Greens vow to repeal Govt's pro-economy conservation changes if elected

The Green Party says it will repeal the Government’s controversial conservation changes that would require DoC to find “economic opportunities” from conservation land. 

Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson attended the March for Nature in Auckland today, where she announced that, if elected, the Greens would scrap changes she said were gutting environmental protections. 

“The Green Party will put people and nature before corporate profits, we will ensure public conservation land is for nature, not for profits and that environment is protected from corporate greed,” Davidson said. 

The party’s pledge includes removing the Government’s economic imperative for public conservation land, implementing “evidence-based” limits to protect ecosystem health, and affirming Te Tiriti, and the role of tangata whenua as decision-makers in the new resource management system. 

“We all depend on nature and a healthy environment. From clean drinking water to thriving wildlife, the protection and restoration of our environment are non-negotiable,” Davidson said. 

The March for Nature is a protest against the Government’s Conservation Amendment Bill. 

The controversial law change would amend the 1987 Conservation Act to require the Department of Conservation to recognise the “economic opportunities that arise from the use and development of land and other resources managed by the department, and to enable this use and development to the greatest extent practicable”. 

Greenpeace has warned the change would force DoC to “enable commercial exploitation of public conservation land”. 

Conservation Minister Tama Potaka in June backtracked by scrapping contentious clauses from the bill, after public pressure over fears large parts of conservation land would be sold. 

Potaka and Jones announced controversial clauses to the Conservation Act amendment would be binned after widespread outrage. Photo / Sylvie Whinray 

Potaka said he did not support land being sold en masse, and said that was not his intention, but conceded he did not communicate the proposals well enough, and removed them from the bill. 

Regional Development Minister Shane Jones, said at the time New Zealand First was in favour of getting economic outcomes from conservation land, and would push for it if re-elected. 

The updated Conservation Amendment Bill is yet to pass in Parliament. 

It is at the select committee stage and requires two more readings before passing into law. 

Next week is the final sitting week of this Parliamentary term before the House rises for the election campaign. 

Parliament has been sitting under urgency this week as the Government pushes through the last of its legislative agenda, including changes to the Local Government Act and move-on orders legislation.