The Convention on Biological Diversity has been adopted by many countries, resulting in the development of national biodiversity strategies. This illustrates the international recognition of the importance of protecting ecosystems. However, ecosystems still face many threats, some of them growing and spreading so rapidly as to cause irreversible deterioration in many countries and areas.
Invasive alien species represent an insidious and pervasive threat to the environmental, economic and human well-being of the Pacific islands. Pacific island ecosystems make up one of the worlds important biodiversity hotspots, with high numbers of endemic species that are particularly vulnerable to extinction due to their limited habitat and isolation.|This book is intended to serve as a practical guide, calling attention to the need to link emergencies, disasters and development, not only in policy statements, but in practical ways.
The main map shows that higher population densities occur (i) around and inland from major coastal towns, (ii) in the elevated PNG Highlands (H) and the Baliem Valley (B) of Papua, and (iii) along most of the coasts of the mainland and major islands. The distributions of inhabited places and of annual fires reveal that people and their effects are widely dispersed across much of the landscape. However, vast landscapes in the upper catchments of the Mamberamo River (M) in Papua and in parts of the upper Fly River (F) and Sepik River (S) in PNG remain sparsely inhabited.
The term Marine Protected Area (MPA) includes any area of the coast and ocean that is under management to control potentially destructive activities and conserve the biodiversity resources. Other terms used in the Pacific to describe such an area are
Species-numbers relationships in the McKean Island assemblage
of reef-building corals were investigated to discover how they changed along environmental gradients of the reef. For the purposes of the study, two gradients were identified a complex depth gradient and a wave exposure gradient.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 42 p.
Interface habitats, areas where aquatic and terrestrial habitats intersect, play important functional roles. Interface habitats mediate the exchange of resources (e.g.. energy,
nutrients, water), alter abiotic gradients (e.g.. temperature, salinity, pH. sedimentation, nutrients), insulate abutting habitats from disturbances, and serve as critical habitat in
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.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 12 Pages
The task given to the Evaluator was to review and assess the Initiatives relevance, design,efficiency,effectiveness, impact and sustainability, as provided by the ECs evaluation protocol used in the Mid-term Review (MTR). As a suitable level of funding was not available to conduct the evaluation appropriately, the evaluation was centred on a regional sharing and evaluation workshop held at Maravaghi Resort in the Solomon Islands from the 21st 24th February in which key NGOs, community representatives and government partners were brought together from participating countries.
Climate change has been recognized by Pacific Forum Leaders as one of the most serious threats to the region. The Pacific islands have already experienced, and will continue to experience the adverse effects of climate change and these are expected to worsen over the coming decades. For some low lying atoll countries, climate change may even threaten their very existence, as confirmed by the recently published Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, AR4.
Also available online|Also contain Cd-rom
Call Number: 338.9 PAC [EL]
At its sixth meeting the Conference of the Parties, in decision VI/7 A endorsed the draft guidelines for incorporating biodiversity-related issues into environmental impact assessment legislation and/or processes and in strategic environmental assessment.
This paper aims to provide an overview of the existing policy framework, activities and coordinating arrangements in the area of UN inter-agency information exchange concerning environmental capacity building. It has been prepared for the Environmental Management Group (EMG) by an independent consultant who is familiar with UN information exchange networks concerning environmental capacity building that are operating within the United Nations.
The Coral Coast, Fiji, was one of the areas included in a South Pacific Marine Resources Energy Programme commissioned, by the Marine Resource Department of the University of the South Pacific. This present survey formed part of an overall exercise embracing similar work in Tonga and West Samoa, and the period spent in Fiji covered March 22nd to April 11th.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 52 p.
This report has investigated the current power system on Atiu and the local renewable energy (RE) options available to supplement in the short to medium term and replace in the long term the current diesel generation.
Capacity building in the marine sector is a priority for Pacific Island nations, which face major challenges in the sustainable management of their marine resources under UNCLOS III and the various Conventions and Agreements stemming from UNCED. The University of the South Pacific (USP), with its 12 Pacific Island members (Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu) has taken up this challenge through the establishment of its Marine Studies Programme (MSP) in 1993.
The Solomon Islands Electricity Authority (SIEA) is a Solomon
Islands Government owned utility responsible for the generating,
transmitting and distributing as well as selling of electricity supplies in the Solomon Islands.
SIEA operates in nine (9) locations throughout the Solomon Islands with its Lungga and Honiara Powerstations serving Honiara. It has an installed capacity of 28 MW and a peak system load of 12.3 MW.
The impetus tor developing this Guide came primarily from two situations. Firstly, the enormity of the Asian Tsunami disaster in 2004-2005 right on Australia's doorstep, and the inability of the renewable energy community to donate goods and services, highlighted a need to develop an understanding of a pathway with the aid and disaster relief organisations to overcome this situation.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
ISBN/ISSN: 978-0-9803518-1-1
Physical Description: 82 p.
Most of the 96 national monuments designated under U.S. law
are on land. The majority are managed by the National Park
Service, though some are administered by the Bureau of Land
Management and other agencies. At this point neither the
name of the proposed Mariana Trench Marine National Monu-
ment (MTMNM) nor the management structure has been de-
termined. For guidance one could review the process of the
recently designated Papahanaumokuakea Marine National
Monument (PMNM), which is placed within the purview of the
This report has investigated the current power system on Mauke and the local renewable energy (RE) options available to supplement in the short to medium term and replace in the
long term the current diesel generation. In the short term refurbishment of the present diesel based system is required to ensure provision of reliable supply and minimise environmental degradation through fuel handling practises. Staff training and service equipment should be provided. Initiation of a wind
Consisting of nine coral islands in the south Pacific, Tuvalu is one of the smallest nations in the world. Many of Tuvalu's citizens lead self-sufficient lifestyles through fishing and agriculture. Although the tiny country emits almost no greenhouse gases, it has a low elevation and is said to be in the process of submerging under the rising sea level caused by global warming.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 48 p.
Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are very vulnerable to global warning and the impending sea level rise. Lack of energy security combined with but not limited to, High per capita use. lack of widespread renewable energy technologies, remoteness, limited funding, and high fuel prices, make pacific SIDS especially vulnerable to energy security/supply issues.1 This paper presents strategies that the Government of Nauru