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Pacific neighbors: the islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia

A project team composed of staff of the various division of MNREM was formed as a Technical Team to assist the Project Manager in the implementation of project activities. The Project Team and Manager were able to compile a Summary Report of Existing Information on Lake Lanoto’o, organized and started the initial detail surveys on the site’s flora and fauna ecologies; and prepare a list of stakeholders for engagement in the formulation of an effective management/development plan for the site.

Massive coral bleaching episodes have impacted the function of the reefs and increased rates of mortality. Coral reefs support over one million plant and animal species and their economic value is pro¬jected to more than US $ 30 billion annually. Extreme climatic con¬ditions, however, are most likely to increase in the future with cur¬rent climate scenarios. Projected increases in carbon dioxide and temperature exceed the conditions under which coral reefs have flourished over the past 500 000 years. Coral reefs are crucial bio¬diversity hotspots and support both coastal fisheries and tourism in many regions. Coral reefs, however, are in decline in many regions as a result of numerous pressures, including, but not limited to, extreme climate events, unsustainable fishing practices, diseases, sedimentation, and discharge of untreated sewage. Increasing re¬silience and securing rapid recovery of coral reefs will be essen¬tial for the ability of these ecosystems to support coastal fisheries and coastal livelihoods and cultures in the future. However, this resilience and recovery may be seriously impounded by unsustain¬able coastal infrastructure development and marine pollution from land-based sources. At the current rate of growth, coastal develop¬ment may impact up to 90% of the tropical and temperate coast¬lines by 2032 if development continues unchecked. While progress has been made to reduce the discharge and impacts of oil spills and persistent organic pollutants (POP’s), there now needs to be a focus on the largest current threats to the coastal marine environment : untreated sewage and piecemeal coastal development.

Spearfishing is growing in importance in the Pacific Islands. While its management has featured as a topic in some regional-level meetings, detailed information on spearfishing is surprisingly scarce. In early 1994, the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) proposed to consolidate information on spearfishing in the Pacific Islands. The original intent was to undertake a review of the available literature through a desk study. With the realization that many issues related to spearfishing are undocumented, the strategy was changed to include some field work. These activities were supported by the FAO FishCode Programme. This report reviews spearfishing in selected Pacific Island countries and identifies the important species caught by and the major problems associated with the method. It further considers possible interventions to mitigate these problems and the assistance that is likely to be required by Pacific Island countries in the management of their spearfisheries. Visits to five countries undertaken during the study show that there are very large differences between countries, and between locations within a single country, in the level and type of spearfishing activities. General conclusions on the management of spearfishing include: (a) for several reasons, a complete ban of scuba spearfishing coupled with effective enforcement is the single most important spearfishing management measure; (b) spearfishing effort must be managed along with other forms of inshore fishing, since attempts at restricting spearfishing alone are not likely to be successful as fishing effort may b easily transferred to other small-scale fishing methods; and (c) in the management of inshore fisheries, including that of spearfishing, interventions must be formulated, initiated and enforced at the local level, preferably with some assistance from the national level.

Samoa acceded the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) on 20 August 1998 two years since the Convention entered into force on 26 December 1996. As an affected country party to the Convention, Samoa has in 2000 prepared and submitted a Capacity Development Initiative Report which contains a preliminary assessment as to land degradation in Samoa and its capacity level and needs. The First National Report was produced in 2003 followed by the Third National Report in 2006. Since 2004 Samoa began the process for the formulation of its National Action Plan (NAP). The NAP commands a bottoms-up, participatory process at all levels of society, to be developed as the conceptual legal-policy framework for implementing the Convention at the national and local levels. The NAP is the core instrument to address the problem of land degradation in Samoa, in accordance with provisions and spirit of the Convention.

The biggest challenge to capacity building in Niue is its small population coupled with the high turnover of the limited number of technical officers in the public service. Line agencies such as Department of Environment, Department of Agriculture, Forests and Fisheries and others rely on one or two individuals to carry out their environmental responsibilities and although an Environment Council is stipulated under the Environment Bill to help coordinate the environmental activities of relevant agencies, such Council has not been established. There has been a number of capacity building related initiatives in Niue in the past ten years. Most of these initiatives were carried out as components of specific donor-funded projects and programmes, and as can be expected, capacity development emphasis was often placed on capacity and skills required to achieve specific project outputs and outcomes. The NCSA stocktake was carried out on 17 to 24 January 2006 after it was deferred several times for various reasons. The stocktake is the first of several activities to be carried out over the next 18 months to implement the Niue NCSA. The Department of Environment is the lead agency although it is expected that project implementation will involve a number of key agencies of government and other groups.

The Cook Islands energy sector relies 100 % on imported fuels for transport, electricity generation and household use. In the year 2005 the world has experienced a period of price volatility for petroleum that saw petroleum prices increase from US$ 40/bbl in mid March to US$ 70bbl in September. At present wind energy is considered to be the most attractive renewable energy source for grid connected electricity supply in the Cook Islands. For the Rarotonga system, wind energy penetration up to a maximum of 30% seems to be manageable without jeopardizing system stability and security. The significant benefits of such a project include the displacement of diesel power generation and consequent fuel and other operating savings, which are quantifiable, and the diversification of energy sources for power generation in Rarotonga and increased security of supply from a reduced dependence on foreign supplies of fuel.