For just under 150 dollars (about 590 thousand Colombian pesos) it is possible to sponsor the conservation of one square kilometer of waters on the small island of Niue, in the western South Pacific.
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Located halfway between Fiji and the Cook Islands, The vast waters of the island, known as the “Rock of Polynesia”, are home to coral reefs and mountains. Underwater are sharks, dolphins, turtles, among other species..
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But finding funding to protect these habitats from the threats of illegal fishing, climate change and pollution has been a challenge for one of the world’s smallest states.
“We have been attending conferences for a long time, telling our story, but it seems as if we are getting nowhere,” the island’s Prime Minister Dalton Tagelagi told AFP in an interview at the United Nations headquarters. in New York, adding that he sees summits between leaders as “festive talk without action.”
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We’ve been attending conferences for a long time, telling our story, but it seems like we’re getting nowhere.
With this new plan, the so-called Ocean Conservation Commitments (OCCs, in English) are offered to companies, philanthropists and individuals who can pay from 250 New Zealand dollars – about 149 dollars – to protect a unit of one square kilometer of surface of its waters.
The island’s government wants to protect 127,000 square kilometers of ocean40% of its sovereign waters.
Through this initiative, Niue hopes to raise $18 million over a 20-year period.
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“It’s very exciting,” said Tagelagi, adding that the government itself is sponsoring 1,700 units, one for each inhabitant of the island.
Drone monitoring
Much of the fishing in Niue is carried out as a subsistence method, using traditional canoes.
But as technology improves over time, both in fishing and food refrigeration equipment, the amount of fish harvested has been increasing, Brendon Pasisi, manager of the Niue Ocean Wide project, a public-private entity in charge of the initiative, told AFP.
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Therefore, there is a risk of foreign fishing fleets fishing in protected areas.
In addition, plastic pollution and industrial waste runoff contribute to the degradation of the marine environment, he added.
“It’s a huge area to cover with patrol boats, so we are looking for drones,” Premier Tagelagi said.
The atoll, which rises about 60 meters above ocean level at its highest point, is not at risk of being covered by sea level, as are many other small island states.
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But the climate threatens it in multiple ways, for example with ocean acidification and warming that threatens marine species including corals, and rising sea levels could contaminate the island’s freshwater sources.
Climate change also intensifies tropical storms. In fact, Niue suffered for years the consequences of the passage of Cyclone Heta, category 5, in 2004..
By protecting their natural treasures, the island’s inhabitants are not only honoring the values of their ancestors, but also “this can be an unexpected economic benefit for us” in terms of increased tourism, Tagelagi said.
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Those who contribute will receive a certificate along with an annual progress report.
‘Innovative’
Angelo Villagomez, a researcher at the Center for American Progress and an expert on Native-led conservation issues, praised the concept as a “very innovative model.”
“If we are going to attack climate change, if we are going to protect ocean resources, we have to get money to these communities on the front lines,” he said.
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This, Villagomez added, is vital for everything from purchasing boats and fuel, to developing management plans and paying the salaries of ranger and scientific staff.
Success could be measured with key indicators, Villagomez added: “Are there more fish? Are climate change measures in place?”.
Additionally, a communications effort may be needed to make the public understand ocean protected areas the same way they do natural parks: something real and tangible, rather than existing only on paper.
AFP
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