Luxon's War On Nature Opens Gate For More Dairy Conversion
Press Release – Greenpeace
Greenpeace spokesperson Will Appelbe says, 'Everyone, no matter where they live, should be able to drink the water from their kitchen tap without getting sick. But this basic right is under threat by an already oversized intensive dairy industry …
Greenpeace Aotearoa is calling out the Luxon Government for 'leaving the gate wide open' to more dairy conversion with no plan to protect fresh water from pollution.
Temporary rules that restricted the conversion of farmland to intensive dairy were in place until 1 January this year, to allow time for Regional Councils to implement the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management. This was effectively a stop-gap to prevent further degradation of lakes, rivers and drinking water.
However, the Luxon Government repealed many of those intended protections last year, blocked Regional Councils from implementing their own freshwater plans, and allowed the dairy conversion restrictions to be lifted without replacing them. BussinessDesk has reported that Environment Canterbury has approved several dairy farm conversions this year.
Greenpeace spokesperson Will Appelbe says, 'Everyone, no matter where they live, should be able to drink the water from their kitchen tap without getting sick. But this basic right is under threat by an already oversized intensive dairy industry that's set to expand further.'
'Assurances made by Government Ministers that there would be no further dairy expansion were clearly a load of cow manure.'
'They were happy to delay freshwater plans for Regional Councils, and repeal the few freshwater protections we had, but did not extend the stop-gap on dairy conversions. Now that dairy conversions have started up again, we have to ask how many more communities have to have unsafe drinking water before intensive dairy is reigned in?'
Nearly half of New Zealand's rivers are now unsafe for swimming, and 20% of the population could be drinking water contaminated with unsafe levels of nitrate. Emerging evidence shows that drinking water nitrate levels from 1mg/L are associated with a higher risk of some health conditions, including colo-rectal cancer. The largest contributor to nitrate contamination is cow urine and the overuse of synthetic nitrogen fertiliser in the intensive dairy industry.
At water testing events run by Greenpeace in the Ashburton District last month, almost half of all bore water samples tested were above 5 mg/L of nitrate, a level linked to an increased risk of preterm birth. Several Canterbury town supplies are close to or exceed this level, including Darfield, Hinds, and the Oxford Rural 1 supply. The New Zealand College of Midwives recommends that pregnant people consider avoiding water above 5 mg/L for nitrate.
'We've already seen what dairy expansion does – unswimmable rivers and water that's unsafe to drink. It's now up to Regional Councils to step up and protect drinking water, lakes and rivers. And if they're unwilling, for candidates to step up at the Local Body Elections this year to get the job done.'
'Environment Canterbury must halt any dairy conversion or intensification applications, at a bare minimum, and swiftly take action to protect the health of people and fresh water from dairy pollution.'
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The government was proposing increasing the MRL from 0.1 milligrams per kilogram for wheat, barley and oat grains to 10 milligrams per kilogram, and 6 milligrams per kilogram for peas. Greenpeace said the proposal was dangerous and out of step with other countries. There were also serious issues with the testing regime which gave little confidence the proposal was grounded in science, Greenpeace said. New Zealand Food Safety conducted annual monitoring of agrichemical residues in plant-based foods under the Food Residues Survey Programme (FRSP). Testing from about a decade ago, found a third of wheat samples had glyphosate levels exceeding the limit allowed , some by 50 times. In the 2016 report, MPI said "none of the wheat samples posed any food safety risks". Since then, Food Safety had not tested for glyphosate despite more than 500 other agrichemicals being tested for in the survey programme. The report also stated the ministry was "now proposing a review of the residues information for glyphosate". A decade on, the review is finally under way. Greenpeace campaigner Genevieve Toop said it appeared the ministry had simply stopped testing for glyphosate when it found samples breaching the limit. "MPI knew ten years ago that the food New Zealanders was eating was breaching the permissible limit for glyphosate on food. But rather than do anything about it, they just stopped looking," Toop said. The proposed new limit for wheat was twice what Canada and Australia allowed, Toop said. Photo: Plant&Food Research New Zealand The proposed changes would increase the amount of glyphosate residue allowed in wheat by one hundred times the current limit. The government had given "no meaningful justification" for lifting the limit, and the proposal was "part of a pattern by the government of disregard for human health, while prioritising corporate profits", Toop said. "This isn't a