Potable water for households, schools, commercial buildings, hotels, restaurants and similar uses must be safe, clean, clear and potable. Potable water must come from collection of rainwater, desalination of seawater or extraction of freshwater from the groundwater. Potable water also may be produced by private desalination units operated using seawater or
The Republic of Nauru since becoming independent on 31 January 1968 has relatively been self sufficient with little or no reliance on external assistance. This was made possible through revenue received from the mining of rock phosphate which since the early 1900s was the single key activity driving the economy of Nauru. In fact in the 1970s and 80s, Nauru had the highest per capita income making it the richest country in the Asia Pacific region.
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Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 8 Pages
Nauru is a small country comprising a single island with an area of only 22 km2. The island is having severe difficulties in achieving a safe and adequate supply of potable water and suffers from pollution of local groundwater due to inadequate sanitation services. The problems have arisen from the collapse of the utility services when phosphate mining ceased, followed by a national financial crisis.
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Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 6 Pages
Fisheries in the Solomon Islands comprise two distinct sectors: the industrial sector which is predominantly off-shore and depends on the abundant tuna resources found in the country's
It is becoming clear that there is a fair amount of small plastic distributed in the oceans and on beaches worldwide, not surprising given its durability and floatability. Marine debris is often ingested by animals such as sea turtles, marine mammals, and seabirds. Items such as lighters and small plastic pieces may look like food to an animal, or have an animal's natural food attached to it. Debris may also be ingested accidentally with actual food items. Exactly how many of them die each year due to marine debris ingestion is not
known.
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The Vanuatu Environmental Unit (VEU) is undertaking a capacity building add-on to the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Planning Project (NBSAP). One priority within the work is protection of the rights of Ni-Vanuatu, innovations and practices relating to biological diversity. The NBSAP Project has information from Regional Networks that have been promoting interest in protection of indigenous rights, including information from a forum held in Vila in 2001.1 Clark Peteru, a Samoan based lawyer, has provided advice on intellectual
The Republic of Vanuatu, formerly the Anglo-French Condominium of the New Hebrides, consists of the central and southern part of an archipelago which forms one of the numerous seismic arcs found in the Western Pacific. The Santa Cruz Islands, politically part of the Solomon Islands, constitute the northern
part of the archipelago (UNEP/IUCN. 1988).
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Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 76 p,
Vanuatu is among countries in the Pacific region that are most vulnerable to the risks of climate change, climate variability and sea level rise. With the livelihood of its people and economy interwoven, shaped and driven by climate sensitive
sectors, the effects of climate and sea level change are already very real and pose a tangible threat to the future socio-economic wellbeing of the country.
Available online|1 copy
Call Number: [EL],551.6 COM
Physical Description: 44 p.
This report presents the results of field studies of the National Forest Inventory. Details of the survey methodology and coverage are provided and summaries of results are presented.
The Vanuatu National Forest Inventory commenced in 1989. Field survey activities were primarily undertaken through the Vanuatu dry season and were completed in 1991. The primary objective of the forest survey was to provide information on type, distribution and volume of forest resources to enable national planning for development and conservation. The first step in developing the sampling strategy was the typing of vegetation from aerial photographs (API). Geographic information was collated and then overlain to compile discrete polygons known as resource mapping units (RMU).
The plant site is very close to, and its land lease abuts the Tagabe River which is a major resource for the area and particularly the people living in Blacksands who have no municipal utility supply. The plant is located 800m upstream from the river mouth and therefore downstream from most of the high use areas. There are, however, some parts of the Blacksands community that use the river for washing between the plant and sea, and undergrounds wells are common in the area. There is a potential for impacts through contamination of the river or
United Nations Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) (1993)
United Nations Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) (1993)
Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer (1994)
Vienna Convention for the protection of the ozone layer (1994)
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna & Flora (CITES) (1989)
Convention on the Prohibition of Fishing with Long Drift Nets (1991)
United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)(1982)
Rio Declaration on Environment and development and AGENDA 21 (1992)
We found coral diversity to be relatively high, especially at both tips of the island. Here we estimated the hard coral coverage to be about 30-40% and soft coral coverage about 25%. However, dead Pocillopora and Acropora colonies, already
overgrown by algae, were scattered throughout the reef. On the northwest windward side of the island we encountered vast areas of bare rock with nibble filling the crevasses. Even in deeper zones live hard coral coverage was estimated to be only
The Secretariat for Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) have commissioned Cardno (Qld) Pty Ltd (Cardno) to undertake a comprehensive review of integrated environmental assessment approaches and procedures in Pacific Island Countries (PICs), and to provide advice on regional priorities for capacity building requirements in this regard.
Consultancy report for SPREP
Call Number: 333.714 YOU [EL]
Physical Description: 98 p.
While development of natural non living resources such as minerals and water can better the lives of Pacific islanders, it needs to be managed to ensure a safe and healthy environment. And as any resource manager today knows, to manage resources we need to manage the people who use them. A number of projects in the Pacific have recently turned to economic tools to help manage the way people use non living natural resources. In this paper selected case studies will be used to:
The overall growth performance in the Pacific improved in 2007 with annual growth increasing to around 3 per cent compared to an average of about 2.2 per cent for the 2002-2005 period (Table 1). Vanuatu, Palau, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea grew at above average rates in 2007. Economic growth picked up in Fiji in 2006 but declined in 2007 following the coup in early December 2006. The Cook Islands, Marshall Islands and Samoa also experienced a pick up in growth.
Over the past decade since the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in Rio, there has been only modest progress in the Asia-Pacific Region towards sustainable development. Since 1992, environmental quality in the Region has deteriorated. In advance of the September, 2002, World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), a number of agencies active in the Asia-Pacific Region, including ADB, ESCAP, UNDP, and UNEP, agreed to co-ordinate a series of subregional and regional preparatory meetings.
The process by which individuals, groups, organisations, institutions and societies increase their abilities to:
Perform core functions, solve problems, define and achieve objectives
Understand and deal with their development needs in a broad context and in a sustainable manner.
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Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 129 p.
The initiative supports environment and health actors working together to address issues of common concern. Traditionally, health and environment sectors have acted independently
of one another, each in defined domains. While much can and has been achieved, HELI aims to add a further dimension by focusing specifically on the large and important range of decisions
which cannot be taken by one sector alone and require a coordinated approach.
Avaialable online
Call Number: [EL]
ISBN/ISSN: 978-92-4-156372-7
Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change have committed themselves to considering the special needs and concerns of developing countries resulting from the adverse effects of climate change in the area of insurance. The needs of small island states have been are highlighted for attention, due to their unique geographic features and exposure, and thus unique vulnerability.1
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Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 49 p.