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Appendix: Environmental Management in New Zealand's Exclusive Economic Zone

Purpose of the appendix

This appendix presents a paper produced by the Ministry for the Environment with the aim of identifying activities currently operating in New Zealand's EEZ and the legislation and environmental requirements that apply to them. The paper also aims to identify activities that could begin in the next 10 or 20 years (based on overseas experience) and the legislation and environmental requirements that would apply to them.

The first section of the paper outlines the legislation that applies to all activities in the EEZ. The paper then takes each of the activities that currently operate in the EEZ (shipping, petroleum activities, submarine cables and pipelines, fishing, scientific research) and gives a brief description of the activity and its environmental effects and the legislation that applies to the activity, and then gives a summary of the environmental requirements that apply to that activity. The paper then does the same thing for activities that may occur in the EEZ in the future (aquaculture, mining of minerals other than petroleum, marine protected areas, tourism projects, energy projects). The conclusion of the paper assesses whether the current legislation is adequate.

Legislation that applies across all activities in the EEZ

There are currently three pieces of legislation that apply across all activities in the EEZ:

the Territorial Sea, Contiguous Zone, and Exclusive Economic Zone Act 1977
the Marine Mammals Protection Act 1978
the Wildlife Act 1953. [Future emissions charge legislation, likely to be administered by IRD, will provide for an emissions charge to be levied on all fossil-sourced CO₂and fossil-sourced CH₄emissions generated in New Zealand. The scope of the charge is intended to match the scope of New Zealand's reporting obligations under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol. Accordingly, the emissions charge is likely to be payable on all emissions generated in the EEZ, including on all fuel purchased inter alia by merchant vessels, research vessels, tourist vessels and recreational vessels for use in the EEZ, or on any journey that begins and ends in New Zealand without entering the port of another state, and by fishing vessels regardless of where the fishing occurs. It is likely the charge will also apply to CO₂and CH₄emissions generated by petroleum and mineral activity in the EEZ and to any other emission-generating activity in the EEZ. The purpose of the emissions charge is to provide an incentive to reduce carbon dioxide and methane emissions and thus indirectly secure an environmental benefit.]

These Acts are described below.

The Territorial Sea, Contiguous Zone, and Exclusive Economic Zone Act 1977 establishes New Zealand's territorial sea, contiguous zone and EEZ. It provides for the exercise of sovereign rights, including the exploration, exploitation, conservation and management of resources within the EEZ. It is administered by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The regulation-making powers of the Act include "prescribing measures for the protection and preservation of the marine environment of the zone".

The Marine Mammals Protection Act 1978 is administered by the Department of Conservation and makes provision for the protection, conservation, and management of marine mammals within New Zealand and within New Zealand fisheries waters (including the EEZ and territorial waters).

Under this Act, every person commits an offence if they:

... except under the authority of any enactment, places or leaves any structure or trap or chemical or other substance in any place where a marine mammal is or is likely to be and which injures or harms, or is likely to injure or harm, any marine mammal, or uses any vehicle, vessel, aircraft, or hovercraft to herd or harass any marine mammal.

In addition, no person may 'take' (broadly defined) a marine mammal without appropriate permits. Where a person accidentally or incidentally kills or injures a marine mammal, reporting procedures must be followed.

The Wildlife Act 1953 is also administered by the Department of Conservation and provides for the protection of control of wildlife. Under this Act, all wildlife is protected in New Zealand and New Zealand fisheries waters apart from those listed in the First to Fifth Schedules of the Act. Any person who accidentally or incidentally kills or injures any wildlife or marine wildlife, must report this to a ranger or fishery officer.

Wildlife includes "any mammal (not being a domestic animal or a rabbit or a hare or a seal or other marine mammal), any bird (not being a domestic bird), any reptile, or any amphibian..." It also includes the following marine species: black coral: all species in the Order Antipatharia; Red coral: all species; and spotted black grouper (Epinephelus daemelii).

Current activities in the EEZ and legislation governing them

1. Shipping

Description of the activity

Despite advances in other forms of transport, shipping remains a relatively inexpensive and efficient method for large-volume goods. Almost 85% of New Zealand exports by value (99% by volume) are carried by sea. Imports, on the other hand, account for 75% by value (also 99% by volume). There is a trend towards larger vessels and, therefore, a reduction in the number of ship visits. The environmental effects of shipping are from discharges (waste, sewage, oil), accidents (oil spills, wrecks, physical damage) and biosecurity risks (ballast water or on the hulls of ships).

