Johnston Atoll (30051)
United States Minor Outlying Islands (to USA), Oceania
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Global KBA criteria: B1, D1a
Year of last assessment: 2012
National site name: Johnston Atoll
Central coordinates: Latitude: 16.7500, Longitude: -169.5167
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 5
Area of KBA (km2): 2.85747
Protected area coverage (%): 100.00
KBA classification: Global
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that meets the thresholds for at least one criterion described in the Global Standard for the Identification of KBAs.
Delineation rationale: 2012-12-17 (BL Secretariat): original polygon clipped to hi-res coastline following identification in October 2012 of new marine IBA offshore this site; site area consequently updated to 286 ha.
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: Climate change is listed as the third greatest threat to seabirds globally (Croxall et al. 2012). It is predicted to decrease the land area of low-lying Pacific islands and cause complete inundation of some islands (IPCC 1997) leading to substantial population declines (Hatfield et al. 2012). Although no current data or predictions are available specific to this IBA climate change represents a potential threat to this site owing to the risk of future sea level rise leading to inundation, and increased frequency of storms. Military operations during and post WWII on Johnston Atoll caused the displacement and disruption to large portions of the breeding seabirds now present there (http://www.fws.gov/refuges/profiles/index.cfm?id=12515). Although Johnston Atoll is now a US National Wildlife Refuge it is under the jurisdiction of the US Air Force. The Air Force therefore reserves the right to post military personnel back to Johnston Atoll in the future. Several significant contaminant issues exist: closure of the chemical weapons disposal plant; dioxin (Agent Orange), which contaminates at least four acres of land and has migrated to the marine environment; plutonium from two abortive missile launches during high-altitude nuclear and missile testing in the 1950s and 1960s; and a subsurface plume of PCB-contaminated petroleum product. Contaminants tracking involves monitoring seabirds, fishes, and marine invertebrates. Refuge personnel also monitor fish populations and threatened green sea turtles, which use the waters of Johnston Atoll as an important foraging location. Also, soil and sediment samples are used to establish the degree and extent of contamination (http://www.fws.gov/refuges/profiles/index.cfm?id=12515). The affect that this contamination has on the seabird populations is not known, or how far the effects could reach in the marine environment.
Additional information
References: Croxall, J. P., Butchart, S. H. M., Lascelles, B., Stattersfield, A. J., Sullivan, B., Symes, A. and Taylor, P. (2012) Seabird conservation status, threats and priority actions: a global assessment. Bird Conservation International 22: 1-34. IPCC – Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change (1997) The Regional Impacts of Climate Change. An Assessment of Vulnerability. Geneva. Hatfield, J. S., Reynolds, M. H., Seavy, N. E. and Krause, C. M. (2012) Population dynamics of Hawaiian seabird colonies vulnerable to sea-level rise. Conservation Biology 26: 667-678.