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PacWaste (Pacific Hazardous Waste) is a four year (2013-2017), €7.85 million, project funded by the European Union and implemented by Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) to improve regional hazardous waste management in 14 Pacific island countries plus Timor Leste, in the priority areas of healthcare waste, asbestos, E-waste and integrated atoll solid waste management. Asbestos-containing wastes and materials are a major issue for many Pacific Island countries with a history of use of asbestos-containing building materials in construction. All forms of asbestos are carcinogenic to humans and inhalation of asbestos fibres that have become airborne can cause serious lung disease or cancer.

PacWaste (Pacific Hazardous Waste) is a four year (2013-2017), €7.85 million, project funded by the European Union and implemented by Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) to improve regional hazardous waste management in 14 Pacific island countries plus Timor Leste, in the priority areas of healthcare waste, asbestos, E-waste and integrated atoll solid waste management. Asbestos-containing wastes and materials are a major issue for many Pacific Island countries with a history of use of asbestos-containing building materials in construction. All forms of asbestos are carcinogenic to humans and inhalation of asbestos fibres that have become airborne can cause serious lung disease or cancer.

The Cook Islands comprises 15 islands with a total land area of 237 sq km and a maximum height above sea-level of 652 m. The islands are scattered over an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of 1.8 million sq km; one of the largest EEZ’s in the South Pacific.

This proposal has been prepared by the Ocean and Islands Programme (OIP) within the Pacific Islands Applied Geoscience Commission (SOPAC) in collaboration with the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA). It has been prepared in response to an invitation1 from the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) to assist the Cook Islands in deriving coastal related information to underpin and inform climate change adaptation decisions for coastal areas of Mangaia Island.

Flooding imposes significant costs on households and businesses located in the lower Vaisigano catchment area. SOPAC, under the European Development Fund (EDF) project Reducing Vulnerability of Pacific ACP States, has worked with the Government of Samoa to develop the Samoa Flood Management and Action Plan, which identifies actions for government agencies, the private sector, NGOs and communities responsible for flood and floodplain management that can assist in reducing flood risks in Samoa, particularly in the lower Vaisigano catchment area located in Apia, which is subject to frequent flooding.

The Pacific Islands Applied Geoscience Commission (SOPAC) is currently executing the project Reducing Vulnerability in Pacific ACP States with funding from the European Development Fund (EDF). The project has the objective to reduce Pacific ACP States' vulnerability to natural disasters affecting their coasts through the development of an integrated planning and management system which targets: hazard mitigation and risk assessment; alternative sources of aggregates for construction; and water resources and sanitation. Major activities undertaken through this project with participating countries are: -assessment of aggregate resource supplies to mitigate the impact of unsustainable aggregate mining from the coastline; -development of bathymetric maps, 3D bathymetric and hydrodynamic models spatial databases relating to resource use, exploration and survey, and vulnerability to disasters; and -investigating and raising awareness about coastal processes.

The Government of Niue (GoN) is restructuring its Public Service which is a timely opportunity to integrate water management functions adopting the IWRM approach and principles in lieu of the current sectoral approach adopted over the last 3-4 decades. This will be an opportunity to integrate NGOs, civil society and all stakeholders in the process of water and wastewater management. The strengthening of the national capacity will enhance efficiency to deliver the required services by the public institutions, but also the awareness of the community on the sustainable use of water as a finite natural resource.

These goals are a big challenge to small Pacific Islands Countries with their small land masses, remote locations and small but rapidly growing populations making them vulnerable. Vanuatu shares these and other challenges to sustainable development. In Vanuatu real GDP per capita is still lower than in the 1980s, infrastructure is poorly developed, the population is rapidly growing at 2.6% per year, water resources are declining and in many places contaminated, and household water supplies are inadequate or absent. The country's capital and human resources are stretched and a better forward is needed.

Tuvalu is a Pacific Island country of 9 low-lying coral atolls, humid tropical climate and high rainfall, with limited land area, high mean population densities, and an Environmental Vulnerability Index of 3.6. Tuvalu has a GDP per capita of US$1,681. 30% of GDP is attributable to government wages, with 40% from public enterprises. The private sector contributes approximately 30% of GDP of which half is from external remittances.