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Water resources on coral atolls are from ground water lenses. These lenses are extremely fragile and in many areas very limited in magnitude. Water lenses are also primary longterm water storage facility for many people. The quality of the lens is dependent on rainfall and the width of the land. From this, it is clearly evident that water resources in Kiribati would be threatened by climate change involving more frequent (shorter with severer impacts) or longer duration droughts and coastal erosion

The purpose of this report is to present the findings of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the proposed development of a small boat basin and wharf facilities adjacent to the Main Market in Alotau, Milne Bay Province. Construction of the facilities is a component of the PNG Coastal Fisheries Management and Development Project (CFMDP), a program being implemented by the National Fisheries Authority with loan funding provided to Papua New Guinea by the Asian Development Bank. The overall aim of CFMDP is to contribute to the reduction of poverty in rural areas through increasing, or preventing a further decline in the incomes of coastal communities. This will be done by promoting improved management of resources and by creating sustainable earning and employment opportunities for coastal communities, including through the construction of wharves and jetties and other social infrastructure.

Establishing marine protected areas may sound simple where a site is set up as a reserve for food security and other reasons. It is a long-term ongoing continuous process, which requires corporation from the local resource owners and the assisting organizations. In Papua New Guinea this concept is difficult because of the land tenure system, which gives ownership over the resources by clans or family groups. To develop such things needs very good explanations and clarification from the start during involvement with communities. Awareness on the need for sustainable management is very important for which MPAs and LMMAs are an essential tool to derive sustainable resource management. Thought they may be several reasons why an LMMA may be set up by different groups of communities in different villages. For whatever reasons these communities have, it is important that we assist them in doing so. Biological studies are an important part in site determination. The area may not be necessarily being biologically diverse area, but it may be a sink area during larval dispersal, which would be a source or reservoir for fish and other marine stock replenishment. In such cases it is important that we assist communities in setting up these sites for the purpose of food security. There may be other options that which are larger and complex. Preservation and maintenance of large biodiversity areas is also significant however, this will be observed and maintained by the communities if it is understood and does not clash with their daily sustainable activities such as fishing and collection of trochus, beech-de-mer for cash income. Provided below are some of the thoughts or points to consider when we think of setting up MPAs and LMMAs with the local communities in Milne Bay Province.

The case study reported here is part of an assessment of ‘coastal, small island and coral reef ecosystems’ in Papua New Guinea (PNG), which is being undertaken by a team of scientists coordinated by staff at the Australian National University and the University of Papua New Guinea. The first phase of the assessment (due for completion in 2005) is a nationwide survey of the relationship between coastal communities and coastal ecosystems, with a number of local-level case studies of this relationship (see Figure 1). The second phase (due for completion in 2007) will focus on community-based assessments in one of the case study areas. This second phase is an integral component of the Milne Bay Community-Based Coastal and Marine Conservation Project (MBCP), which is being implemented by the UN Development Programme and executed by Conservation International.

In September 2000, the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) issued a call for proposals to undertake ‘sub-global’ assessments at local, national, and regional scales. The Call for Proposals was circulated amongst a group of social scientists who had previously had some connection to PNG’s Biodiversity Conservation and Resource Management Program – an initiative which had been funded by the Global Environment Facility from 1993 to 1998. This program had sought to evaluate the actual and potential effectiveness of ‘integrated conservation and development projects’ in forested areas of PNG where high biodiversity values are associated with low population densities. One of the key lessons of the program had been that local communities in these areas are far more interested in ‘development’ than in ‘conservation’, because they can reasonably say that they have been conserving their ecosystems for thousands of years, but are now lagging in their access to modern health and education services because of their small and scattered populations (McCallum and Sekhran 1997; van Helden 1998, 2001; Filer 2004b). If the Government cannot afford to provide these services to remote and thinly populated areas, then local people tend to dream of the day when a logging company or mining company will deliver them from their state of backwardness.

Preparation of the Samoa Shadow Report On The Millennium Development Goals was outsourced to the O Le Siosiomaga Society Incorporated (OLSSI) by the Samoa Umbrella Non Governmental Organisation (SUNGO) in a collaboration project with the Office of the UN Resident Coordinator and the Government of Samoa. The Shadow Report itself culminates weeks of advocacy work by Non Governmental Organisations that are members of SUNGO in association with relevant government ministries. These activities included information “spots” on local television, panel discussions over the radio, and two national workshops that included participants from communities throughout the country

This study explores ways in which environmental considerations can be integrated into economic decisions in order to facilitate planning for sustainable development (SD), with particular emphasis on Pacific Island Countries (PICs).1 Ever since the ‘Earth Summit’ was held in June 1992 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, sustainable development has been embraced worldwide as a desirable development goal. At the Earth Summit, world leaders adopted Agenda 21, an agreement consisting of various action programmers covering nearly every aspect of all human activities that impact on the natural environment. Chapter 8 of Agenda 21 deals with integrating environment and development in decision making. Section 8.5, ‘Improving planning and management system’, states.

La zone est extrêmement variée et les enjeux le sont donc également. Toutefois certains d’entre eux sont présents dans presque tous les sites où le programme intervient : Pêches récifales de plus en plus problématiques Travaux sur l’état de santé des récifs, l’effet des pêches, l’effet des AMP, éparpillés et peu coordonnés, Coopération régionale très limitée malgré la similitude des problèmes et probablement des solutions Possibilité de renforcer la couverture des AMP dans le Pacifique Disponibilité de savoir faire (centre de recherche, ONG, entreprises, Etats), de réseaux (LMMA, ONG, GCRMN, etc.) et de moyens (commande politique de la France de coopérer régionalement sur le sujet, ONG internationales prêtes à cofinancer) Espèces phares en danger par endroit (tortues, dugong, etc.) Pressions : - Activités humaines : surtout surpêche ou pêche avec des techniques destructives mais aussi, pollution des eaux (agriculture intensive, problèmes miniers, etc.) - Facteurs climatiques: cyclones