The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) is the most comprehensive global database of marine and terrestrial protected areas, updated on a monthly basis, and is one of the key global biodiversity data sets being widely used by scientists, businesses, governments, International secretariats and others to inform planning, policy decisions and management. The WDPA is a joint project between UN Environment and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The Territorial Sea Baseline of Cook Islands was derived from two high resolution satellite imageries called Geo-eye and WorldView -2 in 2011 and 2012. These imageries are referenced to the World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS 1984) datum. The baselines were defined and completed by Cook Islands technical team in collaboration with SPC in 2005.
The Marine Zones (Declaration) Act 2011 repeals the Marine Zones (Declaration) Act 1983. It states that the territorial sea of Kiribati comprises those waters having, as their inner limits, the baseline of Kiribati and, as their outer limits, a line measured seaward from that baseline, every point of which is at a distance of twelve (12) nautical miles from the nearest point of the baseline.
The Marine Zones (Declaration) Act 2011 states that "Baseline" means the baseline from which the breadth of the territorial sea, contiguous zone, exclusive economic zone and continental shelf is measured. It contains the geographic coordinates that defines the baseline for the Line Group. The points are defined by geographic coordinates are determined by reference
to the World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS 84).
The Marine Zones (Declaration) Act 2011 repeals the Marine Zones (Declaration) Act 1983. It states that the "Contiguous Zone" means waters beyond the territorial sea within a distance of twenty-four (24) nautical miles from the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured.
Part 2 of the Tuvalu Maritime Zones Act 2012 states that the contiguous zone comprises those areas of the sea that are beyond and adjacent to the territorial sea, having as their outer limits a line measured seaward from the baseline every point of which is distant 24 nautical miles from the nearest point of that baseline.
Where an archipelagic baseline is declared, the outer limits of the contiguous zone are a line measured seaward from that archipelagic baseline, every point of which is distant 24 nautical miles from the nearest point of that archipelagic baseline.
Part 1 of the Tuvalu Maritime Zones Act 2012 states that the territorial sea comprises those areas of the sea having
(a) as their inner limits, the baseline, which is measured from the low-water line of the seaward side of the reef fringing the coast of any part of Tuvalu or bounding any lagoon waters adjacent to any part of that coast, or where a reef is not present, the low-water line of the coast itself and
(b) as their outer limits, a line measured seaward from that baseline, every point of which is distant 12 nautical miles from the nearest point of that baseline.
This dataset provides the timeline of major natural disasters that have affected islands in the FSM, compiled by Whitney Hoot and Danko Taborosi of Island Research & Education Initiative (iREi), from the year 1775 to 2012.
Biodiversity Conservation of terrestrial and amrine ecosystems
Jaluit Atoll Ramsar Information Sheet, 2003.
Today, May 10th, in addition to being SIDS Day, coincides with the release, in Nairobi, Kenya, of the third
edition of Global Biodiversity Outlook (GBO-3). This major new assessment of the current state of
biodiversity and the implications of its continued loss for human well-being was produced by the
Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the broadest international treaty for the conservation and
sustainable use of biodiversity and the equitable sharing of the benefits from the utilization of genetic
The maintenance and enhancement of arboreal biodiversity, especially forest and tree genetic resources, is vital for sustainable development in the Pacific Islands. For Pacific peoples, their forest and tree genetic resources are not just a matter of scientific, economic (in monetary terms), recreational or ecological value. They are a capital inheritance that, until recent times, was passed on, relatively intact or in some cases enhanced, by past generations to current generations.
The biodiversity of the Pacific region is recognised as being globally significant. The Solomon Islands was recently included into the famous "Coral Triangle", the area of ocean considered to have the highest marine biodiversity in the world. This includes the waters of the Philippines, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. The Solomon Islands Rainforest Ecoregion is recognised as "one of the world's great Centres of Plant Diversity"