Compare French Guiana (2006) - United States Pacific Island Wildlife Refuges (2008)

Compare French Guiana (2006) z United States Pacific Island Wildlife Refuges (2008)

	French Guiana (2006)	United States Pacific Island Wildlife Refuges (2008)

Administrative divisions	none (overseas department of France)	-
Age structure	0-14 years: 28.9% (male 29,540/female 28,210) 15-64 years: 64.8% (male 69,302/female 59,980) 65 years and over: 6.3% (male 6,350/female 6,127) (2006 est.)	-
Agriculture - products	corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry	-
Airports	11 (2006)	Baker Island: one abandoned World War II runway of 1,665 m covered with vegetation and unusable Howland Island: airstrip constructed in 1937 for scheduled refueling stop on the round-the-world flight of Amelia EARHART and Fred NOONAN; the aviators left Lae, New Guinea, for Howland Island but were never seen again; the airstrip is no longer serviceable Johnston Atoll: one closed and not maintained Kingman Reef: lagoon was used as a halfway station between Hawaii and American Samoa by Pan American Airways for flying boats in 1937 and 1938 Midway Islands: 3 - one operational (2,409 m paved); no fuel for sale except emergencies Palmyra Atoll: 1 - 1,846 m unpaved runway; privately owned (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2006)	-
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2006)	-
Area	total: 91,000 sq km land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km	total - 6,959.41 sq km; emergent land - 22.41 sq km; submerged - 6,937 sq km Baker Island: total - 129 sq km; emergent land - 2.1 sq km; submerged - 127 sq km Howland Island: total - 139 sq km; emergent land - 2.6 sq km; submerged - 136 sq km Jarvis Island: total - 152 sq km; emergent land - 5 sq km; submerged - 147 sq km Johnston Atoll: total - 276.6 sq km; emergent land - 2.6 sq km; submerged - 274 sq km Kingman Reef: total - 1,958.01 sq km; emergent land - 0.01 sq km; submerged - 1,958 sq km Midway Islands: total - 2,355.2 sq km; emergent land - 6.2 sq km; submerged - 2,349 sq km Palmyra Atoll: total - 1,949.9 sq km; emergent land - 3.9 sq km; submerged - 1,946 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Indiana	Baker Island: about two and a half times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC Howland Island: about three times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC Jarvis Island: about eight times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC Johnston Atoll: about four and a half times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC Kingman Reef: a little more than one and a half times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC Midway Islands: about nine times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC Palmyra Atoll: about 20 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Background	First settled by the French in 1604, French Guiana was the site of notorious penal settlements until 1951. The European Space Agency launches its communication satellites from Kourou.	The following US Pacific island territories constitute the Pacific Remote Islands National Wildlife Refuge Complex and as such are managed by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of Interior. These remote refuges are the most widespread collection of marine- and terrestrial-life protected areas on the planet under a single country's jurisdiction. They protect many endemic species including corals, fish, shellfish, marine mammals, seabirds, water birds, land birds, insects, and vegetation not found elsewhere. Baker Island: The US took possession of the island in 1857, and its guano deposits were mined by US and British companies during the second half of the 19th century. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization began on this island but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. The island was established as a National Wildlife Refuge in 1974. Howland Island: Discovered by the US early in the 19th century, the island was officially claimed by the US in 1857. Both US and British companies mined for guano until about 1890. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization began on this island, similar to the effort on nearby Baker Island, but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. The famed American aviatrix Amelia EARHART disappeared while seeking out Howland Island as a refueling stop during her 1937 round-the-world flight; Earhart Light, a day beacon near the middle of the west coast, was named in her memory. The island was established as a National Wildlife Refuge in 1974. Jarvis Island: First discovered by the British in 1821, the uninhabited island was annexed by the US in 1858, but abandoned in 1879 after tons of guano had been removed. The UK annexed the island in 1889, but never carried out plans for further exploitation. The US occupied and reclaimed the island in 1935 until it was abandoned in 1942 during World War II. The island was established as a National Wildlife Refuge in 1974. Johnston Atoll: Both the US and the Kingdom of Hawaii annexed Johnston Atoll in 1858, but it was the US that mined the guano deposits until the late 1880s. Johnston and Sand Islands were designated wildlife refuges in 