Shipping routes in the ocean are analogous to terrestrial roads, in that they are regularly used thoroughfares that concentrate the movement of vessels between multiple locations. We applied a terrestrial road ecology framework to examine the ecological impacts of increased global shipping on “marine giants” (ie great whales, basking sharks [Cetorhinus maximus], and whale sharks [Rhincodon typus]). This framework aided in identifying where such “marine roads” and marine giants are likely to interact and the consequences of those interactions.
The term Milne Bay Archipelago is used to include Goodenough, Fergusson and Normanby Islands – collectively the d’Entrecasteau Islands, the islands of the Louisiade Archipelago, Missima, Rossel and Sudest Islands and the two northern islands, the Trobriands and Woodlark. All are very complex with many small islands, often unnamed. Due to their geographic isolation the islands have many endemic species. So far 139 have been described. Of particular interest is the genus Rosselia, collected only twice from Rossel Island.
We present the first large-scale synthesis of indigenous knowledge (IK) on New Guinea’s useful plants based on a quantitative review of 488 references and 854 herbarium specimens. Specifically, we assessed (i) spatiotemporal trends in the documentation of IK, (ii) which are New Guinea’s most useful ecosystems and plant taxa, (iii) what use categories have been better studied, and (iv) which are the best studied indigenous groups. Overall, our review integrates 40,376 use reports and 19,948 plant uses for 3434 plant species.
The Fly River system in Western Province, Papua New Guinea, is the largest river, in terms of water flow, in Australasia. With a mean annual discharge of approximately 6,000 cumecs the Fly is similar in size to the Niger and Zambesi Rivers in Africa and the Danube in Europe (Welcomme, 1985). However, with a catchment area of only 76,000 km2 the Fly outranks all the world’s major rivers in terms of runoff per unit catchment area.
The Lae Port Development Project – Tidal Basin Phase 1 comprises one basin 400m × 700m, one berth of length of 240m for one 50,000 tonne DWT container vessels, a 120,000m2 container terminal yard, a link road, terminal buildings, utilities, and support facilities.
Until recently cholera had never been reported in Papua New Guinea despite the close proximity of cholera-endemic countries and the presence of environmental and social characteristics that are considered risk factors for cholera outbreaks. The current outbreak began in July 20091 and rapidly spread throughout the coastal regions of the country.
Half of the population in Port Moresby dispose of their faecal waste via networked wastewater systems (sewerage or storm water drains) of which only 10% is safely transported and treated. The networked wastewater system failures are caused by the congestion of the sewers with foreign objects and overloading with water. Almost all the other half
of the population reside in non-networked or informal settlements using on-site sanitation systems with only 4% safely transported and treated.
In Papua New Guinea, a significant portion of morbidity and mortality is attributed to water-borne diseases. To reduce incidence of disease, communities and non-governmental organizations have installed rain catchments to provide drinking water of improved quality. However, little work has been done to determine whether these rain catchments provide drinking water of better quality than traditional drinking water sources, and if morbidity is decreased in villages with rain catchments.
Located south of the equator in the South-western Pacific, PNG is the largest and most populous Pacific Island nation. It consists of the eastern half of the island of New Guinea, several large high volcanic islands and numerous high volcanic islands and coral atolls. Its diverse geography gives rise to an equally diverse range of ecosystems which accommodate a wide variety of flora and fauna making up 5% of the world's biodiversity. Its population of 5.8 million people is also diverse in ethnicity, language, custom and culture.
Eighty seven percent of Papua New Guinea’s (PNG’s) seven million people live in rural areas. Almost all the rest live in small urban centers, the majority of which have a population of well below 30,000 people. Only Port Moresby and Lae have sizable populations at about 365,000 and 88,000 respectively1. Average national population density is low at about 14 per km2. PNG’s population is characterized by a very diverse number of social groups, with strong local and clan-based affinities and allegiances. There are over 800 distinct languages.
Geologically, Papua New Guinea is a young country. The presence of high mountain ranges and abundant rainfall leads to high runoff over most of the country. There are nine hydrological drainage divisions (basins). The largest river basins are the Sepik, Fly, Purari and Markham. Even though the Sepik has the lowest annual discharge, it has the
largest catchment area, 78 000 km2, followed by the Fly River with 61 000 km2, Purari with 33 670 km2, and Markham with 12 000 km2. The other catchments are less than 5 000 km2 in area and very steep.
The NIISP provides an investment plan based on the current condition and capacity of existing infrastructure assets, the need for services in Nauru
Project to finance a 6MW grid connected solar power plant and 2.5MWh/5MW battery energy storage system for solar smoothing energy storage. The system will be fully integrated and automated with the existing diesel generation (17.9 MW installed capacity currently manually operated) to optimize solar energy use, to enable optimal BESS charging/discharging and to provide optimal shut off of the diesel engines.
Based on the 2011 census, the total population at the time of the census was 10,084 (5,105 males and 4,979 females). This compares with 9,233 people in 2006 – an increase of 9% or 851 people. This population increase represents an average annual growth rate of 1.8% which is equivalent to 170 people per year for the period 2006-2011.
The 2016 State of Environment (SOE) Report for the Republic of Marshall Islands (RMI) updates the 1992 SOE report. It uses the DPSIR model (Drivers, Pressures, State, Impact and Response). The data in the RMI SoE belongs to the government and people of the Republic of the Marshall Islands. Information was gathered from local stakeholders and experts on the seven major themes to provide a summary of the state, impact and response to 38 key environmental indicators.
Summary of the State of the Environment report (2016)