You have entered the website of the Water and Environmental Research Institute of the Western Pacific (WERI) at the University of Guam. We are currently six faculty and five staff and our mission is to seek solutions through research, teaching and outreach programs, to issues and problems associated with the location, production, distribution and management of freshwater resources in Guam, the CNMI and the FSM.
Soil erosion is a major source of pollution in the tropical islands of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). These islands are small, with limited resources, and are heavily dependent on a high quality marine environment both as a source of food and as an attraction for tourism. To implement soil erosion control practices for these islands requires having quantitative values for the factors that contribute to soil erosion. One of these contributing factors is the rainfall erosivity factor (R). In this study, we developed R-factors for the islands of Pohnpei, Chuuk, and Yap. Using correlation analysis, long-temr 30-minute and 60-minute rainfall data were used to develop storm erosion indices (EI30). From these EI30 indices, the monthly, yearly, and average annual R-factors were calculated for each island.
