31 January, 2008
The report Environment New Zealand 2007
provides a timely check up on the health
of our environment and charts New Zealand’s
journey towards sustainability, Environment
Minister Trevor Mallard said at the report's
launch today.
The report on the state
of New Zealand's environment looks at the
physical well-being of New Zealand’s land,
water, air, plants and animals. It measures
the impact of every day activities and identifies
trends and some pressures on our natural
resources.
"This report, which will be produced
every five years from now on, is an incredibly
valuable tool. As a nation we value our
clean green environment as part of our lifestyle
and national identity. We recognise the
importance of New Zealand’s clean green
reputation to our international markets
– as it is critical to our present and future
economic well-being as consumers the world
over seek out environmentally friendly and
climate friendly products and services,"
Trevor Mallard said.
"Our primary production
and tourism sectors are the bread, butter
and jam of our economy. This report is a
valuable measuring tool which will guide
us in policy work and decision making so
we can continue to leverage off our valuable
natural resources and maintain the kiwi
lifestyle, in a way that is sustainable
and internationally competitive.
"This report shows
that together we have made significant improvements
in some areas. But there are areas where
we need to do other things better, to protect
our clean green reputation. We simply cannot
afford to be complacent.
"That is the point
of reports like this – they enable central
and local government, communities and business
to work together to target policies, and
work programmes towards the emerging areas
of concern while ensuring we continue to
gain rather than lose ground on areas where
things are tracking well.
"The Labour-led
government is already taking leadership
in this area. A substantial work programme
and range of initiatives is in place to
help us reduce or mitigate our impact on
our environment – from the proposed emissions
trading scheme, support for households'
energy efficiency and solar heating, waste
reduction and recycling initiatives, environmental
standards on air and water through to the
multi million dollar funds for research
into sustainable primary production and
for sustainable land management.
"A full list of
the government's work programme set against
the indicators of the report is also released
today in the Cabinet paper on the report,"
Trevor Mallard said.
The report, the cabinet
paper and other information is at www.mfe.govt.nz/publications/ser/enz07-dec07/index.html
