At the request of the Government of Nauru, the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) through the European Union-supported Global Climate Change Alliance: Pacific Small Island States project, together with the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) through the United Nations Development Programme – Global Environment Facility funded Pacific Adaptation to Climate Change project commissioned NRW Specialists Pty Ltd (Australia) in association with NRW Macallan (Fiji) Ltd to prepare the Nauru Water Supply and Sanitation Master Plan covering the planning horizon of
Nauruans’ experiences of a resource curse from mining phosphate stands, as a case study of retarded development. Nauru was much adulated in the press in the early 20th century as an example of a small island that became wealthy through mining. The high grade phosphate that covered four fifths of the island was considered by outsiders as a very lucrative resource that had to be mined, particularly as fertilizer to enhance the pastures of Australia and New Zealand.
Nauru’s water resources are limited and under stress with an expected increase in prolonged dry periods due to climate variability. There are no fresh surface water sources and Nauru relies mostly on rainwater for its potable water needs. Desalinated water is currently supplying about 20% of the population water requirements but during period of prolonged drought, where rainwater is limited, the communities reliance on desalinated water can increase to more than 90%.
Pacific island countries are no different from other countries in that freshwater is essential to human
existence and a major requirement in agricultural and other commercial production systems. The economic
and social well being of Pacific island countries are dependent upon the quality and quantity of their water.
However, the ability of the island countries to effectively manage the water sector is unique to Small Island
Developing States (SIDS), whereby constrained by their small size, fragility, natural vulnerability, and
This report is the result of a visit to Nauru of 21 days from 14th November to 5th Dec 2003.
In May 2003 Buada Community had been chosen as the International Waters Programme Pilot Project,
to implement a community-based waste reduction pilot project. There were two main areas of interest
for this visit: to identify the baseline situation regarding waste in Buada Community, and to determine
the current situation on Nauru with regard to the legal and institutional responsibility for dealing with
This document is a record of an in-country technical survey mission to Nauru, completed from 13th February to 23rd February 2007 by the following SOPAC staff:
• Mr Stephen Booth (EDF8/9 Senior Advisor – Water);
• Ms Elizabeth Lomani-Whippy (EDF8/9 Project Intern);
• Ms Arieta Navatoga-Sokota (SOPAC Project Officer – Water); and
• Ms Vilisi Tokalauvere (EDF8 Fiji Country Intern).
The objectives of the Nauru Water Plan are:
1. To provide safe potable water to the residents of Nauru;
2. To ensure that the water supply is sustainable in perpetuity;
3. To provide an adequate amount of water for the needs of all residents;
4. To ensure a reliable water supply even during prolonged droughts;
5. To safeguard the environment and the ecology of Nauru;
6. To ensure potable water is affordable by all residents;
7. To have efficient distribution of water;
Nauru island, near the equator in the central Pacific Ocean, has been mined for phosphate since 1907 and over 80 million tonnes of phosphate have been exported to Australia, NZ, Britain and other overseas markets. Although superphosphate, prepared from the Nauru rock phosphate has considerable value as an agricultural nutrient, it also contains high concentrations of the toxic metal cadmium. Nauru phosphate deposits have a cadmium content between 100 and 1,000 times the average lithosphere concentration.
Five species of dragonflies and one damselfly are recorded from Nauru for the first time, and constitute the first records of Odonata from this island republic identified to species. None is endemic; all are widespread in the Indo-Australian region and the islands of the west central Pacific Ocean. Diplacodes bipunctata (Brauer) is the most common species throughout the island, but Ischnura aurora (Brauer) appears locally abundant, possibly seasonally. Breeding is confirmed for all species.
Four species of butterflies are reported from Nauru for the first time and as first records of butterflies from the island republic. None is endemic. Three of the four species are widespread in Oceania: Badamia exclamationis (Fabricius), Danaeus plexippus (Linnaeus), and Hypolimnas bolina (Linnaeus). The other, Petrelaea tombugensis (Rober), belongs to a genus that also is widespread in the Pacific. The small number of widespread species found on Nauru
The avifauna of Nauru has received scant attention over the past nearly 130 years since Otto Finsch reported the five species he observed on 24 July 1880 (Finsch 1881). Pearson (1962) recorded at least 16 species over a period of six months in 1961, and he stated that Finsch’s work comprised ‘the only previous ornithological literature available concerning Nauru’. King (1967) and Garnett (1984) merged seabird records from Nauru with those from the Gilbert Islands (Kiribati), without stating which may have pertained only to the Gilberts.
Eleven species of reptiles are reported from Nauru in the first systematic treatment of the herpetofauna. Four of the species are marine; the seven others include six lizards (four geckos, two skinks) and one snake. Gehyra mutilata
(Wiegman), G. oceanica (Lesson), Pelamis platura (Linnaeus), and Ramphotyphlops braminus (Daudin) are recorded on Nauru for the first time. With the exception of Emoia arnoensis Brown & Marshall, which is endemic to eastern
The sport called Ibbon Itsi is a competition between tow groups of men who, tow or three times a year, spend about a week attempting to catch as many frigate-birds as possible. To enable this competition to take place, tame birds have to be sustained throughout the year.
From time immemorial it has been the ambition of every Nauruan youth to excel in the snaring of the 'iti', or frigate bird. In the old, far-off days, before the coming of the white man, prowess in capture of the iti was one of the many strenuous tests which marked the transition from youth into manhood, and failure to acquit oneself creditably meant disgrace.
The ant fauna of Micronesia as determined from museum specimens and from collections mainly on Pohnpei Island is presented here. Around 111 species are found in the region, many of which appear to be island endemics. Palau, Pohnpei, and the Marianas rank the highest in species diversity, with Pohnpei and Palau being especially
This compilation is the result of a joint effort between the various Government of Nauru departments and sectors including nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) such as Atoll Research Programme and USP Extension Services.
Eleven species of reptiles are reported from Nauru in the first systematic treatment of the herpetofauna. Four of the species are marine; the seven others include six lizards (four geckos, two skinks) and one snake. Gehyra mutilata
(Wiegman), G. oceanica (Lesson), Pelamis platura (Linnaeus), and Ramphotyphlops braminus (Daudin) are recorded on Nauru for the first time. With the exception of Emoia arnoensis Brown & Marshall, which is endemic to eastern
Graph of water temperatures from 1993 to 2021 downloaded from the BOM website
Sealevel data from 1993 to 2021 downloaded from BOM. Graph