Environment
Cooks calls for commitment to Kyoto
Friday 2 December 2011 | Published in Environment
The Cook Islands has joined 42 other members of the Alliance of Small Islands States (AOSIS) in calling for a second commitment period to the Kyoto Protocol. National Environment Service (NES) island futures division manager Pasha Carruthers is leading a Cook Islands delegation at United Nations climate change talks in Durban, South Africa. The delegation […]
Cautionary advice on seabed mining
Thursday 1 December 2011 | Published in Environment
The Cook Islands and the Pacific region have been urged to take a precautionary approach to seabed mineral exploration to ensure the communitys interests and the environment are properly protected. Doctor Russell Howorth, a director of the Secretariat of the South Pacifics Applied Geoscience and Technology Division (SOPAC), has sounded a cautionary note during his […]
Survey to determine link between lagoon and health
Wednesday 30 November 2011 | Published in Environment
From today, the Ministry of Marine Resources is conducting its first-ever survey to determine the specifics of the correlation between the quality of the lagoon water and sicknesses experienced by people who swim in it. Emma Castel has been contracted by the ministry to analyse the bearing water quality has on health, and is working […]
What PICI stands for
Saturday 26 November 2011 | Published in Environment
– PICI is advocating for the protection of sharks through the creation of a shark sanctuary in all of the Cook Islands Exclusive Economic Zone. – PICI is a local organisation that works with communities in the areas of research and conservation. – PICI hopes the Cook Islands government will pass a law that will […]
Shark sanctuary advocated
Saturday 26 November 2011 | Published in Environment
The Cook Islands is in a unique position to become a world leader in the protection of an important symbol of Polynesian heritage the shark. Members of the community are working together to spread the word and support Rarotonga-based Pacific Islands Conservation Initiative (PICI) in advocating for the government to create the Cook Islands Shark […]
NES enters deep sea mining discussion
Saturday 26 November 2011 | Published in Environment
The National Environmental Service will next week receive a crash course introduction to deep sea mining at an international workshop held in Fiji. The National Environmental Services senior biodiversity officer Joseph Brider will join legal adviser to Deputy Prime Minister Tom Marsters, Paul Lynch, at the Fiji conference. The pair will be attending the regional […]
Climate change discussed
Friday 25 November 2011 | Published in Environment
Amid the clamour of alarm bells ringing about global warming, Brian Dawson likes to keep a cool head. The calmly spoken climate change expert says constant warnings about rising sea levels and increasingly common natural catastrophes may only spread panic. What is needed, he says, is a measured approach to mitigating climate change and adapting […]
NES prepares for festive season
Friday 25 November 2011 | Published in Environment
In anticipation of the festive season, the National Environment Service (NES) is reminding people to apply for permits to take shells and paua meat overseas. Christmas is the busy time of year for NES employees who process permit applications by people wanting to take such goods out of the country usually to family in New […]
Mission team in Raro
Saturday 19 November 2011 | Published in Environment
A mission team from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Programme (SGP) is currently in Rarotonga to introduce its new sub-regional coordinator Margaret Youshida. The team will also meet with a wide and varied number of national stakeholders and partners in the Cook Islands. Although mission activities for now will be based in Rarotonga […]
Turangi dump finally going
Friday 18 November 2011 | Published in Environment
Acting on instructions from leaseholder Dave Brown, General Transport is aiming to clean up the recycling yard in Turangi dubbed by some the Turangi dump before Christmas. The tenants who ran the recycling operation have vacated the premises. Brown holds the lease to the Turangi section, which legally belongs to landowner Pa Marie Ariki, and […]
TAU policy change dismays Solar Bob
Thursday 17 November 2011 | Published in Environment
Changes to Te Aponga Uiras policies on renewable energy systems appear as though the company is trying to block the private sector out of the industry, according to a Cook Islands solar system provider. Solar Bob Riley was dismayed when he yesterday heard that within weeks TAU would not be accepting any new grid-tied solar […]
Integrated framework may be implemented
Wednesday 16 November 2011 | Published in Environment
An Integrated Environment Assessment (IEA) framework may be implemented in the Cook Islands, to coordinate national information about the status of the countrys environment. The United Nations has been using IEA frameworks for a few years and through the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Plan (SPREP), the Cook Islands is the fourth Pacific nation […]
Climate change project goes ahead
Wednesday 16 November 2011 | Published in Environment
Government and stakeholder organisations involved in the Cook Islands pilot project for climate change adaptation are travelling to Mangaia today. The Pacific Adaptation to Climate Change (PACC) project involves the climate change-proofing of Mangaias harbour and airport areas. It is being undertaken in conjunction with the Ministry of Infrastructure and Planning (MOIP), Secretariat of the […]
Puna calls for climate change collaboration
Saturday 12 November 2011 | Published in Environment
Prime Minister Henry Puna is calling for regional collaboration in the effort to safeguard Pacific communities against the effects of climate change. This week he has been attending a conference in Noumea, New Caledonia, organised by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC). The conference theme was climate change and food security challenges and solutions […]
Principal encounters whitetip reef shark
Saturday 12 November 2011 | Published in Environment
When Dale Wells went out snorkelling in the Muri lagoon just off the Little Polynesian on Tuesday, he went out expecting to hunt down the usual. Dale, Titikaveka Colleges acting principal, snorkels often at the location and has a found a few favourite fishing holes at the lagoon. He goes out almost every day, he […]
New book warns of Pacific food shortage
Friday 11 November 2011 | Published in Environment
The Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) has published a new book, highlighting the new challenges posed by climate change in the region. The book, titled Vulnerability of Tropical Pacific Fisheries and Aquaculture to Climate Change claims there will be winners and losers from climate change, and the way Pacific governments react and adapt will […]
Reminder to conserve water despite rainfall
Friday 11 November 2011 | Published in Environment
Despite receiving a welcome top-up to its water reserves this week, the people of Rarotonga have been reminded to keep their water use down and not be wasteful just because of a few drops of rain. Water levels rose early this week after hitting lows almost across all of Rarotongas 12 catchments. And while it […]
Combining to boost renewable energies
Thursday 10 November 2011 | Published in Environment
The Secretariat of the Pacific Community and the Pacific Power Association have joined forces to better enable governmental energy organisations across the Pacific to combine their efforts in advancing renewable energy technologies through the region. The two agencies, which go by the acronyms SPC and PPA, signed a memorandum of understanding at SPCs New Caledonia […]
Climate study offered
Thursday 10 November 2011 | Published in Environment
Those interested in climate change what it is, how it is affecting the Pacific region and what Pacific people can do about it will be able to study it from next year. The University of the South Pacific, through its Pacific Centre for Environment and Sustainable Development (PACE-SD), is offering scholarships to Pacific people interested […]
Vaka Eiva volunteers needed
Wednesday 9 November 2011 | Published in Environment
The National Environment Service (NES) is calling for volunteers to help with green initiatives implemented during the upcoming Vaka Eiva festival. Helpers are needed to supervise and manage recycling bins throughout the event, encouraging people how to recycle and keep the environment clean as well as showing them how. NES expects the level of public […]