Cablegate: New Zealand Response for Support of Partnerships
VZCZCXYZ0004
RR RUEHWEB
DE RUEHWL #0967 3490358
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 150358Z DEC 05
FM AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2141
INFO RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 4233
UNCLAS WELLINGTON 000967
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
STATE FOR OES/ENV - JOHN THOMPSON AND EAP/ANP - DAN RICCI
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SENV EMIN UNEP NZ
SUBJECT: NEW ZEALAND RESPONSE FOR SUPPORT OF PARTNERSHIPS
TO REDUCE MERCURY POLLUTION
REF: SECSTATE 218928
1. Poloff on December 6 provided reftel demarche points to
Lesley Woudberg, Senior Advisor, Environment Division, NZ
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT). On December
13, Woudberg responded that GNZ is following the UN
Environment Program (UNEP) 2005 decision on mercury closely
and is interested in seeing how effective a partnership
approach will be, believing approaches other than an
international agreement are likely to be most effective.
However, she said that New Zealand is not in a position to
actively pursue partnerships, and GNZ does not see mercury as
a high priority for New Zealand at this time.
2. Woudberg said that New Zealand faces low risk of mercury
from human sources, noting that New Zealand does not have
chlor-alkali facilities, or artisanal and small-scale gold
mining that use mercury. There is relatively little coal
combustion in New Zealand. In order to meet its Kyoto
obligations, New Zealand has recently introduced new air
quality standards. While these do not specifically target
mercury, they will reduce mercury produced by coal
combustion. Woudberg also noted low external risk,
indicating that New Zealand has no large scale, "up wind"
producers, and that circulation patterns in the Southern
Hemisphere do not appear to have the same concentrating
effects as those in the Northern Hemisphere.
3. While noting that the level of risk from human sources is
low, Woudberg indicated that New Zealand does have a
"relatively high level" mercury problem. She indicated that
these mercury levels are naturally-occurring and stem from
volcanic activity. As a result, GNZ has standards related to
the mercury levels in fish, for example.
Burnett