Legislation, agency and approval processes

The Maritime Transport Act 1994 is administered by Maritime New Zealand. Marine protection rules specifically cover, inter alia, the disposal of waste at sea, and the operational discharge of oil, noxious liquid substances, sewage, waste and other matters from ships and offshore installations.

Ships and offshore installations must comply with rules relating to the operational discharge of oil and other harmful substances. These rules address the requirements for waste treatments systems and the provisions of emergency response plans to address accidental spills of oil.

The Biosecurity Act 1993 is administered by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. It provides a framework for central government, regional councils and industry groups to manage pests and unwanted organisms in New Zealand. The main risks in the EEZ are around needing to put controls on the discharge of ballast water. The Biosecurity Act applies to "New Zealand territory" - defined by the outer limits of the territorial sea (in that obligations under Part 3 begin when a craft crosses the contiguous zone into New Zealand territory). However, other powers extend into the contiguous zone. Section 4 states that the Act does not impose importation controls on fish and marine mammals taken in the EEZ.

New Zealand hopes to implement the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments 2004 in the next few years. This may be achieved by modification of the present Import Health Standard under the Biosecurity Act, but will probably also be achieved through surveys of ships to ensure that they are equipped for and are operating ballast water management processes. Such surveys could be undertaken under the Maritime Transport Act by Maritime New Zealand.

Steps have been taken in the territorial sea to minimise the risks to the marine environment from ships emptying ballast water. In May 1998 voluntary guidelines for ballast water were replaced with an Import Health Standard, which requires all ships to exchange their ballast with mid-ocean water. Mid-ocean water contains fewer organisms such as planktonic larvae of crabs, sea-stars, fan worms, shellfish, spores of seaweeds. The Import Health Standard names Hobart in Tasmania and the port at Melbourne, Australia as "higher risk areas" due to the presence of the Northern Pacific sea-star, one of the six species identified as posing the highest risk to our marine environment. All water from other countries must be exchanged before discharge in New Zealand waters, but for these high-risk areas, no exemptions (eg, because of adverse sea conditions) can be given for discharge of non-exchanged water. For ballast tanks containing water from these sources the water must be kept on board and not discharged if it has not been exchanged mid-ocean.

The Health and Safety Act 1992 applies to:

people employed (or engaged under an employment agreement or contract for services governed by New Zealand law) to work on board a New Zealand ship
people on board a foreign ship carrying coastal cargo, while the foreign ship is on demise charter to a New Zealand-based operator
people performing work on a foreign ship while it is carrying out petroleum operations in New Zealand continental waters (as defined in section 222[1] of the Maritime Transport Act 1994)
the person who employs or engages the person described above
the ship as a place of work.

2. Petroleum activities

Description of the activity

Offshore hydrocarbon exploration began in New Zealand in the 1960s, and oil and gas have been discovered in several parts of New Zealand's offshore territory, with the only commercial production to date arising from the development of the Maui field, 35 to 50 km off the Taranaki coast. With the decline of the Maui field a number of other offshore oil and gas fields in the EEZ are being appraised and are likely to be developed over the next few years.

Offshore oil and gas production can only follow discovery of commercially viable fields through investment in exploration, which involves a range of activities culminating in drilling and evaluation of exploration (wildcat) and usually appraisal wells, which may or may not be used as production wells.

Prospecting and exploration [For oil, gas or condensate: a deposit of petroleum in the ground at elevated pressure and temperature may be either gas or liquid. In equilibrating to surface pressure and temperature, it will separate into two produced phases - liquid to crude oil plus associated gas; gas to gas plus or minus condensate (some gas is naturally 'dry'). Various fractions can be separated off (eg, propane and butane are gas at the surface but with a little compression become liquid) and transported as a liquid under pressure and sold (eg, in the South Island and for barbecues etc) as LPG, whereas North Island pipeline gas is mainly methane, which practically cannot be liquefied (but can be compressed - as CNG - which has been sold as alternative car fuel).] activities include:

reconnaissance geophysical surveys using an aircraft or a boat
the taking of samples (but not the use of explosives)
marine seismic surveys, which use a boat and a trailing device to produce a sonic wave travelling from the sea surface to sub-sea rock formations (there is evidence that marine seismic surveys may have a short-term adverse effect on some marine life)
rock sampling (aeromagnetic/gravity survey) by boat or aircraft
drilling, which can have the following environmental effects:
- localised contamination of the marine environment through drilling muds
- potential for contamination of marine environment through oil spills and waste discharges
- disturbance of sediments, marine life and habitats (on the seafloor)
- death to marine life (eg, burial, smothering of benthos in the immediate area of the drill site).