1926. The US Navy took over the atoll in 1934, and subsequently the US Air Force assumed control in 1948. The site was used for high-altitude nuclear tests in the 1950s and 1960s, and until late in 2000 the atoll was maintained as a storage and disposal site for chemical weapons. Munitions destruction is now complete. Cleanup and closure of the facility was completed by May 2005. The Fish and Wildlife Service and the US Air Force are currently discussing future management options; in the interim, Johnston Atoll and the three-mile Naval Defensive Sea around it remain under the jurisdiction and administrative control of the US Air Force. Kingman Reef: The US annexed the reef in 1922. Its sheltered lagoon served as a way station for flying boats on Hawaii-to-American Samoa flights during the late 1930s. There are no terrestrial plants on the reef, which is frequently awash, but it does support abundant and diverse marine fauna and flora. In 2001, the waters surrounding the reef out to 12 nm were designated a US National Wildlife Refuge. Midway Islands: The US took formal possession of the islands in 1867. The laying of the trans-Pacific cable, which passed through the islands, brought the first residents in 1903. Between 1935 and 1947, Midway was used as a refueling stop for trans-Pacific flights. The US naval victory over a Japanese fleet off Midway in 1942 was one of the turning points of World War II. The islands continued to serve as a naval station until closed in 1993. Today the islands are a National Wildlife Refuge and are the site of the world's largest Laysan albatross colony. Palmyra Atoll: The Kingdom of Hawaii claimed the atoll in 1862, and the US included it among the Hawaiian Islands when it annexed the archipelago in 1898. The Hawaii Statehood Act of 1959 did not include Palmyra Atoll, which is now partly privately owned by the Nature Conservancy with the rest owned by the Federal government and managed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. These organizations are managing the atoll as a wildlife refuge. The lagoons and surrounding waters within the 12 nm US territorial seas were transferred to the US Fish and Wildlife Service and designated as a National Wildlife Refuge in January 2001.
Birth rate	20.46 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	-
Budget	revenues: $135.5 million expenditures: $135.5 million; including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996)	-
Capital	name: Cayenne geographic coordinates: 4 56 N, 52 20 W time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	-
Climate	tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation	Baker, Howland, and Jarvis Islands: equatorial; scant rainfall, constant wind, burning sun Johnston Atoll and Kingman Reef: tropical, but generally dry; consistent northeast trade winds with little seasonal temperature variation Midway Islands: subtropical with cool, moist winters (December to February) and warm, dry summers (May to October); moderated by prevailing easterly winds; most of the 1,067 mm (42 in) of annual rainfall occurs during the winter Palmyra Atoll: equatorial, hot; located within the low pressure area of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) where the northeast and southeast trade winds meet, it is extremely wet with between 4,000-5,000 mm (160-200 in) of rainfall each year
Coastline	378 km	Baker Island: 4.8 km Howland Island: 6.4 km Jarvis Island: 8 km Johnston Atoll: 34 km Kingman Reef: 3 km Midway Islands: 15 km Palmyra Atoll: 14.5 km
Constitution	4 October 1958 (French Constitution)	-
Country name	conventional long form: Department of Guiana conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Baker Island; Howland Island; Jarvis Island; Johnston Atoll; Kingman Reef; Midway Islands; Palmyra Atoll
Death rate	4.88 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	-
Debt - external	$800.3 million (2003)	-
Dependency status	overseas department of France	unincorporated territories of the US; administered from Washington, DC, by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior as part of the National Wildlife Refuge system note on Palmyra Atoll: incorporated Territory of the US; partly privately owned and partly federally owned; administered from Washington, DC, by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior; the Office of Insular Affairs of the US Department of the Interior continues to administer nine excluded areas comprising certain tidal and submerged lands within the 12 nm territorial sea or within the lagoon
Diplomatic representation from the US	none (overseas department of France)	none (territories of the US)
Diplomatic representation in the US	none (overseas department of France)	-
Disputes - international	Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) in French Guiana	none
Economic aid - recipient	$NA	-
Economy - overview	The economy is tied closely to the much larger French economy through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou (which accounts for 25% of GDP), fishing and forestry are the most important economic activities. Forest and woodland cover 90% of the country. The large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not fully exploited, support an expanding sawmill industry that provides sawn logs for export. Cultivation of crops is limited to the coastal area, where the population is largely concentrated; rice and manioc are the major crops. French Guiana is heavily dependent on imports of food and energy. Unemployment is a serious problem, particularly among younger workers.	no economic activity
