Tiy Chung, communication advisor of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) and Pacific Hydrological Cycle Observing System (HYCOS), said the meeting will commence by opening remarks of President Johnson Toribiong, along with the Ministry of National Resources, representatives from European Union and United Nations.
The week-long seminar will focus on how to improve and protect water resources and waste water management across the Pacific and to discuss activities undertaken in their respective counties over the past year.
Chung said Pacific Island countries have uniquely fragile water resources due to their small size, lack of natural storage, competing land use and vulnerability to natural hazards. In many Pacific countries, even small variations in water supply can have a significant impact on health, quality of life and economic development. Increased climate variability is adding further pressure to these limited water resources.
He said participants are trying to improve water resource and waste water management through three projects executed by the Pacific Islands Applied Geo-science Commission (SOPAC) . These are the Global Demonstration (GD) projects, Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) planning and Pacific Hydrological Cycle Observing System (HYCOS)
The GD projects is a Global Environment Facility (GEF)funding a regional and nationally based Project to build the capacity of Pacific Island countries to manage water resources and to show the practical benefits of integrated sustainable water resources and wastewater management.
Fourteen demonstration projects are currently running in 13 Pacific countries. These projects fall under four categories in the following countries:Watershed management projects: Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa and Vanuatu; Wastewater management and sanitation projects: Republic of the Marshall Islands, Nauru and Tuvalu; Water resources assessment and protection projects: Cook Islands, Fiji and Niue.; Water efficiency and safety projects: Solomon Islands and Tonga.