Extraction activities include:

drilling the wells to be used to produce the field
installing facilities to handle the produced phases (which may be just gas but usually also liquids - condensate, crude oil and/or formation water)
transporting the produced fluids to further processing facilities either on shore or at a central offshore facility (eg, a platform or moored vessel - generally involving pipelines)
ongoing operational activities to manage the off-take, maintain the facilities, and eventually decommission the wells and facilities when the resources have been depleted.

Legislation, agency and approval processes

The Continental Shelf Act 1964 (section 4) provides that the provisions of the Crown Minerals Act apply to petroleum in the seabed and soil of the continental shelf. Regulations have been made under the Continental Shelf Act. These all relate to controlling safety on and around offshore installations (Floating Storage Productions and Off-loading Safety Zone Regulations, Maui A Safety Zone Regulations and Maui B Safety Zone Regulations).

The creation of an exclusion zone is currently administered by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT). However, as both MFAT and Maritime New Zealand recognise that Maritime New Zealand is better placed to regulate this aspect, MFAT and Maritime New Zealand have agreed to review the process. Exclusion zones are limited to a maximum width of 500 m from the edge of the installation.

Under theCrown Minerals Act 1991 (via section 4 of the Continental Shelf Act 1964), the Minister of Energy (administered by Crown Minerals, an agency within the Ministry of Economic Development) grants permits for prospecting, exploration and mining of petroleum on such conditions as considered necessary (including consultation with iwi). Previously the Petroleum Act 1937 asserted Crown ownership over mineral rights. Applications may be declined on grounds such as an inadequate work programme, but there are no specific environmental obligations in the Act. A standard condition is to comply with "good oil field practice", but this is not defined to any extent.

As resource owner the Crown is in effect licensing the holders of permits under the Crown Minerals Act to discover, develop and produce resources in return for a royalty on production, and the flow-on economic benefits to the economy. The Act provides for a 10-year plan known as the Minerals Programme for Petroleum. The second minerals plan was released on 1 January 2005. Flaring is currently regulated under the Petroleum Regulations 1999, but as a petroleum resource management issue and not as an environmental issue. Flaring can be associated with both exploration and mining and can only be undertaken with the appropriate consent. Under these regulations, gas should not be seen as a waste product. Therefore operators will need to review alternatives and assess all technical and economic options with respect to oil, gas and produced water. This review must consider the long-term production of the project. [Field operators may wish to vent or flare gas, especially when a discovery is under appraisal before enough has been learned to design and install production facilities. During such a well test, the oil can be produced into a tank and driven to a tanker terminal or refinery, but the gas could not be delivered to a user without a potentially wasted major investment in processing facilities and a pipeline (the construction of which would also have environmental effects that may be better avoided). There is a trade-off between the operator's unwillingness to invest to potentially sell at an economic loss, the Crown's (as owner/licenser) desire to have the resource used if at all possible (it is not their economic loss), the immediate environmental "footprint" where flaring or even venting may be preferable to the construction of facilities and pipelines that end up serving little or no long-term purpose, versus the hypothetical greenhouse effects on the global environment.]

Petroleum prospecting permits are granted under the Crown Minerals Act for the purpose of conducting reconnaissance geophysical surveys and/or reconnaissance geochemical surveys and/or general investigative studies or surveys with the purpose of providing information for further petroleum exploration. Prospecting may also include the taking of samples by hand or hand-held methods. Prospecting permits may be granted both offshore and onshore. Work undertaken over the permits is most likely to be minimum impact activity, which is defined in section 2 of the Crown Minerals Act 1991. (This is not, however, a requirement of such permits). Petroleum prospecting permits are relatively rarely issued - only three or four have been issued in 10 years (of which one has included a marine seismic survey).

Petroleum exploration permits are granted under the Crown Minerals Act for the purpose of undertaking work to identify petroleum deposits, and evaluating the feasibility of mining any discoveries made. Exploration activities include geological, geochemical and geophysical surveying, exploration and appraisal drilling, and testing of petroleum discoveries. In most cases, an exploration permit would precede the consideration and granting of a mining permit. Petroleum exploration permits are more commonly granted, even though initial activities are often better classified as 'prospecting'. The distinction between the prospecting permit and the exploration permit is not the activities to be conducted but the nature of the property right - a prospecting permit is non-exclusive whereas an exploration permit is exclusive and also carries the exclusive right to a mining permit over any discovery made within the area of the exploration permit.

