basic template page

REPUBLIC OF PALAU

General Information
The Republic of Palau is made up of more than 300 islands. Located about 800 km north of the equator, 800 km east of the Philippines, and 6,000 km southwest of Hawaii, Palau is the westernmost archipelago of Micronesia's Caroline Islands. It is home to about 17,000 inhabitants, most of whom live on Babeldaob, the largest island in Palau. To see various maps of Palau, please visit the Palau Visitors Authority Web page at: http://www.visit-palau.com/aboutpalau/islandmaps.html

Palau's largest islands are volcanic and are composed of basalt and andesite. Some islands are of limestone formation. Two of them are platform and reef islands, while one is a coral reef. Palau's soils are very old and have been weathered by millions of years of heavy rain. They are quite infertile and deep. Soils become even less fertile when forests supporting the soils are cleared or burned. Sixty percent of the soil types found in Babeldaob have slopes of 30% or more. Areas that have slopes of more than 25% are considered steep. These present a high risk for soil erosion.

Watershed Management
There are five major watersheds on Babeldaob: Ngeremeduu, Ngerdorch, Ngerikiil, Diongradid, and Ngerbekuu. An average of 500 million gallons of freshwater flow out of Babeldaob streams every day. The Ngeremeduu, Ngerdorch, and Ngerikiil watersheds are responsible for half of the total discharge. There are 345 miles of permanent streams and rivers in Palau, nearly all of them

in Babeldaob. With a total length of all its tributaries measuring 72 miles, Ngerdorch River is the longest in Palau. The only two natural freshwater lakes in Palau are Lake Ngardok, with a surface area of 12 acres and a volume of about 12 million gallons, and Ngerkall Pond, with a surface area of 1 acre and a volume of about 400 thousand gallons.

Trisha Macomber's trip to Palau

Trisha Macomber, Educational Specialist from the University of Hawaii in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management, traveled to the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia to provide rainwater catchment safety seminars in February 22 - March 9, 2006. Click on the link above to view photos of her trip to Palau.