chemical that belongs in our paddocks or on our plates, and we certainly should not be allowing the government to allow the residue limits on the food we eat everyday." But submissions showed some saw the timing - as a bill to liberalise gene technology restrictions was working its way through parliament - as auspicious. The majority of genetically modified-crops used globally were Roundup Ready - resistant to glyphosate - which allowed growers to use more of the herbicide without affecting their harvest. A 2017 US study found human exposure to glyphosate increased 500 percent after the introduction of Roundup Ready crops. But New Zealand Food Safety deputy director-general Vincent Arbuckle said the proposed changes were "not, in any way, connected with the GMO Bill". The proposal was the first time a full evidence-based review and setting of a Maximum Residue Level for glyphosate had been undertaken in New Zealand, he said. The proposed new levels were similar to, or below, the voluntary glyphosate limit set by international food standards body Codex, Arbuckle said. Food Safety monitored residues in food grown for sale in New Zealand "to provide confidence good agricultural practice is being followed", and conducted "periodic testing", he said. A spokesperson later confirmed the most recent testing for glyphosate residue was in fact in 2015. Arbuckle said there was nothing untoward in the lack of glyphosate testing since 2015, but it was those results - 20 of 60 wheat samples were found to have breached the limit - that led to the proposed increase. "None of these detections were a food safety concern, but did indicate that the agreed instructions for use were not enabling farmers to use these products with confidence for weed control and comply with the MRL. To rectify this situation we are proposing the MRLs for these crops are changed," he said. "The sampling programme for each year is carefully targeted to focus on the products and agricultural compounds of most interest." The use and risk assessment of glyphosate had "not changed significantly since the last targeted survey was done and did not warrant prioritising it above other products in subsequent sampling programmes," Arbuckle said. Reports from overseas agencies such as the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation, the European Food Safety Authority and the United States Environmental Protection Agency were used to inform that decision, Arbuckle said. "Growers in New Zealand use glyphosate products as weed control, so it is not sprayed directly on wheat or other crops as this would kill the crop the farmer is growing," he said. The use of Roundup Ready crops overseas meant glyphosate residue levels were "substantially higher than we could conceivably see in crops grown in New Zealand". Green MP Steve Abel said the proposed rise in residue levels coincides with the "radical liberalistion" of genetic engineering law in New Zealand. Green MP Steve Abel says the changes prioritise convenience over human health. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone He was concerned the new proposed levels were laying the groundwork for future Roundup Ready crops in New Zealand. "We know from overseas evidence that means a big increase in the use of Roundup. It also leads to super weeds [that developed Roundup resistance] and to greater residues on food crops," he said. The proposed approach was not about safety, Abel said. "It seems the focus is orientated on the convenience of the chemicals' use rather than the protection of human health," he said. "The thinking is around the wrong way - the first consideration should be human health and the protection of the environment." There was no way higher maximum residue levels were better for the heath of farmers, farm workers spraying the chemical or the public consuming it, Abel said. In its submission on the proposed increase, Organics New Zealand noted the European Union's Farm to Fork Strategy - part of the European Green Deal - had set legally binding targets to reduce pesticide use by 50 percent and aimed to phase out the most harmful substances by 2030. The strategy included a forthcoming ban on the importation of food products containing residues of banned pesticides, which included glyphosate in some contexts. Organics New Zealand said the EU had 195 chemicals on its banned list, compared to New Zealand's 27, and the regulatory gap risked jeopardising exports. Meanwhile, a judicial review of the Environmental Protection Authority's refusal to conduct a full risk assessment of glyphosate would be heard in the High Court next month at the Environmental Law Initiative's request. Glyphosate was first registered as a poison in New Zealand in 1975, but a comprehensive risk assessment in a New Zealand context had never been undertaken, the initiative said. The permitted daily exposure (PDE) limit for food was set by the Environmental Risk Management Authority - the Environmental Protection Authority's predecessor - in 2004. University of Canterbury research in 2017 found a link between the use of the chemical and increased antibiotic resistance . A 2017 US Centre for Disease Control study found four-fifths of the population had glyphosate in their urine , which rose to 87 percent