Search the SPREP Catalogue

Climate change has been the topic of much research in the last few decades, however information on its impacts — particularly on remote small island nations — remain scant. Yet, through centuries of observation of their natural environment, Pacific islanders hold a wealth of knowledge of the sky, land, and sea. Sadly, with a shift towards a more western lifestyle on some of these islands in recent decades, this local knowledge is at risk of being lost because it is not passed down to younger generations; recognizing this, Climate Change Cook Islands of the Office of the Prime Minister conducted a questionnaire survey on most of the Cook Islands from January to April 2014. The aim of the survey was to collect information on changes in various biological and physical systems over people’s lifetimes to understand climate variability in this region.

Previous reef surveys on Rarotonga have shown that the crown-of-thorns outbreak in the late 1990s degraded the fore reefs to its current state departure of corals. The 2006 survey indicated that average coral cover at most sites were less than 5%, however it was noted that recovery was occurring. This is consistent with the present survey, which indicated that most sites have doubled their average percent coral cover after three years with some sites showing a greater than three-fold increas.

Cook Islands is composed of 15 islands with a total land area of approximately 23,600ha. which fall naturally into northern and southern groups. The total population at the 1991 census was 18,552, the overwhelming majority of whom live in the southern group, principally on Rarotonga. The area of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is over 1.8 million square kilometres. Though the recent rapid development of a black pearl industry in Cook Islands has been impressive, in general terms the marine resources in Cook Islands' EEZ have yet to be fully developed. Fisheries and marine resources are predominantly utilised by Cook Islanders on a subsistence and artisanal basis. Responsibility for these resources is vested in the (Minister) Ministry of Marine Resources (MMR), headquartered at Avatiu, Rarotonga. Outer islands with fisheries personnel are Pukapuka, Manihiki, Aitutaki, Penrhyn, Palmerston, Mitiaro, and occasionally, Mangaia.