Simpson Scott: Oral Questions — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeSimpson Scott: Oral Questions — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 13 October 2015. Volume:709;Page:7119. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]10.SCOTT SIMPSON (National—Coromandel) to the Minister for the Environment: What specific species and natural features does the Government aim to protect from the Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary announced by the Prime Minister at the United Nations in New York on 28 September?Hon Dr NICK SMITH (Minister for the Environment): The Kermadecs area is one of the most pristine places on earth and is host to over 6 million seabirds of 39 different species; 35 species of whales and dolphins including the largest animal on earth the blue whale; and hundreds of species of fish and other marine life unique to the area. Significant natural features include the longest underwater chain of submerged volcanoes anywhere in the world and the second-deepest ocean trench in the world which at over 10000 metres deep is deeper than Mount Everest is tall. The Prime Minister’s announcement of this huge sanctuary is akin to a national park of the sea and is as historic as that of Prime Minister Seddon’s in the 1890s in creating our first national park in Tongariro and the announcement of the largest national park in Fiordland by Prime Minister Holland in the 1950s.Scott Simpson: How does this new ocean sanctuary compare internationally and what feedback has the Minister received on the Prime Minister’s announcement?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: The new sanctuary of 620000 square kilometres is twice the area of New Zealand’s land or about the size of France. It will be the largest contiguous area of completely protected ocean in the world. The new sanctuary ensures that we meet our commitments as a country under the Convention on Biological Diversity to have 10 percent of our sea in marine protected areas. To give some sense of scale this new sanctuary will be 35 times larger than the total of all of our existing 44 marine reserves and sets us at 15 percent of our marine area and above that target. The Prime Minister’s announcement has been widely welcomed internationally with strong commendations from people including former US President Bill Clinton the current Secretary of State for the US John Kerry and advocates for improved oceans management like Prince Albert of Monaco and Richard Branson.Scott Simpson: How does this Kermadec announcement fit within the Government’s broader ambition of being a world leader in responsible management of our oceans?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: Firstly New Zealand has a world-class fisheries management system with the quota management system. Secondly the new exclusive economic zone legislation that we passed in 2012 addressed the anomaly of an absence of environmental regulation for activities in that area and matches up with world best practice. Thirdly we have made good progress with marine protected areas with 10 new marine reserves in the territorial sea established last year and now with the Kermadec Islands which we will aim to have in place by 1 October next year. The next steps will be revising our outdated marine reserves legislation and continuing our efforts internationally to establish a marine protected area in the Ross Sea through the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources process which meets in Hobart in a fortnight.