What are the historical repercussions of the Guano Island Act of 1856?

Answer 1

In 1855, the U.S. government received reports that Baker Island in the Pacific Ocean was rich with guano deposits. Congress took action and on August 18, 1856 the Guano Island Act was passed. It empowered American citizens to take possession of any island or rock or key with guano deposits not under the control of a foreign government. The full act also allowed the President to utilize the military to protect the interests of the discoverer.

Additionally, while the act allowed the President to annex a guano island or rock or key, it did not require that the United States retain possession of a guano-filled locale. This was a difference in law as typically annexations require a treaty to give up possession of a territory - thus the Guano Island Act set out to differentiate guano islands from other annexed territories.

The first annexation was that of Baker Island on May 1, 1857. A Baltimore newspaper called the island "a new El Dorado" due to the value of guano as a agricultural resource and the lower cost with which guano could be had by American farmers. Over the next few decades, dozens of rocks and islands were annexed into the United States due to their guano deposits and the Guano Island Act. These included Jarvis Island, Howland Island, Christmas Island, Johnson Atoll, Navassa Island, and Midway Island. This marked an early foray by the United States into overseas imperialism.

The industrial ideals of the late nineteenth century did not provide for conservation of wildlife so the exploitation of the guano islands resulted in the loss of millions of sea birds, making the guano on the islands a non-renewable resource. Nonetheless, the invention of chemical fertilizers dramatically reduced the need for guano as fertilizer.