Search the SPREP Catalogue

Fiji has been identified as one of the countries most vulnerable to declines in reef condition due to the high dependence on reef systems for key industries (tourism and fishing). Much of the waters of Fiji and adjacent international waters include highly prospective deposits of copper, gold, zinc, silver and chemical elements. Extracting these resources is only now becoming feasible due to technological advances in Deep Seabed Mining (DSM). A large area of Fiji’s waters is now subject to DSM exploration licenses. But very little is known of the risks DSM creates for key marine ecosystem services and the industries that reply on those services for both income and employment (e.g. tourism and fishing). This desktop study seeks to identify, scope and broadly estimate the potential costs to Fiji associated with DSM. Only once those costs are understood, can Fiji confidently make robust policy decision about the amount, location and management of DSM within its waters.

Until now, there has been only one source of data on global fishery catches: information reported to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations by member countries. An extensive, ten-year study conducted by The Sea Around Us Project of the University of British Columbia shows that this catch data is fundamentally misleading. Many countries underreport the amount of fish caught (some by as much as 500%), while others such as China significantly overreport their catches. The Global Atlas of Marine Fisheries is the first and only book to provide accurate, country-by-country fishery data. This groundbreaking information has been gathered from independent sources by the world’s foremost fisheries experts, and edited by Daniel Pauly and Dirk Zeller of the Sea Around Us Project. The Atlas includes one-page reports on 273 countries and their territories, plus fourteen topical global chapters. National reports describe the state of the country's fishery, by sector; the policies, politics, and social factors affecting it; and potential solutions. The global chapters address cross-cutting issues, from the economics of fisheries to the impacts of mariculture. Extensive maps and graphics offer attractive and accessible visual representations. While it has long been clear that the world’s oceans are in trouble, the lack of reliable data on fishery catches has obscured the scale, and nuances, of the crisis. The atlas shows that, globally, catches have declined rapidly since the 1980s, signaling an even more critical situation than previously understood. The Global Atlas of Marine Fisheries provides a comprehensive picture of our current predicament and steps that can be taken to ease it. For researchers, students, fishery managers, professionals in the fishing industry, and all others concerned with the status of the world’s fisheries, the Atlas will be an indispensable resource.

Information on the Coastal and Marine Resources Management in the Coral Triangle of the Pacific

Several mechanisms have been used to acquire land for tropical-forest reservations. Legislative designation of National Parks on government-owned land, condemnation of private land, debt swaps, and outright purchase of private lands for reserves may, however, be inappropriate strategies in areas occupied by extant indigenous populations. In areas where indigenous peoples have a strong conservation ethic, the creation of reserves under partial or complete aboriginal control represents a viable alternative to the more traditional forms of land acquisition. Recently, three significant rain-forest reserves were created in Samoa using alternative strategies. 1) A US National Park in American Samoa involves the long-term lease of customary lands with local chiefs forming an advisory board on park policy; 2) in the Falealupo peninsula in Western Samoa, a covenant was established between the villagers who pledged to preserve and manage a large rain forest and private donors who provided funds for the construction of an elementary school; 3) in Tafua, Western Samoa, a covenant was established between the village, which vowed to preserve and manage the forest, and the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (SNF) which provided funds for an elementary school and public works. These reserves suggest that under indigenous control robust solutions to the problems of rain-forest preservation can be achieved.

River flooding, especially flash floods, are a serious and frequent problem in Samoa and in particular Apia where steep catchments with rapid flood onsets are subject to frequent heavy rainfall events. The April 2001 flood event inundated large parts of Apia urban area within a negligible time lag from the beginning of the intense rainfall. The surrounding watersheds responded to the flash floods with combined overbank/overland flow. Approximately 5,000 local residents were directly affected by the flood and resulting damages were estimated in excess of WST$ 11 million. Such events are not rare for Samoa.

Rarotonga the capital of the Cook Islands is rapidly developing with tourism as one of the major income earners for the country. The health of the lagoon and reef is important for the welfare of the people. It is vital that the health of the lagoon is monitored and action is taken to protect the health of the lagoon, coral reef and the people that use it. Human activities contribute to the decreased water quality, for example farming of pigs, deforestation and farming crops close to streams. The water quality monitoring programme gives an evaluation of the state of the streams and lagoon, and can be used to identify issues that need to be addressed.

This report documents the activities, outputs, outcomes and recommendations resulting from the May - June 2007 input of Mrs Angeline Tuara.