Electricity - consumption	432.6 million kWh (2003)	-
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2003)	-
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2003)	-
Electricity - production	465.2 million kWh (2003)	-
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 m	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Baker Island, unnamed location - 8 m; Howland Island, unnamed location - 3 m; Jarvis Island, unnamed location - 7 m; Johnston Atoll, Sand Island - 10 m; Kingman Reef, unnamed location - less than 1 m; Midway Islands, unnamed location - 13 m; Palmyra Atoll, unnamed location - 2 m
Environment - current issues	NA	Baker, Howland, and Jarvis Islands, and Johnston Atoll: no natural fresh water resources Kingman Reef: none Midway Islands and Palmyra Atoll: NA
Ethnic groups	black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10%	-
Exchange rates	euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)	-
Executive branch	chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Jean-Pierre LAFLAQUIERE (since 19 July 2006) head of government: President of the General Council Pierre DESERT (since 26 March 2004); President of the Regional Council Antoine KARAM (since 22 March 1992) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; presidents of the General and Regional Councils are appointed by the members of those councils	-
Exports	NA bbl/day	-
Exports - commodities	shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing	-
Exports - partners	France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2004)	-
Fiscal year	calendar year	-
Flag description	the flag of France is used	the flag of the US is used
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: NA% 6.6% industry: NA% 15.6% services: NA% 77.8%	-
GDP - real growth rate	NA%	-
Geographic coordinates	4 00 N, 53 00 W	Baker Island: 0 13 N, 176 28 W Howland Island: 0 48 N, 176 38 W Jarvis Island: 0 23 S, 160 01 W Johnston Atoll: 16 45 N, 169 31 W Kingman Reef: 6 23 N, 162 25 W Midway Islands: 28 12 N, 177 22 W Palmyra Atoll: 5 53 N, 162 05 W
Geography - note	mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent	Baker, Howland, and Jarvis Islands: scattered vegetation consisting of grasses, prostrate vines, and low growing shrubs; primarily a nesting, roosting, and foraging habitat for seabirds, shorebirds, and marine wildlife Johnston Atoll: Johnston Island and Sand Island are natural islands, which have been expanded by coral dredging; North Island (Akau) and East Island (Hikina) are manmade islands formed from coral dredging; the egg-shaped reef is 34 km in circumference Kingman Reef: barren coral atoll with deep interior lagoon; closed to the public Midway Islands: a coral atoll managed as a national wildlife refuge and open to the public for wildlife-related recreation in the form of wildlife observation and photography Palmyra Atoll: the high rainfall and resulting lush vegetation make the environment of this atoll unique among the US Pacific Island territories; it supports one of the largest remaining undisturbed stands of Pisonia beach forest in the Pacific
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	-
Illicit drugs	small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe	-
Imports	NA bbl/day	-
Imports - commodities	food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals	-
Imports - partners	France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2004)	-
Independence	none (overseas department of France)	-
Industrial production growth rate	NA%	-
Industries	construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining	-
Infant mortality rate	total: 11.76 deaths/1,000 live births male: 12.58 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	-
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1% (2003)	-
International organization participation	UPU, WCL, WFTU	-
Irrigated land	20 sq km (2003)	-
Judicial branch	Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana)	-
Labor force	62,630 (1999)	-
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 18.2% industry: 21.2% services: 60.6% (1980)	-
Land boundaries	total: 1,240.4 km border countries: Brazil 730.4 km, Suriname 510 km	none
Land use	arable land: 0.13% permanent crops: 0.04% other: 99.83% (90% forest, 10% other) (2005)	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005)
Languages	French	-
Legal system	French legal system	the laws of the US, where applicable, apply
Legislative branch	unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (31 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) elections: General Council - last held in March 2000 (next to be held March 2006); Regional Council - last held 21 and 28 March 2004 (next to be held in 2010) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PSG 5, various left-wing parties 5, independents 7, other 2; Regional Council - (second election results) percent of vote by party - PS 37.24%, UMP 31.58%, FDG/Walwari 31.18%; seats by party - PS 17, UMP 7, FDG/Walwari 7 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 27 September 1998 (next to be held September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; 2 seats were elected to the French National Assembly on 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held in 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP/RPR 1, Walwari Committee 1	-
