Ontong Java Atoll, Solomon Islands!

One of the largest atoll islands lies in Solomon Islands, which comprise a set of beautiful islands at the north east of Australia. The islands occupy small area between the South Pacific and the North Pacific Ocean.

Solomon-Islands were part of the British colonies in the Pacific Ocean and they are now independent with a parliamentary government since 7 July 1978, in the form of islands state in the Commonwealth. Honiara is the capital city of the islands state.

The relatively nearest islands to Solomon Islands are Papua New Guinea, Australia, where Kakadu and Perth lie; New Zealand, where Bay of Plenty and Franz Josef Glacier lie; Indonesia, where Borneo and Komodo Island lies; Tonga, where Vavau lies; Tuvalu, Fiji, Samoa and other small islands.

The following article is about the Ontong Java Atoll in Solomon Islands. If you have more information about it or about the surrounding areas I have mentioned here, please use the form to write it. I have some useful gifts for you just for doing this. Thanks.

People have lived as fishermen and coconut gatherers since at least two thousands years, on the isolated tropical Ontong Java Atoll in the far north part of Solomon Islands in southwestern Pacific Ocean.

The atoll is one of the world's largest atolls and it consists of 122 small coral islands, encircling a lagoon of more than 2,500 square kilometres. Most of the atoll rises less than two meters above sea level.

Only two of the largest islands are permanently inhabited with a total population of 2,000 people. However, the entire Solomon Islands stretch to cover 28,900 square kilometres of the area and 498,200 people inhabit them.

The islanders in Solomon Islands depend on coconut, which grows in most of the islands, and fishing for their living. On the main larger island, they also cultivate the tropical root crop of taro, which is an important part of the islanders' diet.

The taro grows in freshwater swamps. These freshwater swamps are artificially deep and covered with compost.

The coral reefs and the lagoons are home to a wide range of marine animals. Therefore, they have a rich variety of seafood. The residents catch sea cucumber, which they sell at the market in Hong Kong. They also swap the dried meat of coconuts, which they call copra for goods and cash.

In less than a hundred years, the situation on the atoll may change completely because of climate change. The corals, whose broken parts are the bedrock of the entire atoll, act as coastal protection. But with a rise in temperature and an increased acidification of seawater there is a danger and all these events could destroy the corals.

In addition, any rise in the sea level will also cause an intrusion of salt water into agricultural land and fresh water sources and flood the low-lying parts of the islands.

All this will have a devastating impact on the life on the Ontong Java Atoll. It will affect both humans and seabirds that nest on the islands and many species that live among the corals.

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