Abstract:
The vast majority of the coasts throughout the Republic of the Marshall Islands are in pristine natural condition. However, as foreign aid has centralized the economy and rapidly increasing populations in several urban centers with little environmental oversight, the urban coasts and environment have become severely degraded, increasing population vulnerability, decreasing economic potential for sustainable development and increasing human health hazards. For this reason, this National Coastal Management Framework, called for under the Coast Conservation Act of 1988 (CCA), has been produced by the RMI EPA to review current coastal conditions and activities including dredging and sand mining, seawall construction, reclamation and landfills, coral reef degradation, solid waste management, human and animal waste management, shipwrecks and natural disasters among others as well as recommend proposals for action and policy for the RMI in 2008 to achieve sustainable future development and remedy past development in and around the coastal zone of the RMI. Â It is a living document to be revised frequently, and officially reviewed in three years time.