Invasive alien plants and animals are known for their disruption of ecosystems and threat to biodiversity. This book highlights their major impact on human health. This includes not only direct effects through contact with the species via bites, wounds and disease, but also indirect effects caused by changes induced in ecosystems by invasive species, such as more water hyacinth increasing mosquito levels and thereby the potential for malaria.
Global biodiversity loss is disproportionately rapid on islands, where invasive species are a major driver of extinctions. To inform conservation planning aimed at preventing extinctions, we identify the distribution and biogeographic patterns of highly threatened terrestrial vertebrates (classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature) and invasive vertebrates on ~465,000 islands worldwide by conducting a comprehensive literature review and interviews with more than 500 experts.
A report prepared by the Invasive Partnership for the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting, Palau July 2014 as requested by the Micronesian Chief Executives in Resolution 19-01
Online only
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 16p. ; 29cm.
Powerpoint on GBIF and the 19th Annual Pacific Islands Roundtable for Nature Conservation, by Kyle Cobas
Online only
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 18p. : ill. (col.)
Invasive species are the primary cause of extinction on islands (IUCN Red List 2020, SPREP 2016, SOCO 2017). Invasive species have been formally identified as a threat for 1,531 species in the Pacific islands region to date (IUCN Red List, 2020). Pacific leaders have established two core regional indicators for invasive species management. Efforts for invasive management are ongoing in almost all Pacific island countries and territories.
The Pacific Islands region that is served by SPREP covers 32 million km2 and is in
the middle of the largest continuous marine habitat on the planet, the Pacific Ocean.
This region is home to a diverse range of large marine animals, including cetaceans,
sirenians and marine turtles. Over half of the world’s known species of cetaceans are
found in the region. The area also supports the world’s largest remaining populations
of dugongs, and green, hawksbill and loggerhead turtles.
Available online
Pacific islands are hotspots of unique biodiversity. Our ancestral traditions are linked
to nature. However, these traditions, the natural environment, and biodiversity are
threatened by changing global and regional environmental pressures, ecological
degradation, growing human populations, changing demands of our societies, and the
impacts of climate change and sea level rise.
Call Number: [EL],333.720961 STA
ISBN/ISSN: 978-982-04-0905-7,978-982-04-0906-4
Physical Description: 156 p. 29 cm.
Here, hazardous waste is defined according to the Basel and Waigani Conventions, with categories listed in Basel Convention Annex I, Annex II and characteristics in Annex III. These include wastes that are explosive, flammable or prone to spontaneous combustion, poisonous or toxic, and infectious, among other characteristics.
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 4 p.
The regionally endorsed Cleaner Pacific 2025 strategy set a target for the performance indicator Per capita generation of municipal solid waste of 1.3 kilograms or less per person per day by 2020.
The full range of wildlife use in the Pacific islands region is outside of the scope of the present indicator. Many wildlife species are used in modern Pacific societies, on land, at sea, and in coastal areas. Wildlife is used for subsistence, traditional ritual, and in a range of industries, including the aquarium and seashell trade, decorative arts, agrifood, tourism, pet trade, and more
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 10 p.
The Oceania region is very prone to natural disasters having experienced two Category 5 cyclones in as many years; Tropical Cyclone (TC)Pam struck Vanuatu on 13 March 2015 and TC Winston struck Fiji on 20 February 2016.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 92 p
Who are we? UN Environments specialist biodiversity assessment centre, based in Cambridge, UK
Available online|Powerpoint presentation
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 16 p
To formally launch the second phase of the Biodiversity and Protected Areas Management (BIOPAMA) programme, a regional inception workshop for the Pacific was held at the Tanoa Tusitala Hotel, Apia, Samoa from 11th to 15th June 2018. The aim of the inception workshop was to ensure that all 15 countries in the Pacific ACP Group of States were engaged for the second phase of BIOPAMA. The working title of the workshop was Regional Workshop on Improving Information and Capacity for More Effective Protected Area Management and Governance in the Pacific.
The number of multilateral environment agreements (MEAs) varies by country, with at least 20 MEAs for the Pacific islands region. Pacific leaders have adopted the
Convention on Biological Diversity with its Aichi Targets
(2011–2020), the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and several other global, regional, and national commitments that rely on resourced environmental management.
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 4 p.
The Pacific island region has diverse wetlands, such as
the classic coastal ecosystems of mangrove forests, salt marshes, coral reefs, and seagrass beds along with rivers, freshwater lakes, and swamps (SPREP 2016). However, these wetlands are understudied. Land-use change and environmental change can alter the areal extent and condition of wetlands, and the pace of these changes vary among Pacific islands.
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 4 p.
Ozone depleting substances (ODS) are considered hazardous waste s due to the impacts of ozone destruction on people, ecosystems, and species. For more about other hazardous wastes, please see Regional Indicator: Hazardous waste.
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 2 p.
Island biodiversity continues to be extremely vulnerable, and 47% of the known threatened Pacific species are declining towards extinction. Pacific island species have high levels of endemism combined with small land areas and therefore limited habitat. Habitat change, naiveté to predation by introduced animals, vulnerability to invasive species-driven changes, pollution, and climate change combine to influence
the abundance and population structure of Pacific biodiversity.
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 6 p.
Long timescales, uncertainties, and the multi-faceted nature of climate change adaptation makes monitoring progress in this field inherently challenging; there is no simple way to determine how well prepared we are for current and future climate change impacts. This contrasts with climate change mitigation, for which greenhouse gas emissions can be considered a universal indicator, and there are clear guidelines for preparing and analysing greenhouse gas inventories.
Pacific island countries and territories are well placed
to lead in the protection of nature, with customary land tenure and vast expanses of ocean within their Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs). Establishing protected areas has been used as a key mechanism for countries to conserve their biodiversity around the world and in the Pacific island countries and territories
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 14 p.
Enterococci are used as an indicator for the microbiological quality of marine waters from the standpoint of human health. The same bacterial group is also commonly used as an indicator for safe consumption of shellfish. The safety thresholds differ by the type of use, such as swimming or consumption of seafood from the marine area.
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 4 p.