view to extracting 'lessons learned' and identifying the determinants of success.
Draft available online|Final copy is hard copy kept at 333.7 GAR|3 copies
MANY VILLAGERS IN THE ISLAND nation of Fiji earn cash by
planting sugar cane. But residents of Tagaqe are growing some-
thing different: live rock. Not the loud music variety, but a critical component in saltwater aquaria. When villagers suspend porous rocks in the rich waters of the Fijian reef, the rocks arc colonized by living invertebrates and coralline algae. After just eight months, the rocks can be harvested and sold as cultured live rock to aquarium markets around the globe.
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Call Number: [EL]
The International Coral Reef Action Network (ICRAN), established in the year 2000, is a collaborative effort working to halt and reverse the decline in health of the world's coral reefs. ICRAN was established by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), WorldFish Center (formerly ICLARM), World Resources Institute (WRI), UNEP-World Conservation Monitoring Center (UNEP-WCMC), Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN), International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) Secretariat, Coral Reef Alliance (CORAL) and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP).
A team from ESCAP visited the Cook Islands from 5 through 12 September, 2001, to respond to a request from the Government of the Cook Islands (GoCI) for ESCAP to
advise it on sustainable energy development, in particular to review existing national energy policies including legal tools, energy sector institutions and pricing issues.
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Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 12 Pages
The Main Species Of holothurian exploited in the Sputh Pacific are Holothuria scabra, H. Fuscogilva And H. nobilis, which have high commercial value , Actinopyga echinites, A. Miliaries And Thelenota ananas Of medium commercial value, And Holothuria atra, H. fuscopunctata and H. mauritiana, whose commercial value is low.
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Call Number: [EL]
ISBN/ISSN: 92-5-102508-8
Physical Description: ix, 143 p.