Federated States of Micronesia

1. Federated States of Micronesia Simon Ellis UHH PACRC MERIP

2. Background • Number of islands: over 600 • Number of States: 4 (Kosrae, Pohnpei, Chuuk, Yap) • Population: 107,000 • Geography: High islands and coral atolls • Land mass: 700 km2 • EEZ: 2.9 million km2 • Language: English and indigenous languages • Political status: Independent nation since 1986, freely associated with the U.S.

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8. Major Environmental Issues • Sedimentation – land clearing, invasives • Over fishing – COTS, habitat degradation • Climate change – coastal erosion • Coastal development – land clearing, dredging

12. Data Collection • Coral monitoring • Spawning aggregation monitoring • MPA monitoring • Sedimentation monitoring • Weather stations (NOAA) • Coastal erosion surveys • Forest monitoring

13. Research Needs • Coastal erosion and sea-level rise are critical issues • Water pollution both for the environment and human health. • Erosion, sedimentation and other impacts arising from economic development and urbanization . • Destructive methods, poor practices and overharvesting are affecting both marine and terrestrial environments • Dredging and mining is impacting many islands, but particularly the most inhabited islands. • Landfills and dumping are issues as waste from imported Western products grows. • Sustainable forms of economic development such as eco-tourism, natural products, aquaculture and sustainable agriculture needs more research, education and extension effort. • Control of invasive species is required. • Promote and facilitate cooperation to effectively implement the NBSAP and Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plans for Chuuk, Yap, Kosrae and Pohnpei. • Promote and facilitate technical and scientific cooperation between FSM and other countries, organizations and institutions.