Environmentalists see forestry changes as dangerous step for Tairāwhiti
Tairāwhiti environmentalists have called changes for commercial forestry under proposed Resource Management Act reforms "a slap in the face" and a return to weaker forestry regulations.
Local groups are preparing to make submissions on proposed changes to the way forestry is managed after consultation on the Resource Management Act opened on Thursday.
The proposals would make it harder for councils to have their own discretion in setting stricter rules to control tree planting.
Gisborne District Council said the proposed changes grant both "real opportunities" and "some challenges".
The Eastland Wood Council is still considering its options around submitting.
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Mana Taiao Tairāwhiti (MTT), the group behind a 12,000-signature petition that triggered the Ministerial Inquiry into Land Use (MILU) in Tairāwhiti and Wairoa, claimed the Government was relaxing "already permissive forestry rules".
The inquiry, published in May 2023, followed the destruction caused by Cyclone Gabrielle and other major storms, when woody debris, forestry slash and sedimentation flooded the region's land, waterways and infrastructure.
At the time of the inquiry's findings, the previous Government announced actions to reduce the risk of a Gabrielle repeat.
MTT spokeswoman and Ruatōria resident Tui Warmenhoven said, "We were promised stronger protections – what we're getting is deregulation dressed as reform".
The proposed changes were "a slap in the face to the hundreds of whānau who've already paid the price for poor forestry regulations," said Warmenhoven in a group statement.
Another part of the proposed changes will require a Slash Mobilisation Risk Assessment as part of all harvest management plans.
It would also consider refining requirements to remove all slash above a certain size from forest cutovers.
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MTT welcomed the proposed requirement for Slash Mobilisation Risk Assessments, however, it warned "this would be ineffective without enforceable planning requirements and local oversight".
"A slash assessment without an afforestation plan is meaningless – it's a partial fix that ignores the root of the problem," said Warmenhoven.
"We've already seen what happens when forestry is left to regulate itself and the problems with planting shallow-rooting pine on erosion-prone slopes. We are also concerned about the removal of references to woody debris, given that whole pine plantations collapsed during Cyclone Gabrielle and still line many waterways in the region."
Last September, Eastland Wood Council chairman Julian Kohn said forestry firms were "bleeding money," with many companies finding Gisborne too costly to invest in.
Speaking with Local Democracy Reporting, Kohn said Eastland Wood Council was still considering whether to submit its own response or work with other council members to make submissions.
"We've been working closely with the minister and advocating for what we see needs to be real change in respect of some of the causes in the NES-CF [National Environmental Standards for Commercial Forestry]," said Kohn.
"Our real concern is that the way the council is treating many of these consents and these enforcement orders are literally sending these forest companies to the wall."
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He said forestry companies would close if things continued the way they were, which would leave forests unmanaged and unharvested.
"Next time we have a rain event, then some of those trees which have been locked up are going to come down the waterways, which is exactly what everybody wants to try to prevent."
Gisborne District Councils director of sustainable futures, Jocelyne Allen, said the consultation documents came "as no surprise" as they were broad and aligned with what the council had seen in the Cabinet paper and Expert Advisory Group report.
"The packages cover infrastructure, the primary sector, freshwater, and urban growth, all areas that matter deeply to our region.
"There are real opportunities here, but also some challenges, and we're taking the time to work through both carefully," Allen said.
The council intends to submit a response and will be taking a strategic and collaborative approach to doing so, including engaging with tangata whenua, whānau, hapū and iwi across the region and working through its sector networks, particularly the Local Government Special Interest Groups and Te Uru Kahika, said Allen.
Before the announcement of the proposed changes, in an email to Local Democracy Reporting on Monday, Primary Industries and Forestry Minister Todd McClay said forestry played an important role in the economy and provided many jobs on the East Coast.
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"The Government is working closely with the Gisborne District Council and respected members of the forestry industry, farming and iwi to manage and reduce risk through better and more practical rules rather than blanket restrictions or bans."
He said they are reviewing slash management practices and will amend the NES-CF so councils can focus on the most at-risk areas, lower costs and deliver better social and environmental outcomes.
"We want them to focus on high-risk areas, which is what Gisborne District Council is currently doing, rather than suggesting that there should no longer be any forestry in the Tairāwhiti region," he said.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
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So I agree that it is frustrating, given that we built so much amazing infrastructure in the 20th century, that we seem so bad at it now. Quite why is hard to say. Perhaps it is MMP? There is a lot more trading-off of policy than there used to be under First Past the Post. It also seems to take much longer to get construction started on things, which means we often see Governments change before plans come to fruition. Perhaps we need longer political terms. Or perhaps we just need to streamline the process to get construction under way sooner. I know I'm not alone in wishing we could get some sort of bipartisan accord done on a long-term infrastructure pipeline. Liam Dann is business editor-at-large for the New Zealand Herald. He is a senior writer and columnist, and also presents and produces videos and podcasts. He joined the Herald in 2003. To sign up to my weekly newsletter, click on your user profile at and select 'My newsletters'. For a step-by-step guide, click here. 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