Mining permits are granted under the Crown Minerals Act to enable the development of a petroleum field with the purpose of extracting and producing petroleum. A petroleum field is defined by the occurrence of a petroleum deposit or accumulation, and can be specified in terms of a geological formation or formations or parts of formations, or a specified reservoir or reservoirs, or a combination of any of the aforementioned. A mining permit also allows the permit holder to undertake prospecting or exploration activities in the area over which the mining permit is held.

An application for a mining permit is made exclusively by an exploration permit holder who has discovered a petroleum field within the exploration permit area. The application is made in accordance with sections 23 and 32(3) and subject to sections 27 and 43 of the Crown Minerals Act 1991. It is referred to as a subsequent (mining) permit application. Section 32(3) provides that the holder of an exploration permit has an exclusive right to apply for, and to receive, a mining permit (except where the original permit states otherwise), provided that the exploration permit holder meets all the following requirements:

satisfies the Minister that a petroleum field has been discovered as a result of activities authorised by the exploration permit
applies under section 23 of the Act before the expiry of the exploration permit to surrender the permit insofar as it relates to the land in which the discovery exists
has a work programme approved, pursuant to section 43(1)(a) of the Crown Minerals Act 1991, unless the Minister agrees that a work programme is not required to be approved, pursuant to section 43(1)(b) which so provides; then
the permit holder shall be granted, in exchange for the surrendered exploration permit area, a mining permit.

Maritime Transport Act 1994 - marine protection rules set by Maritime New Zealand can apply to ships or offshore installations. In addition, a Marine Protection Rule (Part 200) covering operational discharges other than oil from offshore installations is currently being drafted by Maritime New Zealand. This rule will cover aspects such as drill cuttings, produced water, and other chemical discharges, and will focus on environmental management of these discharges. It aims to take a non-prescriptive, partnership approach rather than establishing and enforcing performance standards. The proposed rule will also apply the chemical classification framework that has been developed under the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act (HSNO). The only prescriptive aspect of the rule is that oil discharge from produced water should not exceed 30 mg/L produced water on a monthly average, and 100 mg/L at a maximum.

Health and Safety Act 1992 - fixed installations are covered by the Petroleum Regulations of the Health and Safety in Employment Act.

Summary of environmental requirements

Maritime Transport Act 1994 - marine protection rules set by Maritime New Zealand can apply to ships or offshore installations conducted on a ship. A Marine Protection Rule (Part 200) covering operational discharges other than oil from offshore installations is currently being drafted by Maritime New Zealand.

Crown Minerals Act 1991 - there is no legal requirement for the assessment of environmental effects to be undertaken, and it can not be included as a condition of a mining permit.

3. Submarine cables and pipelines

Description of the activity

Around 90% of international telecommunication services with New Zealand are carried on submarine cable systems and the remainder via satellites. The majority of services carried on submarine cables systems today consist of data in the form of email and internet traffic. The business process involves very expensive capital investment in cable and associated electronic infrastructure, recovered by low-cost, high-volume toll returns. A submarine cable failure could have a serious impact on the New Zealand economy. Risks to cables come in the form of natural causes or other ocean users.

Pipelines service the Maui gas field off Taranaki. These pipelines have been a vital component of primary energy supply since gas and condensate started to flow to shore in 1979. They may become less significant economically as supplies from the Maui field start to taper off, or, on the other hand, they may be utilised as part of some future offshore petroleum development.

Laying of cables can involve the clearing of seabed route by pre-lay grapnel (eg, Telecom cables require a four-metre-wide strip), or installation using a cable installation ship and submarine cable plough (eg, Telecom cables are buried two metres below the seabed). These activities may disturb marine sediment processes and impact on marine biota and fisheries.

The submerged cables in New Zealand's EEZ are part of the Southern Cross Cable Network and stretch between Auckland and Sydney and Auckland and Hawaii. There are no other planned cables listed.

Legislation, agency and approval processes

Submarine Cables and Pipelines Protection Act 1996 - the Minister of Transport is responsible for administering the Submarine Cables and Pipelines Protection Act 1996. The Governor-General can (by Order in Council and on the recommendation of the Minister of Transport) declare areas to be protected for the purposes of the Act.

An Order in Council can be made to regulate the navigation or conduct of ships engaged in the laying, repairing or maintenance of submarine cables or submarine pipelines and prescribing the lights or signals to be displayed by those ships while engaged in those operations.

