Good news for farmers:
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).
“As it stands, SNAs identified on private property limit new activities and development that can take place on that property. In their current form they represent a confiscation of property rights and undermine conservation efforts by the people who care most about the environment: the people who make a living from it,” says Mr Hoggard.
The previous government’s requirement for councils over SNAs was bureaucratic overreach.
SNAs are still significant because they’ve been looked after by generations of farmers and that will continue without the heavy-handed coercion.
“As part of the ACT-National coalition agreement the Government committed to ceasing the implementation of new SNAs. This work will be carried out as part of the Government’s RMA reforms. For now, the Government has agreed to suspend the obligation for councils to impose SNAs under the NPS Indigenous Biodiversity, and we’re sending a clear message that it would be unwise to bother. . .
Some councils haven’t come to grips with the change of government and consequent change of priorities and policies.
The message that it would be unwise to bother must be very strong.
. . . New Zealand currently has 180,000 hectares of privately-owned land in QEII covenants. The impressive engagement and growth of QEII covenants – all voluntary – shows that private landowners do care about conservation. This Government will be taking a collaborative approach with them, rather than undermining their rights.
How refreshing to have a government that will take a collaborative approach.
“This Government is firmly committed to protecting New Zealanders’ property rights.
“If government takes away property rights there’s no incentive to be a conservationist. Ill-conceived regulations such as SNAs and the NPS Indigenous Biodiversity put roadblocks in place and turn biodiversity and conservation efforts into a liability.” . .
And how refreshing to have a government that respects property rights which are one of the foundations stones of properly functioning democracies.
Ele Ludemann is a North Otago farmer and journalist, who blogs HERE - where this article was sourced.
3 comments:
Sitting at a desk in a Council office, staring at satellite photos and making arbitrary decisions on which bits of private property to steal on behalf of the State for the "public good" !
It's absolutely outrageous that's been happening.
And no recourse to recovering the land without massive lawyers bills.
It takes NZ back to pre 1840 when land was acquired by conquest.
It's 2024 - how can this be happening ?
Oh, I know - Jacinda and her socialist campaign.
Ele Ee both know that National has for years totally ignored plight of those rural folk unfortunate enough to have preserved SNAs of their own free will.The late John Miller and I tried our hardest back in the late 1980s to point out under national govts that this was theft of private property under and other name. National did nothing. Theses SNAs were once called PNAs which stood for Protected Natural areas without even asking or talking with the owners of these areas. National caved in to the demands of the socialists and those within National (see nick Smith) who want a bob each way when it came to property rights. Takings occurred under the National Govt for years who watched and did nothing until forced to do so by this new coalition but also by Ground Swell. We also still have ONLs -Outstanding natural landscapes which councils identify with the help of every environmental lobby group that ever was so as to prohibit the development of land use such as cultivation on private land . That also is a "taking" Ele so as a longstanding National party supporter it galls me somewhat to read your comments about National as the great protecter of property rights.
When they delete ONLs then maybe -just maybe they can claim some right to understand just how property rights are in a free society. Not yet.
Gerry Eckhoff
Well stated Gerry. It was the disgusting Key led National government that introduced the SNA's. Along with signing the Paris Acord, signing U.N.D.R.I.P
& we wont mention the foreshore & seabed debacle. Why the voters still cling to National with their votes, hoping for change is beyond my comprehension.
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