The development of marine protected areas in New Zealand

Abstract

Terrestrial conservation is well developed in New Zealand. There is an extensive system of protected areas on land to provide for the conservation of natural ecosystems. The oldest of these have been in place for over a century. However, this concern for the terrestrial environment has not extended to the marine environment. New Zealand has only a few marine protected areas, all of which have been established in the last sixteen years.

This paper addresses the question of why New Zealand has so few marine protected areas. It is found that the principal obstacles to establishment of marine protected areas are public attitudes of indifference to the marine environment, historically inadequate policy arrangements, and user group opposition. Present day policy arrangements for marine protected areas are examined for their effectiveness at overcoming these obstacles. It is found that policy arrangements for marine reserves are good in this respect. Marine park arrangements are currently receiving little attention and are limited by their legislative base, but provide greater flexibility for multi-purpose use than do marine reserves. It is concluded that marine protected area establishment could be assisted by amending or replacing the existing legislation, and by monitoring and publicising the effectiveness of both existing and impending marine protected areas.