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Invasive species are a major global threat to biodiversity and Pacific Islands are particularly vulnerable due to their isolation and relatively recent human occupation. Their native species often cannot cope with predation or competition from new arrivals. Niue already suffers from the impact of invasive species that have arrive in the country. However there are many more devastating species that are not present but found in other countries of the region and every effort needs to be made to prevent their arrivals.

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.

Implementation framework 2010-2014 for the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2007 (NBSAP) : Fiji Islands

This report was compiled in collaboration with all necessary stakeholders from key Government sectors and NGO’s.

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.

In the promotion of environmentally sound and sustainable development, it is indispensable to establish the necessary legal and institutional arrangements such that environmental factors are considered at the early stages of project planning. Environmental assessment is an important technique for ensuring that the likely impacts on the environment of proposed developments are fully understood and taken into account before such developments is allowed to proceed.

The National Capacity Self Assessment for Global Environment Management (NCSA) is a tool to help the government of Tonga to assess its current level of capacity to meet its obligations under the UNCBD, UNFCCC and UNCCD. Implicit in this is the notion that, with a little guidance and the right tools, the agencies and organizations with direct responsibilities for implementing Tonga’s obligations under the conventions will be capable of self reflecting and identifying their own strengths and weaknesses to meet these obligations. This then becomes the starting point for intentional organizational improvement initiatives which should, in turn, allow adequate planning for future growth and development that capitalizes on current strengths while addressing current limitations. The National Capacity Self-Assessment Project is a Global Environment Facility (GEF) initiative supported by the UNDP Country Office in Fiji and implemented by the Department of Environment. The project document was prepared and endorsed by the Government of Tonga in November 2004. The NCSA was initiated in September 2005 with the recruitment of the NCSA project management unit staff.

It is our intention to design a strategy that will move Fiji from an over-reliance on dumping wastes and littering to a position where it will be a model for sustainable waste management. Waste cannot be reduced without a system that manages waste from the point of generation through to disposal. Up till now, waste policies provided an end of pipe solution by focusing mainly on disposal rather than prevention. There is a need to develop a new vision for minimizing waste and managing it better.