4. Fishing

Description of the activity

Fishing is New Zealand's fourth largest export earner. Despite the size of New Zealand's EEZ, its waters are relatively deep and not particularly rich in nutrients, so the productivity of its fisheries resources is relatively low. New Zealand's offshore fisheries are among the deepest in the world. Species such as orange roughy, which live at depths of up to 1500 m, present special challenges for fishing and stock management. The New Zealand fishery is arguably approaching the limits of exploitation, and few prospects for expansion, with growth potential mainly dependent on added value from processing and marketing gains.

Since the development of deepwater fisheries in New Zealand's EEZ in the 1970s and 1980s much of the EEZ has now been explored by modern fishing and research vessels, and it does not appear that there are many undiscovered fishing resources of significant size.

Fishing gear that makes contact with benthic habitats (bottom trawls, dredges) has the potential to create a major ecological impact. The nature and extent of that impact depends on the type of gear used, the way in which it is used, the frequency with which it makes contact with the habitat, and the sensitivity of the habitat to the removal of susceptible species or disturbance of the substrate. The importance of these types of effects can only be determined on a case-by-case basis, although some combination of gear types and substrates are potentially more damaging than others.

Legislation, agency and approval processes

Fisheries Act 1996 - the purpose of the Fisheries Act is to provide for the utilisation of fisheries resources while ensuring sustainability (defined as maintaining resources to meet the reasonably foreseeable needs of future generations, and avoiding, remedying, or mitigating any adverse effects of fishing on the aquatic environment).

Engagement in commercial fishing requires obtaining a fishing permit and compliance with the applicable rules. All fishers have to report catch and comply with catch, method and other restrictions. For species in the Quota Management System (QMS), the fisher must either cover their catch with ACE (annual catch entitlement, which is generated from quota holding) or pay a deemed value. Both quota and ACE may be bought and sold on the open market. Fishing for commercial species not in the QMS, other than tuna, is limited to those who had permits for those fisheries when the permit moratorium came into effect in the early 1990s. The Ministry of Fisheries is putting a lot of work into bringing non-QMS fisheries into the QMS.

Less well-defined rights exist for recreational and Maori fishers. Anyone can engage in recreational fishing providing they comply with the rules (bag limits, size limits, closed areas, etc). Customary fishing needs to be undertaken within the authority of a customary fishing permit.

The Minister of Fisheries sets a total allowable catch (TAC) for each fish stock in the QMS, after consideration of biological and other information. Sustainability of target fish stocks is fundamental to managing the effects of fishing. Over the last five years the amount of research devoted to biodiversity, including the impacts of fishing on non-target stocks and habitats, has increased significantly. This research helps inform fisheries management decisions. Environmental information is taken into account where it is available, but industry and environmental groups often dispute how well this has been done.

The total allowable catch may be subject to change where research indicates a change in the population of the fish stock, or where there are concerns about impacts on by-catch species or the marine environment. Early closure of one of New Zealand's most commercially valued squid fisheries, the 6T squid fishery, has occurred in previous fishing years when the permissible New Zealand sealion (previously called the Hooker sealion) by-catch limit has been exceeded.

In setting annual catches for the total allowable catch, the Minister must take account of any population management plan under the Wildlife Act or the Marine Mammals Protection Act, but currently there are no such plans. Measures have been developed under section 15 of the Fisheries Act to manage the impacts on sealions, and there are also emergency powers available to address any serious decline in or threat to fisheries, including a significant adverse change in the marine environment (section 16).

In addition, there are a raft of other fisheries regulations that have the effect of managing the impacts of fishing on the environment. These include closed areas, closed seasons, fishing method restrictions. Local area management tools (mataitai, taiapure and rahui) also assist in managing the impacts of fishing on the environment.

The Ministry of Fisheries does not currently have specified or structured environmental assessment procedures as such. Anyone may undertake commercial fishing provided they comply with the rules. However, the draft Ministry of Fisheries Strategy for Managing the Effects of Fishing is designed to ensure that the Ministry of Fisheries meets its environmental obligations in an efficient and consistent manner. The Strategy proposes that an environmental risk assessment be undertaken for each fishery within a specified timeframe.

The Territorial Sea, Contiguous Zone, and Exclusive Economic Zone Act 1977 - this provides for the exploration, exploitation, conservation and management of resources within the EEZ. Linkage is made to the Fisheries Act through the deeming of seas of the EEZ as New Zealand Fisheries waters.

