New Zealand’s environment and communities will face greater pollution, increased biodiversity loss and environmental damage, with a long-term cost to the economy, if today’s Government rollbacks come into effect.

The Government has announced proposals for new national environmental standards and national policy statements.

These proposed changes – which include weakening protections for freshwater, coastal areas, wetlands, and native species – will put nature at increased risk from things such as water pollution under the Resource Management Act.

“This is just the latest blow in the Government’s dismantling of environmental protections,” says Richard Capie, Forest & Bird’s group manager, Conservation Advocacy and Policy.

“It feels like a century of evidence about how much we rely on the environment and how degraded it is becoming, has just drifted past this Government.

“Without a healthy, well-functioning natural environment, our homes, towns, farms, and infrastructure are at risk in the face of a changing climate.

“The Government seems determined to strip away protections for nature, yet most New Zealanders just want clean, healthy ecosystems and thriving communities. They have consistently said that they want to be able to swim in their local rivers and beaches, have safe drinkable water, and for our wildlife and wild places to flourish.

“Instead, these proposals pave the way for weak environmental standards that will mean more pollution and put more pressure on our already endangered species and vulnerable habitats.

“Our export economy runs on clean water, a liveable climate, low pollution, and a breathtaking natural world. Our EU and UK trading relationships are based on the promise that we will raise environmental standards, not lower them. Weakening environmental standards will harm us and our international reputation.”

The proposed changes include:

• Making it much easier to mine and quarry in areas that contain significant indigenous biodiversity, as well as wetlands, by removing existing requirements that protect nature.
• Introducing a new national direction for infrastructure and amended direction on electricity generation projects, which is likely to mean a reduction in protections for biodiversity, natural landscapes, and seascapes.
• Amending the New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement 2010 to make it easier to consent activities in the vulnerable coastal and inshore environment, including in areas with important coastal value (which are already faced with significant pressures).
• Removing ‘Te Mana o te Wai’, our overarching freshwater guiding concept which currently prioritises looking after the environment and human needs. This change will result in the weakening of freshwater protections, enabling more pollution in waterways, increased loss of essential wetlands, overallocation issues, and more.
• Removing the requirement to exclude grazed beef cattle and deer in low intensity farm systems from wetlands; wetlands are essential in supporting biodiversity and a haven for our threatened species.

Forest & Bird will be calling for urgent improvements to the national standards and policy statements to ensure nature and communities are better protected. We urge the Government to:

• Prioritise nature-based solutions for managing natural hazards and infrastructure. Working with nature – rather than against it – allows local and regional government to protect nature, reduce costs, and create more resilient communities.
• Strengthen freshwater rules by retaining Te Mana o te Wai, seeking swimmable rivers and strengthening bottom lines for pollution and the health of freshwater.
• Protect biodiversity on private land by supporting and encouraging landowners to look after significant ecological areas and penalising the destruction of important habitats.
• Protect and restore wetlands so we can increase critical habitat for endangered species and support carbon sinks to mitigate the impacts of climate change.
• Safeguard our delicate coastal and inshore marine environments so that they are protected from further degradation and biodiversity loss.

“National environmental standards and national policy statements must serve future generations – our children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren,” says Mr Capie. “They need to be enduring, not focused on short-term interests.”

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