Source: Federated Farmers
Federated Farmers says the Government’s proposed rules to limit whole-farm conversions to carbon forestry are far too weak to stop the damage being done to rural New Zealand.
“The draft rules have completely missed the mark,” says Federated Farmers forestry spokesperson Richard Dawkins.
“As they’re currently drafted, the proposed regulations will barely make a dent in the number of whole-farm conversions to carbon forestry.
“Unless Minister Todd McClay steps in and makes urgent changes, we’ll continue to see our productive hill country swallowed up by permanent pine forests at an alarming rate.”
The Government’s proposal is to cap the amount of farmland that can be registered in the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) at 25%.
But that limit applies only to land use capability (LUC) classes 1 to 5 – the land least likely to be targeted for carbon farming in the first place.
“The reality is that only 12% of recent carbon farm conversions have happened on this kind of land anyway,” Dawkins explains.
“The remaining 88% have occurred on class 6 and 7 land, which is where most of New Zealand’s sheep and beef farmers also happen to operate.
“These are not marginal blocks of scrub or waste. They’re productive, resilient hill country farms – the backbone of our red meat industry and a vital part of our food production system.
“Under the new rules, those farms will get next to no protection.”
The Government is instead proposing a 15,000-hectare annual cap for class 6 land and leaving class 7 unrestricted – a move Dawkins calls ineffective and unfair.
“There’s just too much sheep and beef land without protection for it to be effective,” Dawkins says.
“It will be business as usual for the big polluters and foreign investors looking to blanket rural New Zealand in pine trees.
“This kind of timber doesn’t generate jobs, export earnings or regional development. It’s speculative carbon farming.”
He says the system allows big urban emitters to buy their way out of reducing emissions while rural communities shoulder the long-term costs and consequences.
“Once you lose a productive sheep and beef farm to carbon forestry, it’s gone for good.”
He says the Government’s goal of doubling exports by 2030 is at risk under the proposed rules.
“Red meat is a cornerstone of our export economy, bringing in around $12 billion annually,” Dawkins says.
“With strong prices and advances in genetics, pasture management and technology, we should be focused on improving productivity and lifting output – not losing ground.”
Dawkins is calling on Forestry Minister Todd McClay to act.
“If this Government is serious about reining in whole-farm carbon conversions, the 25% cap must apply to all land classes – including classes 6 and 7.
“Our national values, our future as a food-producing nation, and the resilience of our rural communities are all on the line.
“We’re about to find out whether this Government truly stands with rural New Zealand or if this Bill is just political spin.”