5. Scientific research

Description of the activity

New Zealand's open ocean environments are important in many ways. They are part of a global system of cycling nutrients and chemicals, and they drive many aspects of our local climate and climate variability. New Zealand has an extremely diverse marine flora and fauna, with its EEZ representing one of the world's most extensive and varied marine environments. They also contain a diversity of life that is economically important (eg, for fishing and aquaculture), and which supports conservation values and recreational use of the sea. Therefore, many of our activities in New Zealand are connected to the biological and physical processes operating in the ocean. Many of these issues are or will be important in managing how we as a country understand and use the marine environment.

Bio-prospecting is the examination of biological resources (eg, plants, animals, micro-organisms) for features that may be of value for commercial development. Bio-prospecting focuses on the discovery and commercialisation of valuable biological features. It is not genetic modification, although this is one of many possible research and development techniques that could be applied to a bio-prospecting discovery. Essentially, bio-prospecting involves taking something from the ocean for research and development.

There are many different methodologies for conducting scientific research, and some of them can cause significant environmental damage; for example, the towing of a dredge across the sea floor to take rock samples).

Legislation, agency and approval processes

Fisheries Act 1996 - to engage in commercial fishing requires a permit and compliance with the applicable rules and regulations. Special permits can, however, exempt individuals from rules and regulations applying to commercial fishing. They may be granted under the Fisheries Act (section 97) at the discretion of the Ministry of Fisheries Chief Executive for:

education
investigative research
pest control
trials of fishing gear or vessels
sport or recreation for disabled persons
any other purpose approved by the Minister.

A special permit for 'investigative research' can be issued as part of an umbrella special permit or on a case-by-case basis. In considering applications, the Ministry of Fisheries Chief Executive must consult relevant parties if the special permit will have a 'significant effect on fisheries resources' or any fishing interests. The Chief Executive of the Ministry of Fisheries must take into account:

the purpose of the Fisheries Act (to provide for utilisation of fisheries resources while ensuring sustainability)
the environmental principles in the Fisheries Act (to maintain associated and dependent species, to maintain aquatic biodiversity and to protect habitat of particular significance for fisheries management)
information principles in the Fisheries Act (base decisions on best available information and apply the precautionary principle).

Investigative research proposals must include a detailed proposal (species, quantities required, vessel, method, personnel) and a standard Ministry of Fisheries research proposal. Permits are issued for a maximum of three years.

The Territorial Sea, Contiguous Zone, and Exclusive Economic Zone Act 1977 - under sections 8 and 27, where no other Act applies, regulations may be made in respect of the territorial sea or the EEZ for any of the following purposes:

regulating the conduct of scientific research
protection of the marine environment
regulating construction and use of artificial islands
regulating exploration and exploitation of energy projects
providing for other matters and giving effect to sovereignty.

Regulation-making powers are for enforcement and setting penalties, but no regulations have been set so far. Doubt has been expressed about the usefulness of regulations under section 27. They are limited to circumstances 'where no other provision for the time being made by any other enactment for any such purposes'. This qualification that would seem to leave room for legal challenge.

In accordance with the provisions of UNCLOS, the New Zealand government authorises access to the EEZ by foreign vessels for the purposes of marine scientific research. Parties to UNCLOS are obliged to undertake marine scientific research in compliance with all relevant regulations adopted in conformity with UNCLOS, including those for the protection and preservation of the marine environment.

6. Dumping

Description of the activity

The environmental effect of dumping is dependent on the amount and type of waste and the sensitivity of the area where it is dumped. In New Zealand dumping is largely restricted to the disposal of dredge spoil generated from port and harbour dredging activities, but old ships are also disposed of (several a year). There is the potential for used petroleum production facilities to be left on site when decommissioned..

Legislation, agency and approval processes

Maritime Transport Act 1994 - the Maritime Transport Act is administered by Maritime New Zealand. Marine protection rules specifically cover, inter alia, the disposal of waste at sea, and the operational discharge of oil, noxious liquid substances, sewage, waste and other matters from ships and offshore installations.

Marine Protection Rule Part 180 is concerned with the standards and processes for the deliberate disposal of non-operational waste or other matter from ships, offshore installations and aircraft into the sea. Largely this is restricted to the disposal of dredge spoil generated from port and harbour dredging activities. It is also concerned with the deliberate disposal of ships, offshore installations and aircraft into the sea. The sea area covered by Part 180 includes all dumping within the exclusive economic zone of New Zealand and areas beyond that zone where New Zealand ships and aircraft are involved.

The New Zealand Guidelines for Sea Disposal of Waste is a joint publication of Maritime New Zealand and the Ministry for the Environment. It provides advice on preparing applications for permits to dump waste at sea, and is used by the Director of Maritime Safety as an aid in making decisions on applications. The Guidelines, which are incorporated by reference as an Advisory Circular to Part 180, include a form of application for a permit to dump waste or other matter under the Maritime Transport Act 1994.