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 77.27 years male: 73.95 years female: 80.75 years (2006 est.)	-
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.)	-
Location	Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname	Oceania Baker Island: atoll in the North Pacific Ocean 1,830 nm (3,389 km) southwest of Honolulu, about half way between Hawaii and Australia Howland Island: island in the North Pacific Ocean 1,815 nm (3,361 km) southwest of Honolulu, about half way between Hawaii and Australia Jarvis Island: island in the South Pacific Ocean 1,305 nm (2,417 km) south of Honolulu, about half way between Hawaii and the Cook Islands Johnston Atoll: atoll in the North Pacific Ocean 717 nm (1,328 km) southwest of Honolulu, about one-third of the way from Hawaii to the Marshall Islands Kingman Reef: reef in the North Pacific Ocean 930 nm (1,722 km) south of Honolulu, about half way between Hawaii and American Samoa Midway Islands: atoll in the North Pacific Ocean 1,260 nm (2,334 km) northwest of Honolulu near the end of the Hawaiian Archipelago, about one-third of the way from Honolulu to Tokyo Palmyra Atoll: atoll in the North Pacific Ocean 960 nm (1,778 km) south of Honolulu, about half way between Hawaii and American Samoa
Map references	South America	Oceania
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of France	defense is the responsibility of the US
Military branches	no regular military forces; Gendarmerie	-
Military expenditures - dollar figure	NA	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA	-
National holiday	Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)	-
Nationality	noun: French Guianese (singular and plural) adjective: French Guianese	-
Natural hazards	high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding	Baker, Howland, and Jarvis Islands: the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard Kingman Reef: wet or awash most of the time, maximum elevation of less than 1 m makes Kingman Reef a maritime hazard Midway Islands, Johnston, and Palmyra Atolls: NA
Natural resources	bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), petroleum, kaolin, fish, niobium, tantalum, clay	terrestrial and aquatic wildlife
Net migration rate	4.01 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	-
Political parties and leaders	Guyana Democratic Forces or FDG [Georges OTHILY]; Guyanese Democratic Action or ADG [Andre LECANTE]; Guyanese Socialist Party or PSG [Marie-Claude VERDAN]; Popular National Guyanese Party or PNPG [Jose DORCY]; Socialist Party or PS [Alix LABBE]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Georges HABRAN-MERY]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP (includes RPR) [Remi Louis DUBOC]; Walwari Committee (aligned with the PRG in France) [Christine TAUBIRA-DELANON]	-
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	-
Population	199,509 (July 2006 est.)	no indigenous inhabitants note: public entry is by special-use permit from US Fish and Wildlife Service only and generally restricted to scientists and educators; visited annually by US Fish and Wildlife Service Johnston Atoll: in previous years, an average of 1,100 US military and civilian contractor personnel were present; as of May 2005 all US government personnel had left the island Midway Islands: approximately 40 people make up the staff of US Fish and Wildlife Service and their services contractor living at the atoll Palmyra Atoll: four to 20 Nature Conservancy and US Fish and Wildlife staff
Population below poverty line	NA%	-
Population growth rate	1.96% (2006 est.)	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998)	-
Religions	Roman Catholic	-
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.16 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.04 male(s)/female total population: 1.12 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	-
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	-
Telephone system	general assessment: NA domestic: fair open-wire and microwave radio relay system international: country code - 594; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	-
Telephones - main lines in use	51,000 (2001)	-
Telephones - mobile cellular	98,000 (2004)	-
Television broadcast stations	3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997)	-
Terrain	low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains	low and nearly level sandy coral islands with narrow fringing reefs that have developed at the top of submerged volcanic mountains, which in most cases rise steeply from the ocean floor
Total fertility rate	2.98 children born/woman (2006 est.)	-
Unemployment rate	19.2% (December 2003)	-
Waterways	3,760 km note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers, 3,300 km by native craft (2003)	-

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