7 Conclusion

The Ministry for the Environment has been mandated since 2006 to provide an environmental reporting programme that delivers robust information on the state of New Zealand’s environment and reveal trends on whether its condition is improving, getting worse or staying the same.

Twenty-two core indicators have been identified, each focused on a high-priority issue in one of 10 domains. Sixty-six variables are used to report on the indicators. These form the basis of the work of the national environmental reporting programme.

As well as providing information for the five-yearly state of the environment reports, the national environmental reporting programme delivers environmental statistics and a quantitative evidence base which can be used to make environmental policy. This includes the Ministry’s own policy-making, as well as policy developed through whole-of-government programmes to manage natural resources, such as fresh water.

Along with its focus on natural resources, the reporting programme plays an important part in wider government reporting on progress towards sustainable development in New Zealand. It is also vital to New Zealand’s ability to report its environmental performance on the international stage.

As part of the programme, the Ministry is delivering a range of reporting products for a wide domestic audience, including the general public. The level of technical detail included in each reporting product will depend primarily on the needs of its target audience.

Because the information is fundamental to so many decision-makers at national, regional and local level, the Ministry is committed to informing people about the reporting programme’s process and outcomes. Reporting schedules have been developed to let people know when new quantitative environmental information will be available, until early 2011 when work will begin on the third national state of the environment report.

The Ministry’s national environmental reporting programme does not work in isolation. It must operate according to specific requirements and meet expectations set by the Statistics Act 1975 or Statistics New Zealand, and fulfil international obligations.

The success of the Ministry’s environmental reporting programme will be shown by:

the Ministry using the information as the fundamental core of its own strategic policy work
external stakeholders using the information to inform their policy and operational decisions
environmental data and information flowing freely between all agencies involved.

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