Feds Welcomes More Help For Farmer Biodiversity Protection Efforts

Federated Farmers is applauding moves by the Government to encourage greater private investment in the work farmers and other landowners do to protect biodiversity and reduce climate change emissions.

"We’re really pleased with today’s announcement of two pathways that enable greater assurance to investors and landowners that environment protection and restoration projects are genuine and make a difference," Federated Farmers vice president Colin Hurst says.

"The Government’s announcements are right in line with the kinds of things Federated Farmers outlined in 2023 as key to creating a workable biodiversity credit system in New Zealand."

Andrew Hoggard, Associate Minister for both the Environment and Agriculture, says the Government will recognise high quality schemes accredited by reputable international bodies.

It will also set up a new endorsement pathway for domestic schemes that will be assessed independently to make sure they meet benchmarked standards.

"Anything that creates more opportunities to support biodiversity protection and restoration work on private land is a positive step," Hurst says.

"Farmers and rural landowners are already doing a huge amount of wetland restoration, native planting, habitat protection and changes to reduce methane emissions.

"It can be very costly - both to get such work underway, and to maintain it long-term.

"Mechanisms that encourage outside investment by companies and benefactors could get more projects across the start line, and reward farmers taking these initiatives."

Many of the more than 5000 special areas of nature permanently protected under QEII National Trust covenants are on farmland.

Federated Farmers has campaigned for a serious uplift in the trust’s base government funding so that it can keep up with farmer requests to initiate covenants.

QEII Trust chief executive Dan Coup says any programme that lifts the level of help for landowners willing to protect biodiversity is positive.

"We’re all about the outcomes for nature.

"If assurance that the work being done is authentic makes it more likely these partnerships and transactions happen, that’s a good thing.

"Quite how this will interact with the work of QEII is something we’re still analysing the detail on.

"If it brings more money to the table and allows more landowners to voluntarily put special areas of bush and wetland under covenant with us - excellent," Coup says.

"But under our current restrained resources, we haven’t got much scope to handle increased demand at our end."

Hurst says there’s also a wider opportunity for New Zealand’s food processors and exporters.

"International consumers increasingly want evidence behind sustainability claims, and strong biodiversity credentials add weight to the Kiwi story on the global stage," he says.

"This has the potential to be a win-win: supporting biodiversity protection while also strengthening the story New Zealand tells international consumers about how our food is produced."

© Scoop Media