Major ocean sanctuary puts New Zealand "at forefront" of marine conservation

Environment campaigners on Tuesday welcomed news that the New Zealand government is to make a marine sanctuary in one of the world's most pristine and unique environments.

Prime Minister John Key made the announcement at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where sustainable development is a key theme.

The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary, centered around a group of tiny islands about 1,000 km northeast of the North Island, would cover 620,000 square km, Key said in a statement from his office.

"The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will be one of the world's largest and most significant fully-protected areas, preserving important habitats for seabirds, whales and dolphins, endangered marine turtles and thousands of species of fish and other marine life," Key said.

"It will cover 15 percent of New Zealand's exclusive economic zone, an area twice the size of our landmass," he said.

"As well as being home to a wide range of marine species, the Kermadec region is one of the most geographically and geologically diverse areas in the world. It contains the world's longest underwater volcanic arc and the second deepest ocean trench at 10 km deep."

Establishing the sanctuary would create a no-take, fully- protected zone preventing all fishing and mining in the area.

"Creating protected areas will support not only our own fisheries, but those of our Pacific neighbors, adding to New Zealand's efforts to help grow Pacific economies through the responsible management of their ocean resources," he said.

The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary would also form an important part of a growing network of marine protected areas across the Pacific, including the U.S. Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, the Australian Coral Sea Commonwealth Marine Reserve and the Pitcairn Islands Marine Reserve recently announced by the British government.

These four areas would cover more than 3.5 million square km in the Pacific Ocean.

The government aimed to pass legislation enabling the creation of the sanctuary next year.

The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and other conservation groups that had campaigned for more than eight years for the sanctuary said the announcement was a major conservation victory that would allow some of the ocean's most exploited and threatened species to recover and flourish.

"This decision puts New Zealand back at the forefront of marine protection on the global stage," WWF-New Zealand chief executive Chris Howe said in a statement. Endi