Marine Biodiversity Research

Background

New Zealand’s indigenous biodiversity – the native species, their genetic diversity, and the habitats and ecosystems that support them – is of great value to the quality of life of New Zealand’s citizens and their sense of identity as a nation. New Zealand’s high level of endemic biodiversity makes a unique contribution to global biodiversity and places an obligation on New Zealanders to ensure its continued existence. New Zealand is also committed to the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity through various international agreements.

New Zealand’s coastal and marine environments probably contain our largest source of biodiversity. However, we have a limited understanding of these environments and how our activities impact on them. Many distinctive marine habitats and clusters of species are under pressure, including species that still have not been named.

In June 2000, the New Zealand Government announced it would spend $14.1 million on research programmes to increase our knowledge of marine biodiversity. This funding is part of a comprehensive five-year Biodiversity Strategy package involving conservation, environment, fisheries and biosecurity. Projects funded through the package link to the strategy’s goals to halt the decline in New Zealand’s biodiversity and to enhance community and individual action, responsibility and benefits. Projects will also support the government’s strategic goal of protecting and enhancing the environment.

The marine biodiversity programme within the Biodiversity Strategy aims to improve understanding of New Zealand’s marine biodiversity by improving the management of marine biodiversity information, increasing our knowledge of selected marine communities, and identifying and assessing potential threats to biodiversity. Research will contribute to the conservation and sustainable use of New Zealand’s marine biodiversity.

Implementation of the Marine Biodiversity Programme

The scope of the research activities in the Marine Biodiversity area are broadly defined in the Government’s “The New Zealand Biodiversity Strategy – Our Chance to Turn the Tide” (the Biodiversity Strategy).

The New Zealand Biodiversity Strategy lists four desired outcomes for 2020: 

• New Zealand’s natural marine habitats and ecosystems are maintained in a healthy functioning state. Degraded marine habitats are recovering. A full range of marine habitats and ecosystems representative of New Zealand’s indigenous biodiversity is protected. 
• No human-induced extinctions of marine species within New Zealand’s marine environment have occurred. Rare or threatened marine species are adequately protected from harvesting and other human threats, enabling them to recover. 
• Marine biodiversity is appreciated, and any harvesting or marine development is done in an informed, controlled and ecologically sustainable manner. 
• No new undesirable introduced species are established, and threats to indigenous biodiversity from established exotic organisms are being reduced and controlled.

In announcing the funding package in June 2000, the Government stated that the marine biodiversity research to support those actions would include:

• Directed research on the diversity of selected marine communities within the New Zealand EEZ, and the Ross Sea Region; and 
• Development of a National Aquatic Biodiversity Information System.

The expected outcomes of these research programmes (in combination with other programmes) are: 

• A knowledge base to improve management of the marine environment; and 
• A knowledge base to enable decision makers to consider whole marine ecosystems.

Research Planning

The Biodiversity Research Advisory Group (BRAG) meets at least once a year to review research undertaken in this programme and discuss future research priorities. Proposals for future research may come internally from the Ministry and externally from research providers or other stakeholders. The Ministry makes decisions on which research proposals to fund after considering the recommendations of BRAG.

It is expected that other programmes under the Biodiversity Strategy will recommend areas of research required to answer management questions. Research ideas will be developed into project outlines to be tendered or through a Request for Proposals process. In some limited instances research may be directly contracted.

Contestability

Proposals and tenders for Biodiversity research come to the contracts management group from Science Policy on an ‘as and when needed’ basis. The Biodiversity Strategy Research Requirements document sets out the terms and conditions for proposals and tenders.