The Purari — tropical environment of a high rainfall river basin, Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 1983 Tropical Environment of a High Rainfall River Basin Monographiae Biologicae Series, Vol. 51

One of the major river systems of our country, the Purari River, finds its outlet to the sea in the Gulf of Papua on the southern coast of Papua New Guinea. All highlands provinces contribute to this mighty river: the Erave of the Southern Highlands Province joins with the Kaugel and Wahgi Rivers (Western High­ lands), the Tua River (Simbu), and Asaro and Aure Rivers of the Eastern High­ lands Province to make the Purari the third largest river in P. N. G. Unlike its rivals, the Fly and the Sepik, the distance between its escape from the mountains and its entrance to the sea is short. After winding its way mostly through deep gorges flanked by high mountains, the river leaves the foothills of the southern slopes of the central cordillera barely eighty kilometers from the sea. The energy potential of such a river is enormous. Could the waters be utilised in any way to the advantage of the nation? Twelve years ago the Electricity Com­ mission of Papua New Guinea proposed an answer to this question: the building of a dam across the river in the Wabo area of the Gulf Province. The generation of vast quantities of hydro-electric power could be fed into a national distribu­ tion grid and heavy industries could be established in the Gulf Province and other suitable localities to benefit from this power.

I: Physico-chemical environment.- 1. Introduction to the Purari River catchment.- 2. The climate of the Purari River basin.- 3. Geology and geomorphology of the Purari River catchment.- 4. Geomorphology of the Purari Delta.- 5. Soil types and traditional soil management in the Purari catchment.- 6. Clay mineralogy of selected soils and sediments of the Purari River basin.- 7. Geochemistry of soils and sediments of the Purari River basin.- 8. The hydrology of the Purari and its environmental implications.- 9. Limnology of the Purari basin. Part 1. The catchment above the delta.- 10. Limnology of the Purari basin. Part 2. The delta.- 11. Sedimentation processes in the Purari River upstream of the delta.- II: Biological environment.- 1. The vegetation of the Purari catchment.- 2. The wildlife of the Purari catchment.- 3. Survey and management of wildlife resources along the Purari River.- 4. Aquatic and semi-aquatic flora of the Purari River system.- 5. The mangrove ecosystem of the Purari Delta.- 6. Aquatic pollution in the Purari basin.- 7. The ecology of juvenile penaeid prawns, mangrove crab (Scylla serrata) and the giant freshwater prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) in the Purari Delta.- 8. The importance of the Purari River Delta to the prawn trawl fishery of the Gulf of Papua.- 9. Fish fauna and ecology.- 10. Subsistence and commercial fisheries.- 11. The status and ecology of crocodiles in the Purari.- III: Social environment and developmental aspects.- 1. A short history of the upper Purari and the Pawaia people.- 2. The Pawaia of the Purari River: social aspects.- 3. Prehistory and paths in the upper Purari River basin.- 4. Health and diseases of the people of the upper and lower Purari.- 5. Serological studies of influenza, measles and mumps in the Purari Pawaia.- 6. Human arbovirus infections of the Purari River lowlands.- 7. Mosquitoes of the Purari River lowlands.- 8. Nutritional status of the people of the Purari Delta.- 9. Nutritional study of the people of the Wabo and Ihu areas, Gulf Province.- 10. Subsistence patterns and sago cultivation in the Purari Delta.- 11. Purari hydroelectric potential and possibilities for industrial development.- Appendix A. Basic data on the Wabo hydroelectric scheme.- Appendix B. Reports in the series Purari River (Wabo) Hydroelectric Scheme Environmental Studies, published by the Office of Environment and Conservation and the Department of Minerals and Energy, Papua New Guinea.- General index.- Taxonomic index.