Overview of the Marshall islands' forest resources: country report presented at the Pacific Sub-Regional workshop on forest and tree genetic resources: "State of Forest and tree genetic resources in the Pacific islands, and sub-regional action plan for their conservation and sustainable use"

Abstract

On a map, the Marshall Islands may just look like tiny specks of land scattered over the vastness of the Central Pacific Ocean, but they are beautifully unique and covered by forest. The political entity of the Republic of the Marshall Islands encompasses 29 coral atolls and 5 solitary coral islands, and is comprised of approximately 1,225 individual islands and islets. These are situated from 160 degrees to 173 degrees longitude East, and between 4 degrees and 14 degrees latitude North. Total dry land area is only about 70 square miles. However, when the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), is figured in, the Republic covers 750,000 square miles of ocean. 4,507 square miles of sea are found within the lagoons of the atolls.