The value of a species

This morning we learned that, thanks to the government's failure to protect them, there are now fewer than 50 maui's dolphins left. When questioned about this in Parliament, Conservation Minister Maggie Barry made it clear that she wasn't going to lift a finger to actually help stop this species from being wiped out - but did try and pretend that the government was devoting significant resources to it. How much? $750,000. Or, to put it in context, less than the price of one average house in Auckland.