11 April 2006

Greens leader opens major forestry conference

Green Party Co-Leader Jeanette Fitzsimons has accepted an invitation to open the New Zealand Institute of Forestry's (NZIF) 2006 Conference, to be held over three days at the Te Papa National Museum in Wellington, on 21 April 2006.

" I am delighted to have this opportunity to address what will be an important gathering of people with deep expertise in forest management," says Mz Fitzsimons.

"Forests make a vital contribution to soil and water conservation, bio-diversity, climate change, landscape and recreation, as well as to water quality and bio-energy.

"All of these elements are Green Party concerns, and are part of the development of a sustainable economy."

The NZIF's " Absolutely Positively Forests" conference will bring together forest managers, scientists, policy advisers, NGO groups and academics, among others.

"In the last twelve months, the fact that global warming is real and accelerating has become more widely accepted. Forests play an important role in relation to climate, as well as in preventing soil erosion and flooding," says Ms Fitzsimons.

"As we saw with the recent Climate Change gathering, forums such as the NZIF conference play a crucial role in pooling our knowledge of the problems facing the planet, and in fostering a consensus about the solutions."

ENDS

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