Latest news with #ClimateLiberationAotearoa
Scoop
09-05-2025
- Scoop
Climate Activist Draw Attention To Outdated Regulations Of Heli Tourism In Aoraki National Park
Press Release – Climate Liberation Aotearoa Climate Liberation Aotearoa recently displayed several large banners around the Aoraki/Mt Cook area to protest for a new long-term sustainability plan for helicopters in Aoraki National Park. 'The lack of a long-term sustainability plan for helicopter tourism is concerning considering the frequency of helicopters and the number of helicopter companies operating in the area and landing on the glacier, both of which cause environmental emissions and noise pollution,' says Climate Liberation Aotearoa spokesperson Jared van Vorsselen. Climate Liberation Aotearoa recently displayed several large banners around the Aoraki/Mt Cook area to protest for a new long-term sustainability plan for helicopters in Aoraki National Park. Banners were photographed reading messages such as 'HELI TOURS MELT ICE' and 'TOURIST HELIS MELT GLACIERS' to draw attention to the environmental issues of helicopters that have remained unregulated by the Aoraki/Cook National Park Management Plan for the last 21 years. Over 3 days in the lower Tasman Glacier valley, we estimated a helicopter flew overhead every 15-20 minutes. This is comparable to statistics from 2024, where a similar Aoraki heli-tourism action observed 49 helicopters over 4 1/2 hours in 2024. Although the Department of Conservation is required to review national park plans every 10 years, no new Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park Plan has been produced in over 20 years. While some amendments have been made, they have failed to establish a clear, long-term sustainability plan for helicopter tourism. The current plan, last updated in 2004, relies on the concessions system to ' minimise adverse effects on the natural values of the Park and on other Park visitors ' (Aoraki National Park Management Plan, 2004), but its outdated nature is now creating significant challenges. Mark Quickfall, founder and CEO of Totally Tourism, says addressing concessions has been delayed while waiting for the plan to be updated, leaving operators without the security of tenure needed for long-term sustainability decisions. ' How can helicopter companies plan and invest to operate more sustainably without security of tenure? ' he asks, adding that ' the system is letting everyone down ' (2025). ' It is ironic that DOC is the face of conservation in New Zealand, but their lack of action is directly delaying sustainable future planning in Aoraki National Park, ' said Climate Liberation Aotearoa spokesperson Jared van Vorsselen. Climate Liberation Aotearoa does not oppose the use of helicopters for search-and-rescue or for conservation work. Instead we urge the Department of Conservation to update the park plan to include a long-term sustainability plan for helicopter tourism in Aoraki National Park.
Scoop
09-05-2025
- Scoop
Climate Activist Draw Attention To Outdated Regulations Of Heli Tourism In Aoraki National Park
'The lack of a long-term sustainability plan for helicopter tourism is concerning considering the frequency of helicopters and the number of helicopter companies operating in the area and landing on the glacier, both of which cause environmental emissions and noise pollution,' says Climate Liberation Aotearoa spokesperson Jared van Vorsselen. Climate Liberation Aotearoa recently displayed several large banners around the Aoraki/Mt Cook area to protest for a new long-term sustainability plan for helicopters in Aoraki National Park. Banners were photographed reading messages such as 'HELI TOURS MELT ICE' and 'TOURIST HELIS MELT GLACIERS' to draw attention to the environmental issues of helicopters that have remained unregulated by the Aoraki/Cook National Park Management Plan for the last 21 years. Over 3 days in the lower Tasman Glacier valley, we estimated a helicopter flew overhead every 15-20 minutes. This is comparable to statistics from 2024, where a similar Aoraki heli-tourism action observed 49 helicopters over 4 1/2 hours in 2024. Although the Department of Conservation is required to review national park plans every 10 years, no new Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park Plan has been produced in over 20 years. While some amendments have been made, they have failed to establish a clear, long-term sustainability plan for helicopter tourism. The current plan, last updated in 2004, relies on the concessions system to ' minimise adverse effects on the natural values of the Park and on other Park visitors ' (Aoraki National Park Management Plan, 2004), but its outdated nature is now creating significant challenges. Mark Quickfall, founder and CEO of Totally Tourism, says addressing concessions has been delayed while waiting for the plan to be updated, leaving operators without the security of tenure needed for long-term sustainability decisions. ' How can helicopter companies plan and invest to operate more sustainably without security of tenure? ' he asks, adding that ' the system is letting everyone down ' (2025). ' It is ironic that DOC is the face of conservation in New Zealand, but their lack of action is directly delaying sustainable future planning in Aoraki National Park, ' said Climate Liberation Aotearoa spokesperson Jared van Vorsselen. Climate Liberation Aotearoa does not oppose the use of helicopters for search-and-rescue or for conservation work. Instead we urge the Department of Conservation to update the park plan to include a long-term sustainability plan for helicopter tourism in Aoraki National Park.
