Protect Avaavaroa Passage

Sign The petition here

Who we are and our interest

Snorkel Cook Islands is a locally owned, shore-based turtle snorkel tour business that has operated at Avaavaroa since 2018. We don't use motorboats or sea scooters, so we have a commercial interest in how the passage is managed, and we say so openly. We have not signed the Cook Islands Tourism Turtle Tour MOU. This page explains why.

Pillar A · Lead

Environmental impact

Engine noise

  • When boat noise was added to reef sound, 44% of settlement-stage reef fish larvae swam away from it, compared with 8% when reef sound was played alone.1 Fewer larvae settled on reefs where boat noise was played.2
  • Motorboat noise made reef fish six times less likely to startle at a simulated predator. In field trials, predators ate more than twice as many prey fish while motorboats were passing.3
  • In one coastal turtle foraging area, noise within the turtles' hearing range was 26 dB higher at busy boating times than at quiet times. The researchers say this could affect turtle behaviour.4

Fuel and oil

In conventional carburetted two-stroke engines, "up to 30% of the fuel passes through the combustion chamber unburned or partially burned", and is released into the water and air (US EPA).5 Losses are highest at low speeds,6 and modern direct-injection engines cut unburned hydrocarbons by 70–90%.7

Propellers and speed

Only 4% of green turtles moved out of the way of a vessel travelling at 19 km/h, compared with 60% at 4 km/h.8 In tests, propeller guards did not prevent catastrophic damage to model turtle shells at 40 km/h.9 Hawksbill turtles are Critically Endangered.10

Pillar B

Safety hazard

Cook Islands Tourism has described the passage as "notorious for drownings".11 It has also said that "voluntary compliance alone is not enough".12

What the law requires

  • Every motorised vessel under 24 m must be registered, and anyone driving one needs a Motorised Vessel Drivers Licence.13
  • Commercial passenger vessels need a Cook Islands Boatmaster Certificate or equivalent.14
  • Vessels travelling at 10 knots or more must stay 60 m from any person in the water. Bow riding is banned.13

The risks we see

  • Collision risk where boats, sea scooters and swimmers share a narrow rip channel
  • Speed and wash near swimmers
  • Passenger loading compared with each vessel's rated capacity
  • Whether licences and registration are checked in the passage

Why the MOU is not enough

The Turtle Tour MOU is voluntary and "not legally binding".15 Cook Islands Tourism says it "was created and is driven by the TTOs [turtle tour operators] themselves".16 It does not address either pillar.17

IssueWhat the MOU does
A Engine noiseNo clause at all
A Fuel, oil, engine standardsNo clause. There is only a general promise to minimise "adverse effects"
A Speed near turtlesNo limit. Keep 3 m from turtles "whenever possible"
B Boat and scooter numbersNo cap
B LicensingClause 2(h) of Annex A only promises to "abide by" Ministry of Transport rules. Nobody has to prove it
B Passenger loadingThe 1:4 ratio counts guides in the water only
EnforcementNo sanctions. Any party can withdraw on 10 days' notice

What we ask

We ask the Cook Islands Government, the Ministry of Transport, the National Environment Service and Cook Islands Tourism to:

  1. Replace the voluntary MOU with an enforceable permit system for Avaavaroa.12
  2. Create a motor-free core swim and turtle zone, with speed limits informed by the research on turtles.8
  3. Cap the number of boats and sea scooters, and permit only low-emission engines (four-stroke or direct-injection) for commercial use.
  4. Actively check vessel registration, licences and passenger limits in the passage.
  5. Fund baseline monitoring of underwater noise and water quality, in line with the Southern Passages Environmental Management Plan.

This is not about any one operator. It is about one enforceable standard for everyone.

Sign the petition on change.org

Sources

  1. Holles et al. 2013, MEPS 485:295. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps10346
  2. "Small-boat noise impacts natural settlement behavior of coral reef fish larvae", JCU. https://researchonline.jcu.edu.au/47771/
  3. Simpson et al. 2016, Nature Communications 7:10544. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms10544
  4. Samuel et al. 2005, J Acoust Soc Am 117:1465. https://doi.org/10.1121/1.1847993
  5. US EPA, Low-Pollution Marine Engines. https://nepis.epa.gov/Exe/ZyPURL.cgi?Dockey=91022L6U.TXT
  6. boats.com, DFI two-stroke outboards. https://www.boats.com/on-the-water/outboard-expert-dfi-tutorial/
  7. SAE 911849 (IAPAC DI outboard). https://doi.org/10.4271/911849
  8. Hazel et al. 2007, Endang Species Res 3:105. https://doi.org/10.3354/esr003105
  9. Work et al. 2010, J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 393:168. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jembe.2010.07.019
  10. IUCN Red List, Hawksbill. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/8005/12881238
  11. RNZ, 28 Dec 2023. https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/pacific/505614/cook-islands-popular-turtle-swimming-spot-notorious-for-drownings
  12. Cook Islands News, 19 Mar 2025. https://www.cookislandsnews.com/internal/national/local/environment/tourism-takes-action-to-enhance-safety-in-turtle-tours/
  13. Ministry of Transport, Small Motorised Vessels. https://www.transport.gov.ck/maritime/small-motorised-vessels/
  14. Ministry of Transport, Boatmaster. https://www.transport.gov.ck/maritime/boatmaster/
  15. RNZ, MOU non-binding. https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/pacific/510705/cook-islands-turtle-tour-operators-sign-up-to-non-binding-agreement-to-boost-conservation-efforts
  16. Cook Islands Tourism partnership page. https://cookislands.travel/turtle-tour-operator-partnership
  17. Turtle Tour MOU, Jan 2024. https://cookislands.travel/sites/default/files/2024-02/MOU%20-%20Turtle%20Tour%20Operators%20JAN2024%20for%20website.pdf