Archived publication
This publication is no longer current or has been superseded.
A sustainable New Zealand
Helen Clark visits the Department of
Conservation’s new energy efficient building.
Photo courtesy of the Office of the
Prime Minister.
Our editor, Julia Crosfield, interviews the Prime Minister
JC: New Zealand's greenhouses gases rose more than 20 per cent between 1990 and 2004. How can we reach carbon neutrality when our emissions are on the increase?
PM: To become a carbon neutral and truly sustainable nation will mean changing our behaviour and that doesn’t happen overnight. But it can and must be done and the government is prepared to lead by example.
By early next year the Ministries for the Environment, Health, and Economic Development, and the Departments of Inland Revenue and Conservation, and Treasury will have reduced their emissions and will have plans in place to offset those emissions which can’t be avoided by using New Zealand-based projects. I expect that every core public sector agency will be on the path to carbon neutrality by 2012.
These agencies will reduce their emissions by having buildings and equipment which are more energy efficient, more fuel-efficient cars, and sustainable procurement practices.
The government’s own efforts will be just a small part of what is needed to achieve carbon neutrality. Overall our country needs more renewable energy, more energy efficiency, sustainable forestry and much more. But I believe that if we can reduce our carbon footprint in our government, we can do it in our businesses and in our households too.
JC: We don’t have emission testing for vehicles – isn’t that a must?
PM: Yes, it is a must, and last year in October we introduced a visual smoke test for all vehicles currently on our roads as part of the warrant of fitness testing criteria.
Testing for harmful emissions leads to better maintenance of vehicles which in turn leads to reduced fuel use, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.
As well, a new draft rule will be ready for public consultation in May on appropriate controls for second-hand vehicles entering New Zealand, so that they meet rigorous European and Japanese standards for air quality.
These second-hand vehicles entering New Zealand will also undergo a physical test to ensure they meet the original standards they were built to.
JC: You suggest New Zealand should lead the way in being environmentally sustainable. What is your vision of a sustainable New Zealand?
PM: Being sustainable means living and working in a way which meets the needs of our community without compromising the well being of future generations. I want to know that the beautiful country we have today will endure and prosper.
Environmentally this means protecting the quality of our air, our water and the land. It means reducing our waste and managing better the waste we do have. It means we must tackle the very serious issue of climate change.
JC: How will you make ‘being green’ appealing to all New Zealanders?
PM: Most New Zealanders can see the sense in living sustainably and we know that most people believe they need to make lifestyle choices to reduce the effects of climate change. Our clean green image is already part of our national identity. Sustainability is rapidly becoming a core value in many countries around the world – it is an imperative, environmentally, socially, and economically – and there are compelling reasons why New Zealand should be in the vanguard of making it happen. In time, being truly sustainable and carbon neutral will become as important to us as being nuclear free.
Our tourism industry and our international trade are under threat from competitors who threaten to use to their advantage the distance people must travel to visit New Zealand and the distance our goods must travel to market. We need to go the extra mile for sustainability to keep offshore protectionist forces at bay.
Later this year a campaign will be launched to help and encourage householders to be more sustainable through taking practical, cost-effective actions. We don’t have to sacrifice our living standards to be sustainable; we just have to be smart, innovative and determined.
JC: How will the government support consumers to be more efficient with energy, water and waste?
PM: The campaign I have just mentioned will give people practical advice on how they can make their households more sustainable. It will build on a lot of good work already underway, such as the Sustainable Living Programme sponsored by 30 councils, and the EnergyWise programme run by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority.
JC: Businesses can be labelled as carbon neutral through Landcare’s CarboNZero programme. What else will be done to make business more environmentally sustainable?
PM: Nearly 80 per cent of businesses surveyed recently in our country believe sustainability will make New Zealand more competitive. That means we have good prospects of sustainable business practices becoming business-as-usual. The government will work with business networks to help make this happen. We will continue to provide advice and support through the Sustainable Business Network and we will work with business to help it leverage off the government’s sustainable purchasing and practices.
Consumers increasingly want products which are friendly to the environment. That means businesses using the Environment Choice NZ eco-label have a competitive advantage, and it can be expanded to cover a wider range of products. The government will also ensure that a public database of reliable eco-label and standards verification schemes is established.
These activities will supplement good work already underway, including through the Packaging Accord, the Sustainable Tourism Charter, and the Greening the Screen project. These have shown that partnerships between government and businesses work.
JC: New Zealand earns its living from agriculture. How can we change farming so it is environmentally sustainable?
PM: Our farming practices are already changing. In the Hawke’s Bay, for instance, people like Philip Holt, Gavin Kenny and Alec Olsen are looking at how to run farms along truly sustainable lines, including making them resilient to climate change by constructing dams for water storage and by planting trees on the farm for stock shelter and erosion control.
I know there is growing public concern about the impact of intensive land use on our streams and rivers. The dairying community is responding positively. Fonterra, which represents more than 95 per cent of dairy farms in New Zealand, signed an accord in 2003 with the Minister for the Environment and regional councils to reduce the impact of dairying on our waterways.
There are a lot of other very positive things happening. Since 2003, for instance, more than 220 tonnes of old and toxic chemicals have been removed from farms and, under an Agrichemicals Collection Scheme, have been safely disposed. Then there is the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s Sustainable Farming Fund, which provides more than $9 million each year in grants to help farmers adopt environmentally sustainable practices.
New Zealand also has a Pastoral Greenhouse Gas Research Consortium, a government and industry partnership investing in, for example, how to reduce methane emissions from ruminant animals. We are recognised as world leaders in this area.
JC: How is the concept of environmental sustainability going to be integrated across all government policies?
PM: All government agencies are being urged to minimise their waste and recycle as much as possible, to lower their transport costs and reduce emissions, to make their buildings environmentally friendly, and to adopt sustainable procurement practices. Those agencies which have signed up to the Govt3 programme are already seeing huge benefits. Inland Revenue, for example, runs a shuttle service between its main Wellington buildings. This has reduced its transport costs by $36,000 a year. It has also reduced emissions and traffic congestion.
If we can make sustainability business-as-usual in government operations, we will set an example the rest of the country can follow.
JC: In the United Kingdom, environmental education and screening of Al Gore’s film ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ have become compulsory in schools. Should we do this here? How will we teach New Zealand children the importance of sustainability?
PM: I would love our schools to show the film. Many are already leading the way on sustainability.
We have a sustainable management fund which awards funds to schools and other groups. For example, students from a number of schools in Waikato have been involved in a programme to restore Waitete stream.
We can teach our children about sustainability by setting an example. Children who see their parents composting the family’s food waste and recycling plastic, tins and glass are more likely to do these things themselves. Children who see their teachers and parents bike, walk or take a bus to school will feel encouraged to do the same.
I think sustainability is going to very quickly become part of our way of life here; it will be the way we do things, and it will be central to our identity as a nation.