Scoop
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Restore Passenger Rail Climate Protest Charges Dropped 6 May
Article – Climate Liberation Aotearoa The group said that their actions in 2022-23 were an attempt to match the urgency of the climate catastrophe, which was, and is still, being largely ignored by the government. In the Wellington District Court today the Crown prosecution withdrew all outstanding charges against twenty-five Restore Passenger Rail supporters who temporarily and repeatedly stopped traffic on Wellington roads and motorways in 2022-23. The climate defender group demanded that the government restore a nationwide, affordable passenger rail service for New Zealanders. Police originally charged the road-sitters with obstruction, later bumping it up to the criminal offence of endangering transport, carrying a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison. Three of the group each spent two weeks in prison and five, including a great-grandmother, a grandmother and a grandfather, wore electronic monitoring bracelets for up to 13 months. Earlier this year the first of seven jury trials ended after three weeks with one not-guilty verdict (Andrew Sutherland) and a hung jury for three others (Michael Apáthy, Te Wehi Ratana and Tāmati Taptiklis). During the trial, jurors heard from climate experts Dr Kevin Anderson, Professor of Energy and Climate Change at the University of Manchester, and James Renwick, Professor of Physical Geography at Te Herenga Waka. When asked what three degrees Celcius of warming above pre-industrial levels would be like, Professor Anderson replied, 'We haven't seen that for millions and millions of years. … Huge parts of the planet will be uninhabitable.' Professor Renwick explained that in the worst-case scenarios, sea level rise could reach three to four metres. 'Most of downtown Wellington will be underwater, downtown Auckland – most of it will be underwater,' he said. 'Today's decision is an important moment for the climate movement,' said Climate Liberation Aotearoa (formerly Restore Passenger Rail) spokesperson Michael Apáthy. 'In March, the hung jury result showed that New Zealanders do understand the seriousness of the climate emergency. Today's decision backs that up. It is also not only a vindication of our democratic right to protest but a criticism of the police charge which was out of all proportion to our actions.' The group said that their actions in 2022-23 were an attempt to match the urgency of the climate catastrophe, which was, and is still, being largely ignored by the government. They said that a nationwide passenger rail service would begin to bring down New Zealand's out-of-control transport emissions, while at the same time reducing road congestion, connecting communities and improving the quality of life for New Zealanders. 'We are living through the world's sixth mass extinction,' said Michael Apáthy. 'Climate breakdown is daily news. Floods, wildfires, and droughts are accelerating. Temperatures in Pakistan last week, pre-summer, reached 50 degrees Celsius. That is unsurvivable. Yet instead of working to help safeguard a liveable future this government has downgraded climate change in its 2025 Defence Capability Plan and is spending an extra $12 billion on making our military more 'modern and combat-capable'.' 'We hope today's decision will help steer police away from the international trend of increased repression of peaceful protest. When our government continues to fail us on its path of climate denial and erosion of the democratic process and environmental protections, it is left to ordinary people to stand up for our youth and all living creatures. This moment in history calls on all of us to fight for the transformative change needed for our survival. Climate Liberation Aotearoa will continue that fight. Climate action is needed now more than ever.'
