The project aims to adress the problems of 'Pollution of the lagoon' and 'Soil degradation'. Put it simply, our lagoon is polluted and it will be getting worse if nothing constructive is done about it. Ciguatera fish poisoning is rife and an occasional toxic algae bloom literally poisons the sea breeze, causing severe eye, throat and respiratory irritation to all visitors and villages within several hundred meters of the beach.
MMR (Ministry of Marine Resources) with the technical support of CIMRIS (Cook Islands Marine Resources Strengthening) Programme, already in their preliminary stages of detailed monitoring, agree that runoff of piggery waste in to the several streams that lead to the lagoon, mis-use of chemical fertilizers and toxic spray by farmers and seepage from septic waste systems are the main causes of pollution.