MCT Projects: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Coral Reef Monitoring in the Federated States of Micronesia (2010, $80,000)
According to the 2005 Draft NOAA Freely Associated States Shallow-water Coral Ecosystem Mapping Implementation Plan, the FSM contains an estimated 14,517 km2 of coral reef ecosystems. Given the extent of coral reef resources, monitoring efforts in the country have been limited but steps have been taken in the past several years with generous support form NOAA to work toward developing appropriate monitoring programs in each of the four States. This is an annual grant from NOAA that supports the salary, equipment and technical assistance needs of the coral reef monitoring programs in the FSM states.
Coral Reef Monitoring in Action
Funded Projects
Coral and Fish Monitoring in the State of Kosrae, Kosrae Conservation and Safety Organization (KCSO)
This Project consolidated the efforts of the Marine Division of the State Government and KCSO to monitor and assess changes in coral covers over time as well as health and population of corals and fish in all five established monitoring sites in Kosrae, including two new sites, the Utwe Biosphere Reserve and the proposed Tafunsak MPA. Staff efforts from Marine Resources, KIRMA and community volunteers enabled the project team to successfully complete this year's monitoring project. All collected biological data will soon be presented to policy makers in order to support the pending legislation for recognizing the establishment of the marine protected areas in Kosrae. The number of community members involved in underwater data collection significantly increased reflecting the communities' support of the work being done.
Other Funded Projects
- Coral and Fish Monitoring in the State of Pohnpei, CSP
- Coral and Fish Monitoring in the State of Yap, Yap CAP
- Coral and Fish Monitoring in the State of Chuuk, CCS
