Despite Ailuk Atoll being an inhabited location, its reef system is in immaculate condition, according to the National Geographic Pristine Seas visit there earlier this month, the first stop on a three-month survey of numerous northern islands, both inhabited and unpopulated. “Ailuk is not an untouched atoll,” said Marshall Islands expedition science lead, Juan Mayorga. […]
GIFF JOHNSON Kramer Dock took front and center for a tour by the visiting Taiwan business delegation last week. The tour of fishery operations at the dock following briefings by the Marshall Islands Marine Resources Authority and Pacific International Inc. about the readiness of the fisheries sector for partnerships with interested investors. “At MIMRA, we […]
GIFF JOIHNSON Two new Japan International Cooperation Agency volunteers who arrived earlier this month in Majuro bring to 17 the total number of Japanese volunteers working on Majuro and Ebeye. Sachiko Kutsuma, a Japanese language teacher, and Yasuhiro Fukuda, a food processing and manufacturing specialist, are mid-way through their orientation program before heading to their […]
GIFF JOHNSON Every December, fisheries officials from the Marshall Islands and Forum Fisheries Agency countries troop off to the annual Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission — often for battles with some distant water fishing nations over policies that impact tuna fishing on the high seas in the region. But this year, said MIMRA Director […]
The Ocean Exploration Trust (OET)’s exploration vessel Nautilus started its exploration of deep-sea habitats throughout the Marshall Islands in collaboration with the Marshall Islands Marine Resources Authority and other partners earlier this month. Funded by NOAA Ocean Exploration via the Ocean Exploration Cooperative Institute, this expedition will map and explore poorly known deep-sea habitats to […]
The Marshall Islands Conservation Society (MICS) has launched a coral heat-tolerance testing initiative and established two coral nurseries as part of the efforts to support reef restoration in the Marshall Islands. This initiative is part of a regional project led by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) with support from the Coral Research and Development Accelerator Platform […]
A “game-changing” tuna loader arrived in Majuro and is now set up and ready for operations at the Pacific International Inc. dock. The equipment is specially designed to unload tuna from a purse seiner and funnel it through an extended conveyor belt into a freezer container at dock side. The equipment is expected to cut […]
GIFF JOHNSON A deep sea mapping project will focus on the Marshall Islands as one of several islands in the region to have their ocean floors mapped later this year. The Ocean Exploration Trust is partnering with the Marshall Islands Marine Resources Authority on the upcoming visit of its vessel Nautilus. In addition to partnering […]
The RMI’s first national marine sanctuary was officially established Tuesday evening at a signing ceremony at the International Conference Center. President Hilda C. Heine joined with Iroojlaplap Boklon Zackious, Minister of Natural Resources and Commerce Tony Muller, Utrok Nitijela Member Hiroshi Yamamura, and Utrok Mayor Tobin Kaiko in signing documents to establish the RMI’s first […]
GIFF JOHNSON Majuro experienced its worst year for tuna transshipment in more than 10 years. Statistics show that there were 160 tuna transshipments in 2024, according to data provided by the Marshall Islands Marine Resources Authority. This is below even the Covid-slowed year 2020, when only 175 transshipments were conducted in Majuro, largely due to […]