Scoop
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Restore Passenger Rail Climate Protest Charges Dropped 6 May
Article – Climate Liberation Aotearoa In the Wellington District Court today the Crown prosecution withdrew all outstanding charges against twenty-five Restore Passenger Rail supporters who temporarily and repeatedly stopped traffic on Wellington roads and motorways in 2022-23. The climate defender group demanded that the government restore a nationwide, affordable passenger rail service for New Zealanders. Police originally charged the road-sitters with obstruction, later bumping it up to the criminal offence of endangering transport, carrying a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison. Three of the group each spent two weeks in prison and five, including a great-grandmother, a grandmother and a grandfather, wore electronic monitoring bracelets for up to 13 months. Earlier this year the first of seven jury trials ended after three weeks with one not-guilty verdict (Andrew Sutherland) and a hung jury for three others (Michael Apáthy, Te Wehi Ratana and Tāmati Taptiklis). During the trial, jurors heard from climate experts Dr Kevin Anderson, Professor of Energy and Climate Change at the University of Manchester, and James Renwick, Professor of Physical Geography at Te Herenga Waka. When asked what three degrees Celcius of warming above pre-industrial levels would be like, Professor Anderson replied, 'We haven't seen that for millions and millions of years. … Huge parts of the planet will be uninhabitable.' Professor Renwick explained that in the worst-case scenarios, sea level rise could reach three to four metres. 'Most of downtown Wellington will be underwater, downtown Auckland – most of it will be underwater,' he said. 'Today's decision is an important moment for the climate movement,' said Climate Liberation Aotearoa (formerly Restore Passenger Rail) spokesperson Michael Apáthy. 'In March, the hung jury result showed that New Zealanders do understand the seriousness of the climate emergency. Today's decision backs that up. It is also not only a vindication of our democratic right to protest but a criticism of the police charge which was out of all proportion to our actions.' The group said that their actions in 2022-23 were an attempt to match the urgency of the climate catastrophe, which was, and is still, being largely ignored by the government. They said that a nationwide passenger rail service would begin to bring down New Zealand's out-of-control transport emissions, while at the same time reducing road congestion, connecting communities and improving the quality of life for New Zealanders. 'We are living through the world's sixth mass extinction,' said Michael Apáthy. 'Climate breakdown is daily news. Floods, wildfires, and droughts are accelerating. Temperatures in Pakistan last week, pre-summer, reached 50 degrees Celsius. That is unsurvivable. Yet instead of working to help safeguard a liveable future this government has downgraded climate change in its 2025 Defence Capability Plan and is spending an extra $12 billion on making our military more 'modern and combat-capable'.' 'We hope today's decision will help steer police away from the international trend of increased repression of peaceful protest. When our government continues to fail us on its path of climate denial and erosion of the democratic process and environmental protections, it is left to ordinary people to stand up for our youth and all living creatures. This moment in history calls on all of us to fight for the transformative change needed for our survival. Climate Liberation Aotearoa will continue that fight. Climate action is needed now more than ever.'
Scoop
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
UPDATE: Denniston Protest Over, Climbers Down
Press Release – Climate Liberation Aotearoa The protest targeted Australian-owned Bathurst Resources' plan to mine 20 million tonnes of coal from the pristine Denniston Plateau under the government's new fast-tracked consent process. The company has a history of consent breaches in Aotearoa, and campaigners … Stockton. The climbers who blockaded the Stockton Mine coal conveyor for over 60 hours have been arrested, ending a bold direct action that disrupted operations at Bathurst Resources' controversial coal mine on the West Coast. All climbers, part of a 70-strong protest encampment that spanned generations, from eight months old to 74 years, have been charged by police alongside five other protesters for Trespass. 'We'll keep fighting this mine,' said climber Adam Currie. 'We've stalled at least two days of coal extraction, sent a clear message to Bathurst and the government, and shown that people are ready to resist the Fast Track Act and the climate-wrecking projects it enables.' The protest targeted Australian-owned Bathurst Resources' plan to mine 20 million tonnes of coal from the pristine Denniston Plateau under the government's new fast-tracked consent process. The company has a history of consent breaches in Aotearoa, and campaigners say they won't back down. 'Support has poured in from across the motu, and local folks have backed us by bringing baking, offering places to sleep, and sharing their own frustrations with the mine. Our resolve is stronger than ever,' Currie said. The climbers' action prompted a response from Resources Minister Shane Jones, who attempted to justify coal expansion with misleading claims about domestic energy needs—despite the fact that the coal in question is for export. 'This isn't just about one minister,' said Currie. 'His comments reflect a deeper truth: this government is doubling down on fossil fuels at the exact moment we need to be scaling up renewables.' The encampment, which included people from Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin, Nelson and beyond, has now disbanded. In total, 10 people have been charged, four of them had also been arrested. So what's next? 'This weekend was just the beginning,' said Alva Feldmeier. 'The Fast Track is waking people up. It's uniting communities, whānau, and climate defenders across the country. We're building a movement that's ready to rise up – again and again – against corporate exploitation and climate betrayal. It's carrying on the legacy of over 150 years of māori-led land back movements here in Aotearoa.'
