Open letter to the Coalition government from NZ Scientific Societies

[Michael Szabo]

"A group representing thousands of scientists has written to the Cabinet saying the government’s plan for fast tracking consenting is retrograde and values development over the environment. The legislation – which passed its first reading recently – will give three ministers the power to bypass normal consent processes and have the final say on approvals for special infrastructure projects.

A group of ten scientific societies including Birds New Zealand say New Zealand’s plants, animals, fungi and ecosystems are globally unique but are also threatened with extinction. In a letter sent to ministers on 13 March, they say the changes will cause further degradation, and mean that development projects will be at the whim of political decision-making and ministerial discretion, without appropriate checks and balances."

See link: https://www.birdsnz.org.nz/news/open-le ... societies/

[Richard_Jones]

Hi Michael,
Excellent open letter and one that will be totally supported by all of us. The fast-tracking Proposal is TOTALLY unacceptable.
I have also sent a submission along similar lines via Forest & Bird.
Regards,
Richard

[Michael Szabo]

Hi Richard,

Good on you for making a submission. It's bad enough that the proposed law change will give a trio of ministers (Energy, Regional Development, RMA) the power to override and undermine core environmental and conservation standards and prevent the public from having a say about major developments in their own communities. The fact that this trio does not include the Minister for the Environment or the Minister of Conservation also speaks volumes.

But the new RMA Minister Chris Bishop has also told TVNZ that he thinks “there will be projects that will be granted consent that would not otherwise have got a consent under the status quo. Frankly, I hope that’s why we're doing it.” So, they are openly talking about giving approval to proposed developments that have been previously thrown out in Court because they were too environmentally damaging. These ministers need to immediately release the list of developments they are considering for inclusion in the Bill so the public can make submissions to Parliament about them.

Regards,
Michael

[Michael Szabo]

Two petitions have been launched to stop the 'Fast-track Approvals Bill' now:
https://www.forestandbird.org.nz/petiti ... for-nature
https://petition.act.greenpeace.org.nz/ ... submission

[Michael Szabo]

The Environmental Defence Society has also produced a template submission on the Fast-Track Approvals Bill that covers 5 key issues with the Bill and has space for people to add their own perspectives:
https://eds.org.nz/resources/documents/ ... -template/

[Michael Szabo]

Closing date for making a submission is Friday 19 April 2024.

You can make a submission via the following 2 websites:
https://www.forestandbird.org.nz/petiti ... for-nature
https://petition.act.greenpeace.org.nz/ ... submission

[Colin Miskelly]

Lessons in how to swallow a dead rat

After failing to swallow it whole, it pecked at the anal region to expose its entrails...

[Michael Szabo]

Yes, and while climate scientists warn of a world record temperature jump in Antarctica where an unprecedented leap of 38.5C above its seasonal average in the coldest place on Earth is a harbinger of a disaster for humans and the local ecosystem (including various penguin species), the newly minted NZ coalition government is proposing a law designed to circumvent other laws that require decision-makers to take into account the impacts of proposed developments on the climate and threatened species: https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... atastrophe

I can definitely smell a dead rat - in this case, a bag containing three of them.

[Michael Szabo]

Another reason the Fast-Track Approvals Bill is flawed is that the Crown could be left to pay tens of millions from the public purse to decommission and clean up abandoned toxic contaminated sites if the owner goes bankrupt, as happened at the Tui mine at Mt Te Aroha, Coromandel.

Please make a submission via the link in this article - the deadline is 5pm this Friday 19 April:
https://www.greenpeace.org/aotearoa/sto ... he-bottom/

[Michael Szabo]

"Conservation 'good news' stories - the release of native birds into new habitats, for example - are always welcome. They recognise the work of conservation staff and volunteers who do the hard slog of checking trap lines and removing weeds. The reality is, however, that Aotearoa New Zealand's environment is in deep trouble."

Margaret Stanley is Professor of Ecology at University of Auckland

Link to article: https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/on-the-insid ... ZeEfIiRHN7

Link to petition: https://petition.act.greenpeace.org.nz/ ... iw_J2oQkbI