Amy Adams21 MARCH, 2014
- An amendment to regulations that control
discharge from ships and offshore installations
will protect New Zealand’s unique marine
environment, Environment Minister Amy Adams
announced today.
“The regulations will
be amended to prohibit all forms of garbage
(with the exception of food waste) from
being discharged from ships into the coastal
marine area,” Ms Adams says.
“Garbage from ships
could pose a significant risk to marine
life and safety. This amendment will help
to protect recreational and ecological values
in coastal areas.
“While international
shipping operators are already complying
with the new requirements, it is important
for this change to be made formally through
amending the regulations.”
The changes will be
made via amendments to the Resource Management
(Marine Pollution) Regulations 1998.
The changes to the Regulations
will also prohibit the discharge of incinerator
ash, cargo residues and cleaning substances
that are harmful to the marine environment.
The Regulations will make exceptions in
certain circumstances for the accidental
loss of garbage and fishing gear.
New Zealand is a party
to the International Convention for the
Prevention of Pollution from Ships 1973
(MARPOL), which controls discharge of harmful
substances from ships.
The changes to these
Regulations reflect changes made to Annex
V of MARPOL, which controls the discharge
of garbage from ships.
+ More
Govt invests further
$2.1 million in community freshwater action
Amy Adams15 MARCH, 2014
- The Government is investing a further
$2.1 million to help communities improve
New Zealand’s freshwater quality, Environment
Minister Amy Adams has announced.
Ms Adams made the announcement
at the Bluegreens Forum in Kaikoura today.
“This further investment
adds to the Government’s strong commitment
to improving the quality of our freshwater,
as we develop a package of cohesive reform
and clean-ups that will lead to the more
productive and sustainable use of our freshwater
resource within a generation,” Ms Adams
says.
The Government’s freshwater
reform programme includes a National Objectives
Framework, national bottom lines for freshwater,
collaborative planning processes, better
water accounting, and spending hundreds
of millions of dollars to clean-up historical
contamination of our iconic waterways.
“I know that many New
Zealanders want to play an active part in
improving the quality of the water in our
local lakes and rivers.
“To encourage this,
today I am announcing the Government is
allocating $1.1 million to a fund to support
local water quality initiatives that support
the freshwater reforms.
“These projects will
involve the community, raise awareness and
strengthen collaboration.”
Further information,
including how to apply for the funding,
will be announced shortly.
“As well as helping
people take action to improve freshwater
quality, we also need to make sure the activity
is achieving results.
“So, a further $1 million
will be targeted at enhancing the monitoring
of freshwater quality in New Zealand.
“A large network of
sites is currently used for assessing the
state of our rivers. These sites were established
for a variety of reasons, but the data collected
is not necessarily representative of the
whole country.
“This money will be
used to improve the effectiveness of the
monitoring, enabling more representative
and precise reporting on the state of New
Zealand’s freshwater.
“This will also support
the National-led Government’s environmental
reporting framework which will enhance New
Zealanders’ understanding about the state
of our environment.
“New Zealand is in the
middle of ambitious freshwater management
reforms and this money will support regional
councils to involve their communities in
taking action.
"At the same time
we are ensuring that good information is
available to shape the decisions that communities
need to make about water quality in their
region.”
