Nanshan Island

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Nanshan Island (Tagalog: Lawak, literally "vastness"; Chinese: 马欢岛; pinyin: Mahuan Dao; Vietnamese: Đảo Vĩnh Viễn) is the eighth largest island of Spratly Islands and the fourth largest among Philippine-occupied Spratly islands. It has an area of 7.93 hectares. It is located 98.0 miles (157.7 km) east of Pag-asa (Thitu Island). This island is administered by the Philippines as part of Kalayaan, Palawan.

Environment

This island is a bird sanctuary. Its surroundings are highly phosphatized that superphosphate materials can be mined out on a small-scale basis. Near the fringes of the breakwaters (approx. 2 miles (3 km) from the island), intact hard coral reefs were observed to retain their natural environment and beautiful tropical fishes were seen colonizing these coral beds of varying colors. It is also covered with coconut trees, bushes and grass. It is 580 m long, on the edge of a submerged reef.

Philippine Occupation

This island is claimed by the People's Republic of China, Republic of China (Taiwan), and Vietnam. Several Philippine soldiers are stationed on the island since 1968 when Philippines occupied this feature. There are only one to two structures in this island that serve as shelters for the soldiers. The soldiers are also the guard of nearby Flat Island which lies 6 miles (10 km) north-northeast of the island which is also occupied by the Philippines.

See also

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Coordinates: 10°44′02″N 115°48′06″E / 10.7338°N 115.8016°E / 10.7338; 115.8016

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