Among the Marshall Islands' more significant environmental problems are water pollution due to lack of adequate sanitation facilities, inadequate supplies of drinking water, and the rise of sea levels due to global warming. Any rise in the sea level is a constant and serious threat to an island nation whose land mass is 2–3 meters (6–10 ft) above sea level.
The Marshall Islands Environmental Protection Agency, established in 1984, is concerned with programs for water quality standards, solid waste disposal, earthworks, and use of pesticides. The environments of the Bikini, Enewetak, Rongelap, and Utirik atolls were contaminated by nuclear testing. Nuclear tests were carried out in the region from 1946 to 1958. The long-term environmental effects on these atolls and their populations remained undetermined. The hawksbill turtle and green turtle are on the endangered species list.