ABSTRACT
Introduction..............................................................................................................35 Geologic, Climatic, and Soil Setting.......................................................................36 Watersheds, Hydrologic Units, and the “Ahupua
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a” ..............................................37 Major Land Uses and Agricultural Industries.........................................................38 Erosion Potential, Extent, and Sediment Sources in Agricultural
Watersheds ............................................................................................................38 On-Site Impacts .......................................................................................................42 Sediment Delivery and Yield...................................................................................42 Specific Challenges: Implication of Diversification of Former Plantation
Croplands ..............................................................................................................44 Policy, Planning, and Community Efforts ..............................................................46 Summary ..................................................................................................................46 Acknowledgment .....................................................................................................47 References................................................................................................................47
Small islands comprise the most distinctive terrestrial ecosystems of the Pacific Basin. These islands function as “whole ecosystems” in which all segments of the landscape from the highest point on land to the sea are joined directly and are intimately interdependent. The islands may be atolls or wholly volcanic in origin. The first are living coral reefs with coarse sandy surface layers (soils), generally overlying volcanic foundations. Unless tectonically uplifted, atolls have elevations that seldom exceed 5 m above sea level. Although such (low) atolls are subject to
