GEBCO's aim is to provide the most authoritative publicly-available bathymetry of the world's oceans. It operates under the joint auspices of the International Hydrographic Organization(IHO) and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) (of UNESCO).
GEBCO produces and makes available a range of bathymetric data sets and products. This includes a global bathymetric grid; gazetteer of undersea feature names, a Web Map Service and printable maps of ocean bathymetry.
Minerals are non-renewable resources (at least within human timeframes) but mining them is now apparently a sustainable enterprise, not a one-way street of exploitation. ISA provides an international and transparent forum to regulate and manage all mineral resources related activities and ensure protection of the marine environment in the “Area”, the deep seabed and subsoil beyond national jurisdiction, for the benefit of all humanity.
The Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation completed field research for one of the largest coral reef studies in history: the Global Reef Expedition. The Expedition travelled around the globe surveying some of the most remote reefs on the planet, conducting research to assess coral reef ecosystem health and resiliency.
The Global Reef Expedition visited many countries in the Pacific Ocean to assess the health and resiliency of their coral reef ecosystems. See links below for more information, reports and maps.
The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) is the most comprehensive global database of marine and terrestrial protected areas, updated on a monthly basis, and is one of the key global biodiversity data sets being widely used by scientists, businesses, governments, International secretariats and others to inform planning, policy decisions and management. The WDPA is a joint project between UN Environment and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
This project has developed sub-regional bioregionalisations for the western-south Pacific Ocean, through expert workshops and novel statistical analysis of physical and biological data. This combines approaches CSIRO developed in Australia, used in the Bay of Bengal (in collaboration with BOBLME) with similar approaches that have been used throughout the Indian and Pacific Oceans to derive a single combined bioregionalisation.
Comprehensive assessment of the risks and impacts of seabed mining on marine ecosystems by Fauna and Flora International.
This guide helps communities understand the pressures people may place on beaches and suggests how natural processes or ecosystem based approaches can be used can encourage sand to come back and stay put.
A recently published paper, titled “Coastal proximity of populations in 22 Pacific Island Countries and Territories” details the methodology used to undertake the analysis and presents the findings. **Purpose** * This analysis aims to estimate populations settled in coastal areas in 22 Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTS) using the data currently available. In addition to the coastal population estimates, the study compares the results obtained from the use of national population datasets (census) with those derived from the use of global population grids.
The Convention for the Protection of Natural Resources and Environment of the South Pacific Region (1986) is also known as the SPREP Convention or Noumea Convention. The Convention has two Protocols that also entered into force in 1990. This Convention is the major multilateral umbrella agreement in the Pacific Region for the protection of natural resources and the environment.
DEFINITION : Trend in consumption of ozone depleting substances (ODS)
PURPOSE : Tracks countries progress to phasing out ODS. Ozone depleting substances destroy the earth’s ozone which protects the earth from UV radiation
DESIRED OUTCOME : Negative trend in ODS consumption
DEFINITION : Trend in percentage production of energy from renewable sources
PURPOSE : Energy generation is a major source of GHG emissions. Pacific island countries also have limited capacity for oil and gas storage and are therefore highly vulnerable to fluctuations in fossil fuel price and availability
DESIRED OUTCOME : Positive trend in energy production from renewable sources
DEFINITION : Annual per capita generation of municipal solid waste
PURPOSE : Accurate measurement of per capita waste generation for better waste management
DESIRED OUTCOME : Stabilisation and subsequent negative trend in household waste generated
DEFINITION : Quantity of generated hazardous wastes processed/treated (including export)
PURPOSE : Treatment and safe storage of hazardous waste mitigates the risk to humans and nature. Hazardous materials can have direct and indirect, chronic or acute impacts
DESIRED OUTCOME : Full treatment/processing of all hazardous waste generated
DEFINITION : % of households connected to central sewerage system
PURPOSE : Tracks progress in managing sewage in a way that minimises the risk of water contamination. Untreated sewage and leaking septic systems are a major source of ground and surface water contamination
DESIRED OUTCOME : Positive trend in % of households connected to central sewerage system
In this report, a set of recommendations is provided for each indicator to support the next best steps for management action that will advance progress towards the target outcome and support Pacific people and biodiversity.
Metdadata file containing the global distribution of hydrothermal vent fields in WGS84 coordinate system.
Metadata for the Global Mangrove Watch dataset.
Document giving detailed metadata for the Global Distribution of Seamounts and Knolls dataset.