Vision - protect the health of the people and safeguard our fragile environment through improved, effective and efficient management of wastewater.
Introduction - Global Programme of Action for the the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities identifies priority action on sewage. The Waste Water Framework provides guiding principles and policies for future development and cooperation.
MDG1 - Eradication Poverty and Hunger : Progress on this goal is uncertain. Nauru lacks the necessary data to monitor progress on this goal.
MDG2 - Achieve Universal Primary Education : Progress on this goal is good. Nauru is likely to achieve this.
MDG3 - Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women : Nauru is likely to meet the indicator for gender parity in education, may meet the target of the economic empowerment of women, but is off-track for the target of gender equality in high-level decision-making.
Freshwater is essential for life and for the social, cultural and economic well-being of all peoples. In Nauru, freshwater is a vital and scarce resource supporting the island’s communities and their economic growth. There are widespread community concerns about the availability and quality of freshwater, especially during Nauru’s frequent ENSO-related droughts and due to discharge from household sanitation systems to shallow groundwater. Predicted impacts of climate change add to these concerns.
This report updates Sanitation, hygiene and drinking-water in Pacific island countries: Converting commitment into action (WHO, SOPAC, 2008). This report reviews the status of sanitation, drinking-water and hygiene in Pacific island countries and the challenges faced in meeting international targets. Information sources include the WHO and UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation (JMP) which produces estimates of progress based on data from national censuses and household surveys.
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.
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
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;
8. To make best use of existing resources, facilities and skills;
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
Scientific article - Bulletin BOC 2008 128(4)
Scientific article: Pacific Science 2008 (62 : 4 ) 499-507
Photocopy of an article published in Geo 9 (2): 70-77
Scientific publication: Micronesica 39 (2): 171-295 (2007)
A report published by the Atoll Research Programme, University of the South Pacific 1997 for
Nauru Departments of: Island Development and Industry, Education and Health and Nauru Fisheries and Marine Resources of the Government of the Republic of NAURU
with financial support from UNESCO
via UNESCO Office for the Pacific States, W. Samoa.
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. More recent checklists of Nauru birds (e.g.
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.
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.