Waitakere gives speedboats the nod over rare dolphin

Green Party conservation spokesperson Metiria Turei is shocked the Waitakere City Council has approved the Thundercat speedboat race at Piha this weekend.

“This area is a habitat for the critically endangered Maui dolphin. There are only just over 100 of these dolphins left, and they are next in line for extinction if urgent action is not taken to prevent any further deaths.

The Maui dolphin is a sub-species of the Hector’s dolphin - the world’s smallest and rarest marine dolphin found no where else in the world, New Zealand’s only endemic dolphin.

“Surely protecting this precious taonga of the sea takes precedence over a speed boat race?” Mrs Turei asks.

“At this time of year, the dolphins will have young calves born over the summer. This puts the population especially at risk. If a breeding female or calf is killed the population is put at very serious risk of extinction. Waitakere City prides itself on its environmental record but in this matter it has made an extremely serious mistake.

“Do the Waitakere people want a Maui dolphin death on their conscience? Because that is a very real risk, should this speed boat race proceed.

“The Government has delayed its threat management plan proposal which should deal with serious threats such as this boat race along with the other threats from pollution, habitat damage and set netting. Even then, the plan contains no option to fully protect the Maui.

“We really must stop making concerned noises and make some serious commitments to protect the future of this species,” Mrs Turei says.