Status of Coral Reefs of the World 2000

Status of Coral Reefs in the Southwest Pacific
Stress & Fiji Nauru New Samoa Solomon Tuvalu Vanuatu
(score) Caledonia Islands
Coral Harvesting/ (7) 2 0 2 1 2 0 0
Fish Trade
Oil Spills (8) 3 0 2 1 2 0 0
Destructive fishing (9) 4 0 0 4 0 0 1
Acanthaster (11) 4 0 2 1 2 0 2
Coral Bleaching (11) 5 0 2 2 1 0 1
Tourism (12) 4 0 3 2 2 0 1
Urbanisation (12) 3 1 2 2 2 0 2
Extraction (14) 3 0 0 3 2 4 2
Pollution (16) 4 1 4 2 2 0 3
Climate change (18) 4 1 1 3 2 5 2
Coastal Alteration (17) 4 1 2 2 1 3 4
Cyclones (18) 5 0 1 5 0 3 4
Overfishing (19) 4 2 2 4 3 3 1
Sedimentation (19) 5 0 4 3 3 0 4
TOTAL IMPACT 54 6 27 35 24 18 27
RATINGS
National experts rated causes of coral reef degradation as follows: 0 = no threat; 1 = low threat; 2 =
localised low threat; 3 = average threat; 4 = localised major threat; 5 = general major threat.
There is a serious lack of marine biologists and taxonomists among Pacific Island nationals.
Therefore, most biodiversity studies have been carried out by outside experts, and the
specimens deposited in collections all over the world. USP has established a Marine
Biodiversity Collection in Suva, Fiji with important collections of corals, invertebrates, fishes
and benthic algae. This could become the nucleus of an important regional biodiversity
collection; however, much work remains to be done to document coral reef biodiversity of
the region. This is essential as baseline information upon which degradation can be
monitored and reversed. Such potential taxonomic information limits threaten the growth
of bioprospecting as a potentially important new activity in the region, especially in Fiji.
Specimens are collected, identified, and extracted to seek potentially useful compounds,
such as beqamide, an anti-cancer substance found in Fiji sponges. While the
bioprospecting success rate is extremely low, there are parallel challenges on intellectual
property rights that must be addressed.
CAUSES OF CORAL REEF DEGRADATION
Most of the reefs in the area have been impacted by the same suite of natural and
anthropogenic impacts but there is insufficient monitoring information to prepare detailed
‘state of reefs’ reports. Reef degradation is highest in Samoa, Fiji and Vanuatu with overfishing
of nearshore resources being a common problem throughout. Some of the most
important target species, like giant clams, are rare or extinct throughout the region. Coastal
development and habitat destruction, like clearing of mangroves, is prevalent, and
pollution is serious near urban areas where there is a lack of sewage treatment and proper
waste disposal. Sand and rock mining causes reef degradation in atolls, and there is
significant sedimentation and eutrophication in the larger countries (Fiji, New Caledonia and
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