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Report: Climate Change, Pollution Threaten New Zealand's Marine Environment

Phil Mercer

   SYDNEY - Climate change, pollution and fishing are causing irreversible
   damage to New Zealand's marine environmentand putting many birds and
   mammals at risk of extinction,according to a new reportfrom the
   nation's Ministry for the Environment.

   The report saidNew Zealand's coastline, which stretches for about
   15,000 kilometers, isalsounder increasing pressure from
   developmentandshipping.Agriculture,forestry andurbanization are
   increasing the amount of sediment, chemicals and plastics flowing into
   the oceans, and contaminating the coastline, it said.

   The report said90 percent of the country's seabirds and about a quarter
   of its marine mammals are threatened with extinction, and that16
   percent of New Zealand's fish stocks hadbeen overfished.
   "The sea is a receiving environment for what happens on the land, so
   our activities on land from the mountains to the sea are having an
   impact on what we are seeing in the marine environment; growing cities,
   forestry, agriculture -- all delivering increasing amounts of
   sedimentation,"saidVicky Robertson,New Zealand's secretary for the
   environment.

   Warmer seas
   The report also confirmedthatNew Zealand's sea temperature had risen
   and was consistent with the global average. It also found sea levels
   were rising faster than before.
   Therewasa warning, too, that New Zealand couldexpect more frequent
   marine heatwaves,similar tothose in 2017 and 2018, and ocean
   acidification.
   For the first time, data from citizen scientists wereused in the
   government report. Community groups were instructed about how to
   collect robust data.
   The next official marine environment report is due in three years.
   New Zealand is a grouping of islands in the South Pacific Ocean,
   southeast of Australia.It has a population of 4.5 million people.

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