The Cook Islands
Partnerships in Conservation and Development
The Cook Islands, a Pacific nation state, is made up of 15 small islands scattered over a large area of the central South Pacific ocean, between French Polynesia and Fiji. While its land area covers only about 240 square kilometres, its territorial seas cover nearly 2 million square kilometres.
The population of Cook Islands is around 15,000. Around half of the people live on the main island of Rarotonga. The country is broadly divided into Southern and Northern Groups. The Northern Group of the Cook Islands is made up of coral atolls while the more populous Southern Group consists of uplifted limestone islands, sand cays, the almost-atoll of Aitutaki and the volcanic island of Rarotonga.
Rarotonga is about 3,010 kms northeast of Auckland, 1,140 kms southwest of Tahiti, 2,300kms east of Fiji and 4,730 kms south of Hawaii.
The Cook Islands hurricane/cyclone season is from November through to March each year. Rain, strong winds and possibly cyclones are expected during this period. In February 2005, the Cook Islands suffered five cyclones during a four week period.
Cook Islanders have long lived in close harmony with their environment and the islands are regarded as some of the cleanest in the Pacific. The region's biodiversity is particularly significant on the raised islands. These islands consist of central volcanic hills surrounded by a jagged limestone palisade, called the makatea, which is what remains of an uplifted reef after erosion.
The makatea supports extensive native forests and scrublands, which are wilderness areas of scenic beauty.
Threats to the environment
With such a small area of land, any land-based activity can have a direct or indirect impact on the coast. Agriculture and deforestation wash soil into lagoons, smothering coral and freshwater spawning sites. Effluent seeps into the lagoon from household septic tanks, tourist resorts and farms. Reclamation of land and the construction of seawalls also cause major problems.
Meanwhile, the over-harvesting of marine species such as clams, reef fish and coconut crabs has been severely depleting the coastal environment.