Future activities in the EEZ

7. Marine farming (aquaculture)

Description of the activity

Marine farming is the propagation and husbandry of aquatic plants and animals to supplement the natural supply. These activities can occur in both natural waters and in artificial aquatic impoundments. There is currently a proposal for a marine farm that extends into the EEZ.

Possible advantages of aquaculture in the EEZ include the ease with which water temperature can be controlled by mixing surface water with deep sea water, and disease control, as there are few viruses and pathogenic bacteria in deep sea water. A disadvantage includes the maintenance required to keep the water intake pipes free of organisms that cling to the pipes and foul the water. Aquaculture projects in Japan's EEZ are being carried out in Kochi and Toyama Prefectures (Fujita 1997, Taniguchi 1997) and are at an experimental level, but the egg production of Japanese flounder has been demonstrated to be practical since 1997.

The effects of aquaculture vary according to the type of farm and the surrounding environment. Wastes (uneaten fish food and faeces) enter the environment causing nutrient enrichment and accumulations of organic matter on the seabed, or both. Fish, shellfish or other farmed species infected with disease may introduce pathogens to the environment, and escaped exotic fish from the farms can alter the biodiversity of an area.

Legislation, agency and approval processes

Resource Management Act 1991 and the Fisheries Act 1996 - the Aquaculture Reform Act 2004 created a single process for aquaculture planning and consents, through the Resource Management Act 1991. Regional and unitary councils manage all of the environmental effects of aquaculture, including effects on fisheries and other marine resources. Marine farms can only occur in zoned areas, known as aquaculture management areas. The effects of aquaculture on fishing activity are taken into account by a test under the Fisheries Act 1996.

It is unclear what legislation would apply to an aquaculture venture in the EEZ as the Resource Management Act 1991 applies only to the limit of the territorial sea.

8. Minerals other than petroleum

Description of the activity

There are mineral deposits with long-term potential in the EEZ, including phosphate nodules, poly-metallic nodules and volcanic massive sulphides. Research is needed to determine how much of New Zealand's offshore mineral wealth might be economically viable, given continued improvement in the technologies of prospecting and mining.

New Zealand's EEZ also has the most promising known gas hydrate resource potential in the southwest Pacific. They are known to occur along the East Coast of the North Island and Fiordland and along at least one of the margins of the Lord Howe Rise. They are an appealing energy source because they release less CO₂ than other energy sources. The commercial viability of these resources is still uncertain, and gas production from gas hydrates faces significant engineering challenges.

Prospecting/exploration activities include: multi eco-sounding, plume sampling, use of submersibles, geochemical sampling, rock sampling by video grab sampling (from ship or ROV) or dredges. Depending on the prospecting or exploration methods being employed, the environmental impacts will range from nil to localised impacts that could be significant.

Viable economic methods are yet to be developed for the extractionof minerals other than petroleum, suction dredge, scoop, grab and drag methods have been trialled in the past. Environmental impacts will depend on the environment: where there are no flora or fauna then the impacts will be negligible, but where flora and fauna exist impacts could be significant depending on the environment and the scale of extraction.

Legislation, agency and approval processes

Continental Shelf Act 1964 - this is administered by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The Act provides the Minister of Energy with discretion to add conditions to prospecting and mining licences. Licences granted under the Continental Shelf Act are subject to the conditions that the Minister of Energy thinks fit to impose in the circumstances. The Ministry for the Environment is responsible for providing the government with advice on the application, operation and effectiveness of the Act in relation to the achievement of the objectives of the Environment Act 1986.

Environmental requirements

Continental Shelf Act 1964 - section 8(f) provides a power (through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade) to make regulations to prescribe measures to be taken in safety zones for the protection of living resources of the sea and natural resources of the continental shelf from harmful agents. While the Minister of Energy has discretion to add such conditions to licences as he or she thinks fit, it is considered unlikely that this would extend to environmental conditions, other than in a very general nature, as the Minister has no responsibility in this regard.

9. Marine protection

Description of the activity

An objective of the New Zealand Biodiversity Strategy is to expand the network of marine protected areas (using marine reserves and other forms of legal protection) so that it fully represents the range of New Zealand's coastal and marine ecosystems and habitats. By 2010 it is hoped to have protected 10 per cent of the marine environment. Currently over 7% of the territorial sea is protected under marine reserves. [As of May 2003.]

