 | The
Republic of the Marshall Islands
Environmental
Protection Authority
ENVIRONMENT |
RMI
The Republic of the Marshal Islands (RMI) is a young
independent nation and was a United Nations Trust Territory administered by the
United States of America (US) until the two nations signed a Compact of Free
Association in 1986. The funding provisions under the original compact
terminated in 2005 and a new compact treaty for a further 15 years has been
entered into with the United
States.
The economic stability of the RMI presently relies heavily
on financial assistance available through the compact, foreign aid from the
international community and revenues derived from international land leases
The majority of economic activities within the nation are
subsistence farming and fishing, agricultural production, commercial offshore
fishing, wholesale, retail and government services.
The Republic of the Marshall
Islands is composed of twenty nine atolls and five low elevated
coral islands located in the north central Pacific Ocean. The majority of the islands are inhabited. The
indigenous population is Micronesian with over half the population residing in
the national capital of Majuro. The remaining population lives either on Ebeye
island on Kwajalein atoll, a large US military installation, or on the
other scattered atolls and islands within the nation. The RMI has an exceptionally high
regionally population birth rate (3.89%) and a recent census count
indicated the population within the nation was 73,630 of which half are younger
than 15 years of age.
Majuro Atoll, the capital atoll of
the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), is one of the most densely
populated places in the World resulting in significant constraints in water
resource management. Majuro is home to 30,000 residents on an area of land only
3.75 miles2, with a population density of approximately 8,000 people
per mile2.
Geography
The
Republic of the Marshall Islands consists of over 2,000 small,
low-lying coral islands and islets clustered in 29 atolls and 5 table
reef islands in the West Central Pacific Ocean, just north of the equator and
west of the international dateline.
The land area of
Marshall Islands is made up of the carbonate remains of coral reef
plants and animals and include sands, gravel, cobbles, boulders,
consolidated limestone debris, and beachrock. The soil is very thin and
of poor quality. Nevertheless, many plants grow on the island and
provide food, materials for houses and transportation, food storage,
and clothing, as well as perfumes, medicines, and many other items. To
learn about all the traditional uses of plants click here, or click
here for agroforestry.
The
islands and atolls lie in two parallel chains known as the east branch
and the west branch (Ratak and Ralik). In true atoll form, they are
narrow and low and encircle large central lagoons. There are more than
1,150 islands in these two chains. See Island Profiles for
cross-section diagrams of the atoll islets.
Most islands have an
average elevation of about 2 meters (6 ft) above the sea level with
only a portion of a few islands higher than 5 meter or 16 ft in height.
On most islands the highest thing is a tall tree, such as
a breadfruit or coconut palm. Storms sometimes wash away complete islands.
The total landmass of the RMI is 181 km2, with a
declared EEZ covering 2.13 million km2. The RMI is comprised of 34
islands (coral atolls and low lying coral islands) and the highest elevation is
8 meters. The atolls extend approximately 1,130 km north to south, from 14°43’N
to 4°34’N and approximately 1,290 km east to west, from 160°48’E to 172°10’E. The nearest neighbors
are Kiribati to the south,
FSM to the west and Hawaii
in the east.
Climate
The annual range of surface water
temperatures is 27–30oC and the tidal range is about 1.5 m. The northeast trade wind belt heavily influences the tropical
climate of the RMI. Trade winds prevail from December through April, periods of
weaker winds and doldrums occur from May to November. Rainfall decreases as
latitudes increase within the archipelagos with annual average rainfall between
60–360cm. The region is affected by storms and typhoons that are more severe as
latitude increases and by periods of drought and excessive rainfall associated
with the “El Nino” (ENSO) phenomena.
Vegetation
Vegetation,
or plant communities, are made up of individual plants of specific
types (species) that are adapted to live together in particular kinds
of environments. The plant life forms of the Marshall Islands can be
grouped into five types of vegetation. These plant communities are
shown below.
- Wujooj-in-lojet: (Saltwater Aquatic Vegetation): Sea grass communities.
- Mar-in-ioon-kappe: (Coastal Vegetation): Groups of plants located along sandy and rocky shores.
- Pat:
(Mangrove or Wetland Vegetation): Vegetation found along coastlines
and inland depressions with salty or brakish water.
- Bulon-mar: (Atoll or Interior Forest): Groups of native trees, shrubs, and herbs in uncultivated or abandoned areas.
- Kein-ikkan:
(Cultivated Vegetation): Cultivated lands, including agroforests of
tree crops and other associated cultivated species, and natural or
excavated swampy depressions where certain "root crops" and associated
weeds grow.
Marine Life