Environment
Roadside rubbish an issue up hospital hill
Tuesday 15 May 2012 | Published in Environment
For 35 years Dianne Dorrell has been picking up roadside rubbish on Rarotonga, and she has had enough. Dorrell and neighbour Len Edwards live on hospital hill and they have taken it upon themselves over the years to clean up the mess that others leave behind. This means clearing away the beer bottles, cans and […]
Organic farming venture advanced
Monday 14 May 2012 | Published in Environment
A successful public-private partnership in Cook Islands is helping the country realise its plans to revitalise agriculture by developing organic farming. The partnership was last week highlighted at a meeting of the Pacific Organic and Ethical Trade Community (POETCom) in Papeete, French Polynesia. The Cook Islands delegation was led by associate minister of agriculture Kiriau […]
Moringa plantation launched
Monday 14 May 2012 | Published in Environment
The first moringa oleifera plantation on Rarotonga was launched on Wednesday morning with light showers of rain at the time deemed a blessing on the project. The nutritional benefits of the moringa oleifera plant were discovered by Mauke resident Hugh Graham when he was researching stock feed for his goat project on the island. On […]
CI to benefit from biodiversity project
Thursday 10 May 2012 | Published in Environment
A US$1.7 million project to conserve island biodiversity in the Cook Islands, Nauru, Tonga and Tuvalu was launched at the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) in Apia, Samoa. Under this three-year initiative the island nations will carry out a range of activities with their local communities to produce and strengthen management actions […]
'Green' power station coming
Saturday 5 May 2012 | Published in Environment
‘The Pod’ is being prepped for its Rarotonga debut at the Pacific Islands Forum in August. The Green Energy Pod – a portable green energy power station featuring wind and solar generation and the capacity to store it – is the brainchild of Wellington-based company ESG Energy, and it could be coming to the Cook […]
NES praises oil spill response
Saturday 5 May 2012 | Published in Environment
The quick actions of Te Aponga Uira staff prevented an oil leak from the Avatiu Valley power station from reaching the lagoon area last week, according to a National Environment Service spokesman. The NES was called in to investigate a waste oil spill at the TAU power station last week after receiving complaints from the […]
Temporary licence has strict conditions
Wednesday 2 May 2012 | Published in Environment
The Ministry of Internal Affairs yesterday approved Toa’s application for a temporary licence to store dangerous goods for three months at a new site in Nikao with conditions. In its inspection of the site and review of the proposed plans, the ministry concluded that Toa meets the public safety requirements to temporarily store petrol and […]
Toa gains provisional licence
Wednesday 2 May 2012 | Published in Environment
The Ministry of Internal Affairs yesterday issued Toa Petroleum a provisional and conditional dangerous goods licence to operate from Nikao. The ministry issues dangerous goods licences for sites, not companies. Accordingly, Toa’s former licence – which was also provisional, a full licence being contingent on forthcoming upgrades – was rendered invalid by the expiration of […]
Barbados aims for 'sustainable energy for all'
Wednesday 2 May 2012 | Published in Environment
Small Islands Developing States such as Barbados and the Cook Islands can make a meaningful contribution to their nations’ future wealth and the global community through changing their energy sectors, says Barbados Prime Minister Freundel Stuart. Speaking ahead of a conference to be held in Barbados next week on the hopes and ambitions of Small […]
Palmerston's turtles under study
Tuesday 1 May 2012 | Published in Environment
The Cook Islands Turtle Project (CITP) has been working six days a week on Palmerston, where a team is undertaking the first sea turtle research in over a decade. Dr Michael White and his team have been performing extensive beach and in-water surveys to help understand the distribution, population and status of sea turtles in […]
Rain-fed agriculture a risk
Thursday 26 April 2012 | Published in Environment
Rarotonga features in a new report warning of the unique freshwater challenges facing many small islands in the Pacific. Released this week by the UN Environment Programme and the Secretariat of the Pacific Communities (SPC), the report was written by David Duncan, regional environmental engineer at SPC SOPAC’s Water and Sanitation Programme. He concludes that […]
Toa's relocation up to authority
Thursday 26 April 2012 | Published in Environment
This story is a response to a reader’s request for the names of officials who will be responsible for dealing with the TOA Environmental Impact Assessment. The reader wrote: “They need to know the public is watching and counting on them to protect this island.” The public has until one week from Monday (May 7) […]
Plan to rid Suwarrow of rats
Monday 23 April 2012 | Published in Environment
Te Ipukarea Society is planning a project with the National Environment Service to eradicate rats from Suwarrow National Park to protect Suwarrow’s seabird populations. The threat to Suwarrow’s seabirds was revealed when a rat infestation was discovered on Motu Tou during a seabird survey in 2008. The survey found that no Black Noddys were nesting […]
TIS speaks out on seabed mining
Monday 23 April 2012 | Published in Environment
In its most recent newsletter Te Ipukarea Society posed a range of questions around seabed mining. The statement is as follows: “With the passing of the Seabed Minerals Act 2009, the pressure to move ahead with the mining of our deep sea manganese nodules is beginning to mount. With millions of dollars on offer, and […]
Mitiaro a key biodiversity area
Saturday 21 April 2012 | Published in Environment
Te Ipukarea Society visited Mitiaro last month to raise awareness about the unique biodiversity on the island and the identification of Mitiaro as a Key Biodiversity Area and Important Bird Area. This follows visits to Mangaia, Mauke, Atiu and Aitutaki where similar work was done. Mitiaro qualifies as an Important Bird Area because of the […]
Red flags raised
Thursday 19 April 2012 | Published in Environment
A 2010 audit raises some major red flags in relation to the state of dangerous goods facilities on Rarotonga and Aitutaki. Released on Tuesday, the audit report is revealing in its assessment of fuel and power suppliers and retailers in the Cook Islands. It addresses issues around the proximity of fuel storage facilities to the […]
Service stations mostly improper
Thursday 19 April 2012 | Published in Environment
Most service stations that the New Zealand Department of Labour’s Kim Comben inspected in 2010 were being improperly maintained and operated. The most shocking issue was environmental contamination, which seemed to be prevalent at filling points. “It appears that the suppliers are nozzle filling the underground tanks and not using liquid tight and vapour tight […]
Aitutaki power station a 'model' installation
Thursday 19 April 2012 | Published in Environment
Dangerous goods inspector Kim Comben also did site inspections in Aitutaki, where he found some of the same problems plaguing Rarotonga facilities – among them, lack of emergency preparedness and inappropriate site positioning. At the time of Comben’s inspection, Aquila Storage Tanks’ facility had no security and its tanks had no bunding. The audit concluded […]
TAU compliance 'a work in progress'
Thursday 19 April 2012 | Published in Environment
Te Aponga Uira (TAU) has acted “constructively and responsibly” to safety upgrades recommended to its Avatiu valley power station, but the complexity of some problems remain as a major hurdle to upgrades, according to chief executive officer Apii Timoti. Timoti said that TAU had taken steps to address the specific problems highlighted by New Zealand […]
Carbon emissions rise 64% in 12 years
Monday 16 April 2012 | Published in Environment
The Cook Islands’ carbon dioxide emissions have risen by 61 percent between 1994 and 2006 according to a report released by the National Environmental Service. The large majority of emissions are emulating from generators and transport throughout the country, which account for four out of every five tonnes of CO2 being released by the Cook […]
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