A coastal community that has long described the ocean as "our supermarket and our garden" has been told to stop fishing it. Following months of mass marine deaths and reports of human illness, Papua New Guinea's government has formally warned residents in parts of New Ireland not to fish or eat seafood from affected waters after independent water tests detected metals in samples taken near Kafkaf village and the Larairu lagoon.
Fisheries minister Jelta Wong delivered the warning on 7 May, citing preliminary results from an independent contractor.
"The results indicate the presence of poisonous minerals in the marine environment and further investigations are continuing," Wong said at a press conference.
The crisis on New Ireland's east coast first came to light in December 2025, when residents in Kafkaf and Mangai reported unusual numbers of dead fish washing up on shorelines, according to a 21 May report in The Guardian. Reef fish were found floating in shallow water with swollen eyes, damaged skin and discoloured flesh. The seawater itself was described as taking on a sulphur-like smell and a cloudy or discoloured appearance during low tide.
Independent environmental organisation Ailan Awareness, which has spent months on the ground documenting the deaths, has assessed at least 11 villages and reported that more than 1,250 people have been affected through illness or contaminated food and water. Some residents reported feeling unwell after swimming or fishing in the waters in question.
A five-day coastal assessment in March by Ailan Awareness recorded more than 3,400 dead marine organisms across at least 15 species. The organisation's lead conservationist, John Aini, said the scale of the deaths indicated a serious ecological disturbance affecting reef systems and broader coastal biodiversity.
"The communities are frightened because they rely entirely on the ocean for food security and livelihoods," Aini told The Guardian.
He also said the national response had fallen short. In remarks reported by the Guardian, Aini described the slow reaction from authorities as "total neglect in our time of crisis," with little immediate assistance reaching the affected villages.
Kafkaf community leader Martha Piwas said families had stopped fishing altogether as fear over contaminated seafood deepened.
"We are suffering because the sea is our supermarket and our garden," Piwas said. "Mothers cannot feed their children fish any more. People are getting sick."
Piwas said many people in the village relied entirely on fishing for survival but no longer felt safe entering the water — a daily contradiction in a province where reef and lagoon catch is woven into both subsistence and trade.
Provincial authorities declared Kafkaf an environmental hazard and contaminated zone in January after sustained reports of fish kills and human illness. Two months later, New Ireland's governor Byron Chan told the PNG parliament that the unexplained marine deaths had escalated into a major environmental and public health concern, and pressed the national government to act with greater urgency.
National agencies, independent scientists and international laboratories are continuing investigations to determine the source of the metals identified in the water, the full extent of contamination and whether long-term damage has occurred along the coastline. Authorities have stressed that no conclusions about the cause have yet been reached.
For families in Kafkaf and Mangai, the ban is more than a fisheries policy. It has cut off their primary protein source and their main route to income, with no clear timeline for when it will be safe to fish again.