Legislation, agency and approval processes

The Marine Reserves Bill, which has been introduced into Parliament and is to be reported back from Select Committee, would allow marine reserves to be created in the EEZ.

Under the Fisheries Act 1996, fisheries closures and restrictions contribute, in varying degrees, to marine protection. A couple of examples are the Spirits Bay closure in the far north and the closure of 19 deep water sea mounts.

10. Tourism

Description of the activity

There is growing interest overseas in deep-sea hydrothermal vents for tourism. [Tours are offered to the Nine North hydrothermal vent located 500 miles off the coast of Mexico at nine degrees North latitude in the Pacific Ocean, 8600 feet below the surface. Along with a team of deep-ocean ecologists and other scientists, you can travel to 'immense hydrothermal chimneys, some reaching five stories tall, where you find yourself in a wonderland of alien marine life'.] New Zealand has at least 16 hydrothermal vents, which are located hundreds of metres below the ocean surface. Hydrothermal vents usually form as a result of volcanic activity on the ocean floor. They support thriving communities that include blind shrimp, white crabs, giant tubeworms, clams, shell-less snails, anemones, and fish. These rare geological features have turned out to be veritable oases in the deep sea, with a biomass equivalent to that of a rainforest. Instead of sunlight, the life that colonizes the vents relies on hydrogen sulphide. Similar to the way that plants use the sun's energy for photosynthesis, the energy created when hydrogen sulfide oxidises can be used by some bacteria for growth, in a process called chemosynthesis. These bacteria form the bottom level of the food chain in these ecosystems, upon which all other vent animals are dependent.

Legislation, agency and approval processes

regulating the conduct of scientific research
protection of the marine environment
regulating the construction and use of artificial islands
regulating exploration and exploitation of energy projects
providing for other matters and giving effect to sovereignty.

Regulation-making powers are for enforcement and setting of penalties, but no regulations have been set so far. Doubt has been expressed about the usefulness of regulations under section 27, because they are limited to circumstances 'where no other provision for the time being made by any other enactment for any such purposes'. This qualification would seem to leave room for legal challenge.

11. Energy projects

Description of the activity

The majority of technologies to create ocean energy are currently immature and may require at least 10 years before implementation. The hostile nature of the environment for man-made structure also imparts high potential costs on the fabrication, operation and maintenance of ocean energy devices.

Offshore wind farms have been, and are being, extensively developed in countries surrounding the North Sea, enhancing the technologies and reducing the costs. The benefits of offshore wind farms compared with locations on land are enhanced wind strength and reduced visual, noise and other environmental intrusion. Transmission losses from offshore locations, the cost of setting foundations for large wind turbines and water depth all limit the distance such wind farms can be established offshore. Existing technologies are such that offshore wind farms can be developed in water depths up to 40 m and up to 30 km from the coast.

Wave and swell energy devices extract kinetic energy from the passage or breaking of ocean waves or the bottom or tidal currents. Most of these devices are not designed for the deep sea yet.

Oceans thermal exchange is a heat exchange process using the temperature difference between warm surface water and cold water at depths greater than 1000 m. Research has shown that a temperature difference of more than 20 degrees is required. Because of New Zealand's latitude range, seawater temperature differences in domestic waters are less than 20 degrees so the process is likely to be very inefficient here and unlikely to be economically attractive.

Legislation, agency and approval processes

The Territorial Sea and Exclusive Economic Zone Act 1977 - under sections 8 and 27, where no other Act applies, regulations may be made in respect of the territorial sea or the EEZ for any of the following purposes:

regulating conduct of scientific research
protection of the marine environment
regulating construction and use of artificial islands
regulating exploration and exploitation of energy projects
providing for other matters and giving effect to sovereignty.

Regulation-making powers are for enforcement and setting of penalties, but no regulations have been set so far. Doubt has been expressed about the usefulness of regulations under section 27. They are limited to circumstances 'where no other provision for the time being made by any other enactment for any such purposes'. This qualification would seem to leave room for legal challenge.

12. Other activities

Legislation, agency and approval processes

regulating the conduct of scientific research
protection of the marine environment
regulating construction and use of artificial islands
regulating exploration and exploitation of energy projects
providing for other matters and giving effect to sovereignty.

Regulation-making powers are for enforcement and setting of penalties, but no regulations have been set so far. Doubt has been expressed about the usefulness of regulations under section 27, because they are limited to circumstances "where no other provision for the time being made by any other enactment for any such purposes". This qualification that would seem to leave room for legal challenge.

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