New Zealand has become the first country in the world to fully sign up for the Seabed 2030 partnerships to map the world ocean floors.
The project aims to map the entire seafloor up to modern standards; currently, only a meager 20% is properly mapped.
The agreement was signed in a virtual ceremony by Seabed 2030 Director Jamie McMichael-Phillips in the UK and Gaye Searancke, the chief executive of Toitu Te Whenua Land Information New Zealand.
Commenting on the new effort, Searancke stated:
“New Zealand is proud to be leading the way with this work. Mapping the seabed floor is critical to our knowledge about climate and weather patterns, tides, wave action, sediment transport, tsunami wave propagation and underwater geo-hazards.”
While McMichael-Phillips added:
“The New Zealand signing is significant for Seabed 2030 as it’s the first full Memorandum of Agreement between a Government and the Project. As a host of one of our regional centers, New Zealand has provided steadfast support to Seabed 2030 from the outset and we look forward to building on our collaboration in the race towards achieving our mission. We call upon other countries to join us in our goal of a complete map of the ocean floor – an apparatus which will help us better understand planet Earth.”