Palmyra
Pacific Ocean. Area: 100 hectares (247 acres). Population: Uninhabited. Geography: Palmyra is made up of approximately 50 low-lying islets about 1600km (1000 miles) south of Honolulu. Time: GMT - 11. History: Administered by the US Department of the Interior since 1961, Palmyra was included within the boundaries of the State of Hawaii after legislation in 1990. In 1996, it became known that the Hawaiian owners of the islands were to sell the atoll to a US company which was allegedly planning to establish a nuclear waste storage facility. The Government of Kiribati protested at these moves and reiterated its attempts to include the atoll within its own national boundaries. However, the original designs for the island were abandoned and, in November 2000, the atoll was sold to the Nature Conservancy (website: http//nature.org) for approximately US$30 million. The lagoons and surrounding waters were later transferred to the US Fish and Wildlife Service (see address for Midway Islands section) in January 2001, and it was designated a National Wildlife Refuge.
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