Coupled climate and sea-level changes deduced from Huon Peninsula coral terraces of the last ice age
Huon Peninsula, Papua New Guinea, is a tectonically unstable, uplifting shoreline ringed by emergent coral terraces. The terraces were formed during episodes of rapid sea-level rise when corals constructed large, discrete coral platforms that were subsequently uplifted. Uranium series ages of four prominent Huon Peninsula last glacial (OIS 3) coral terraces coincide with the timing of major North Atlantic climate reversals at intervals of 6000^7000 yr between 30 000 yr and 60 000 yr ago.
Peatlands are common in montane areas above 1,000 m in New Guinea and become extensive above 3,000 m in the subalpine zone. In the montane mires, swamp forests and grass or sedge fens predominate on swampy alley bottoms. These mires may be 4–8 m in depth and up to 30,000 years in age. In Papua New Guinea (PNG) there is about 2,250 km2 of montane peatland, and Papua Province (the Indonesian western half of the island) probably contains much more. Above 3,000 m, peat soils form under blanket bog on slopes as well as on valley floors.
Two of the unanswered questions of Papua New Guinea prehistory are: (1) whether agriculture was present
in the mid-Holocene not only in the highlands but also in the lowlands and Bismarck Archipelago and (2)whether the presence of agriculture might have been influenced by interaction between these regions. This paper addresses these questions through an analysis of prehistoric stone mortars, pestles and figures, which hold information on both style and function.
This chapter provides a brief description of Papua New Guinea, its past and present climate as well as projections for the future. The climate observation network and the availability of atmospheric and oceanic data records are outlined. The annual mean climate, seasonal cycles and the influences of large-scale climate features such as the West Pacific Monsoon and patterns of climate variability (e.g. the El Niño‑Southern Oscillation) are analysed and discussed.
The project Mangrove Rehabilitation for Sustainably Managed Healthy Forests (MARSH) commenced on October 1st 2012 and ended on September 30th 2015. The project was initially supposed to be implemented over five years in Papua New Guinea (PNG), Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. In the first quarter of Year 3 the donor decided to change the focus from community based to national interventions for greater impact and to limit the rest of the activities of the third year to PNG alone. The project life span was thus shortened and there was nothing started in Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.
This is an economic evaluation of the compensation to which Papua New Guinea’s customary landholders -
wrongly dispossessed through Special Agricultural Business Leases (SABL) - might be entitled if they successfully sued the government. The evaluation involves the calculation of commercial loss but also, and probably more importantly, economic equivalent value loss. The framework identifies the relevant heads of value (not just priced transactions) and demonstrates appropriate methods for valuation. It does not pretend to be a price calculator but rather a tool for advocacy.
Large numbers of birds, including more than 68 000 wild-caught and reportedly captive-bred CITES-listed individuals, were imported from the Solomon Islands in the 2000s. The vast majority were imported by Malaysia and Singapore and often re-exported, particularly in the case of Singapore. In terms of species composition, there were a few species native to the Solomon Islands, however the majority (77%) were non-native species from Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. 13 736 individuals of these non-native species were exported as “captive-bred”.
Escalating anthropogenic impacts on tropical biodiversity have increased the vulnerability of endemic species. Selective harvesting of species is one of the major threats to birds and mammal species in the tropics. Many indigenous cultures, however, have long established cultural associations with certain species. The hunting and trade of species have been mainly for subsistence and socio-cultural ties within their communities.
This technical note is intended to support climate risk assessment (CRA) experts, in particular, those undertaking the early stages of project development. Time and resources could be saved by attaching this document to terms of reference issued to CRA consultants. However, there is a limit to which globally accessible, open source
data can meet the detailed information needs of local adaptation projects. This note supplements rather than replaces efforts to gather relevant climate information from government agencies and counterparts, especially during the project concept phase.
In Papua New Guinea (PNG), many coastal communities depend on mangroves for their livelihood. Mangrove trees have been harvested over generations for construction materials and firewood. Mangroves provide a habitat for fish, crabs, shellfish, birds, and reptiles. Mangroves also provide a natural defense against storm surges, coastal erosion, and coastal flooding. An analysis conducted by government’s limate Change and Development Authority (CCDA) has highlighted community-based mangrove planting as a cost-effective measure for coastal communities.
Papua New Guinea is committed to the establishment of a network of marine protected areas
to fulfil national and international commitments. In order to assist this, the conservation
priority areas analysis identified a range of areas of high conservation interest in the PNG
marine environment, based on the principles of comprehensiveness, adequacy,
representation and resilience (CARR). The analysis collated available national-scale data on
biodiversity features and biodiversity surrogates.
The Project will expand the cargo handling capacity of Lae port, improve the livelihood of those directly or indirectly affected, and reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS in Lae. It will finance (i) the construction of a tidal basin (700 x 400 meters), a multipurpose berth, and terminal works including all buildings, storage areas, roads, drainage, water, electricity, and sewerage services, with built-in flexibility to increase the capacity further in a cost-effective manner; (ii) resettlement and livelihood improvement; (iii) consulting services in project
Mu¨ llerian mimicry rings are remarkable symbiotic species assemblages in which multiple members share a similar phenotype. However, their evolutionary origin remains poorly understood. Although gene flow among species has been shown to generate mimetic patterns in some Heliconius butterflies,mimicry is believed to be due to true convergencewithout gene flowinmany other cases.We investigated the evolutionary history of multiple members of a passerinemimicry ring in the poisonous Papuan pitohuis.
This report presents a world-wide inventory of operating mines that dispose of mine tailings to marine and riverine waters and a review of what is known about the environmental impacts of those discharges. The report was commissioned by the International Maritime Organization, specifically the IMO Secretariat for the London Convention 1972 and the 1996 London Protocol, in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)-Global Programme of Action.
DEC
Species
Plant diversity
Biological survey