Responding to the introduction of legislation to restrict farm-to-forest conversions, ACT Rural Communities spokesperson Mark Cameron says:

“The Government is moving to address legitimate concerns in rural communities. Forestry is swallowing up productive farmland because the current system is rigged against those who feed the world,” says Mr Cameron.

“Red tape and distorted incentives make it more profitable to plant pine trees than to run a farm.

“There is more the Government could do to address the root of the problem. It could start by letting Kiwis offset their emissions overseas. There’s no reason we should be covering our own productive land in carbon farms when planting is cheaper and more efficient in other parts of the world.

“It’s also time for a wider conversation about whether New Zealand’s Paris climate commitments are worth the cost.

“Right now, our only options to meet these targets are blanketing the countryside in trees, or driving up costs on fuel, electricity and everyday goods. Neither of those is acceptable. We need to ask whether the pain is worth it.

“Kiwi farmers are the best in the world at what they do – the freer they are to compete and grow, the better. ACT will keep backing farmers and rural communities.

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