Antarctic research ship ‘a low priority’

Press, 19 December 1984, Page 53

Antarctic research ship ‘a low priority’

PA Wellington A plan for New Zealand to acquire its own Antarctic research ship has a low priority, says the Minister of Science and Technology, Mr Tizard. Officials had recommended that New Zealand would get a better deal by continuing to co-operate

with the United States and using its logistic support than by “trying to go it alone with our own ship.” The former National Government set up a joint committee to study the case for New Zealand acquiring its own vessel to service a variety of needs for several departments.

The committee was to bring together the views of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research incorporating oceanographic and Antarctic research, the Internal Affairs Department and the Agriculture and Fisheries and Transport Ministries. After the loss of the research vessel Tangaroa, which was declared unseaworthy, the D.S.I.R. had put oceanographic research at the top of its list of priorities. “We have got 60 scientists and quite a lot of others in M.A.F. and defence who are interested in oceanographic work, deep-water research, and they have not got a boat to go to sea in,” Mr Tizard said. “That is of much greater immediate significance to New Zealand and its economic zone than the longer range research of Antarctica,” he said. . The committee was looking specifically at a replacement for the Tangaroa and that vessel would not normally be ice-strength-ened. “So far, their inquiries show it is a very costly exercise, if you have a dualpurpose vessel that is not ideal for either purpose and it costs more than a single ship for either purpose. You have spent more money and

you have got a poorer performance,” Mr Tizard said. The committee was trying to reconcile the differing interests and suggests practical ways to fund it, he said. Mr Tizard said the committee had suggested that New Zealand should continue to co-operate with the Americans in Antarctic research. “After all, we are offering them substantial facilities in New Zealand. The recommendation I have had is that we will get a better deal by continuing that arrangement than we would by trying to go it alone with our own ship,” he said. 1 The Minister also said the Government did not know what plans the Chinese may have for establishing an Antarctic base in the Ross Dependency, New Zealand’s sphere of interest in Antarctica. New Zealand had co-oper-ated closely with China since 1979 and last year supplied it with information about possible suitable locations for a base. Mr Tizard said the Chinese had sent an expedition to the peninsular area south of Argentina this season and intended to establish a summer base there.