for those under 19 years old. However, the US Environmental Protection Agency found in 2020 glyphosate was not likely to be carcinogenic to humans, although a 2022 a federal appeals court rejected that, forcing the agency to withdraw the finding while further testing was conducted. In 2021, Japan blocked shipments of New Zealand honey after more stringent testing found traces of glyphosate exceeding its standard of 0.01 milligrams per kilogram. In recent years, Bayer - which acquired the manufacturing rights of Roundup when it purchased Monsanto in 2018 - had paid billions of dollars to settle cases over potential links to cancer , with another 67,000 cases pending. In 2023, Bayer announced it would no longer produce or sell glyphosate-based Roundup products for residential use in the United States , but said that was to prevent further court action, not because of safety concerns. In the same year, the European Union approved its use for another decade , after member states deadlocked for a second time on the issue. While no European countries have banned glyphosate completely, some, including France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria and Germany have partial bans in place. Multiple challenges to the decision are before the European Court of Justice. Other studies have linked glyphosate to neuro-degenerative illnesses . In Feburary, a Canadian federal court judge ordered the government to reassess its 2022 approval of a glyphosate-containing product on the basis Health Canada failed to show it considered new scientific evidence identifying new or elevated risk. Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported Bayer was considering filing for bankruptcy for its Monsanto agriculture business should its settlement plan fail. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
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28-04-2025
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Luxon's War On Nature Opens Gate For More Dairy Conversion
Press Release – Greenpeace Greenpeace spokesperson Will Appelbe says, 'Everyone, no matter where they live, should be able to drink the water from their kitchen tap without getting sick. But this basic right is under threat by an already oversized intensive dairy industry … Greenpeace Aotearoa is calling out the Luxon Government for 'leaving the gate wide open' to more dairy conversion with no plan to protect fresh water from pollution. Temporary rules that restricted the conversion of farmland to intensive dairy were in place until 1 January this year, to allow time for Regional Councils to implement the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management. This was effectively a stop-gap to prevent further degradation of lakes, rivers and drinking water. However, the Luxon Government repealed many of those intended protections last year, blocked Regional Councils from implementing their own freshwater plans, and allowed the dairy conversion restrictions to be lifted without replacing them. BussinessDesk has reported that Environment Canterbury has approved several dairy farm conversions this year. Greenpeace spokesperson Will Appelbe says, 'Everyone, no matter where they live, should be able to drink the water from their kitchen tap without getting sick. But this basic right is under threat by an already oversized intensive dairy industry that's set to expand further.' 'Assurances made by Government Ministers that there would be no further dairy expansion were clearly a load of cow manure.' 'They were happy to delay freshwater plans for Regional Councils, and repeal the few freshwater protections we had, but did not extend the stop-gap on dairy conversions. Now that dairy conversions have started up again, we have to ask how many more communities have to have unsafe drinking water before intensive dairy is reigned in?' Nearly half of New Zealand's rivers are now unsafe for swimming, and 20% of the population could be drinking water contaminated with unsafe levels of nitrate. Emerging evidence shows that drinking water nitrate levels from 1mg/L are associated with a higher risk of some health conditions, including colo-rectal cancer. The largest contributor to nitrate contamination is cow urine and the overuse of synthetic nitrogen fertiliser in the intensive dairy industry. At water testing events run by Greenpeace in the Ashburton District last month, almost half of all bore water samples tested were above 5 mg/L of nitrate, a level linked to an increased risk of preterm birth. Several Canterbury town supplies are close to or exceed this level, including Darfield, Hinds, and the Oxford Rural 1 supply. The New Zealand College of Midwives recommends that pregnant people consider avoiding water above 5 mg/L for nitrate. 'We've already seen what dairy expansion does – unswimmable rivers and water that's unsafe to drink. It's now up to Regional Councils to step up and protect drinking water, lakes and rivers. And if they're unwilling, for candidates to step up at the Local Body Elections this year to get the job done.' 'Environment Canterbury must halt any dairy conversion or intensification applications, at a bare minimum, and swiftly take action to protect the health of people and fresh water from dairy pollution.'
