Latest news with #EnvironmentalLawInitiative
The Guardian
an hour ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
New Zealand government sued over ‘dangerously inadequate' emissions reduction plan
Hundreds of top environment lawyers are suing the New Zealand government over what they say is its 'dangerously inadequate' plan to reduce emissions to net zero by 2050. It is the first time the country's emissions reduction plan has faced litigation, and the lawyers believe it is the first case globally that challenges the use of forestry to offset emissions. Lawyers for Climate Action NZ and the Environmental Law Initiative – two groups representing more than 300 lawyers – filed judicial review proceedings against the government in Wellington's high court on Tuesday. The groups have provided the Guardian with first access to the claim, which argues the government has abandoned dozens of tools to tackle emissions, failed to adequately consult the public, and too heavily relies on high-risk carbon capture strategies such as forestry. The government's plan was 'fundamentally unambitious' and a 'dangerous regression' for the country, Jessica Palairet, the president of Lawyers for Climate Action NZ told the Guardian. 'As it stands, the government's emissions reduction plan will carry huge consequences for our country. We don't take this step lightly, but the plan needs to be challenged,' Palairet said. The plan must be robust and transparent, in line with the country's chief climate law – the climate change response (zero carbon) amendment act – she said. In 2019, the Labour government passed that landmark climate legislation committing the nation to reducing its domestic carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 and meeting its commitments under the Paris climate accords. Governments are legally required to set an emission reductions plan every five years detailing how New Zealand will meet its greenhouse gas targets. The right-wing coalition government has committed to the 2050 net zero emissions target. Its first emissions reduction plan released in December – shows New Zealand is on track to reach emissions targets up until 2030, but will not meet the targets in five years after. The government said it will address those targets in 2030. The plan also says the country is also on track to meet its long-term emissions goal but climate experts warn the government's methods could end up derailing progress. The legal claim includes two primary challenges. The first argues the government tossed out dozens of credible climate policies – including the clean car discount and a gas transition plan – and did not adequately consult the public over the changes. The lawyers also claim that the government is relying on 'high risk' methods such as planting hundreds of thousands of hectares of introduced pine trees to offset emissions, and capturing carbon underground, with few alternatives to fall back on if something goes wrong. Some experts have warned achieving a net reduction in emissions primarily through planting trees is impossible to sustain in the long term, as forests could be destroyed though fire or extreme weather and do not store carbon for ever. Dr Christina Hood, the head of energy and climate policy consultancy Compass Climate, told the Guardian the government's emissions reduction plan was 'incredibly shortsighted'. Hood said there is an assumption that as long as New Zealand plants trees, it can emit as much as it likes, but warned that was a 'blinkered' approach that ignores the future. 'In our law … there's a responsibility to meet all of the targets, not just the current one.' While New Zealand's total contribution to global emissions is small at 0.17%, its gross emissions per capita are high. The country has also been among the world's worst performers on emission increases. Between 1990 and 2018, its emissions rose 57% – the second-greatest increase of all industrialised countries. Climate scientists and environment groups are worried the government's broader environmental agenda will derail the country's ability to reduce emissions and protect its unique species. Since taking office, the government has promised to restart offshore oil and has set aside $200m of its budget to invest in gas exploration. It plans to boost mineral exports to $3bn by 2035, at the same time it has slashed funding to conservation and climate initiatives. The controversial new fast-track law that is pushing through major infrastructure projects, including mining, has been described as 'egregiously damaging' for the environment and risks a path towards a greener future. The minister of climate change, Simon Watts, would not be commenting on the judicial review, as the matter is now before the courts, his office told the Guardian. The Green Party is backing the claim because the government's plan 'is not worth the paper that it is written on', its co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick told the Guardian. Climate litigation as a form of activism is gaining momentum around the world. In 2024 the high court found the UK government's climate action plan was unlawful, as there was not enough evidence that there were sufficient policies in place to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Palairet hopes this case will force the government to come up with a new plan. 'The reason why we take a case like this to a court is to scrutinise and question whether the government statements match up with reality.'
RNZ News
11-05-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Canterbury council's freshwater management challenged in court
The Environmental Law Initiative wants a rule in the regional plan which allows certain farming discharges as a permitted activity to be quashed. File photo. Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon The first of two back-to-back court cases challenging the Canterbury regional council's freshwater management begins at the Christchurch High Court today. The Environmental Law Initiative (ELI) will ask the court to quash a rule in the regional plan which allows certain farming discharges as a permitted activity. Senior researcher Anna Sintenie said ELI will argue the rule - which allows the discharge of nutrients onto or into land to be a permitted activity in some circumstances, but can result in contaminants entering water - breaches the Resource Management Act. She said the council should be protecting the health of Canterbury's waterways and people for generations to come, but has instead been "illegally permissive" of activities that have led to significant pollution. The organisations will be back in the High Court the following week, as ELI seeks to have a consent for the Mayfield Hinds Valetta (MHV) irrigation scheme deemed unlawful . In 2021, the council granted MHV Water Ltd a consent to discharge nitrogen over more than 58,000 hectares in the Hinds/Hekeao Plains. Sintenie said the organisation is seeking a similar outcome as they won in 2024, when the court found the council had unlawfully granted a resource consent for the neighbouring Ashburton Lyndhurst Irrigation Ltd irrigation scheme (ALIL), and quashed the consent . The regional council and ALIL have appealed the decision. She said in the wake of the court's findings in the ALIL case - that the council's decision to grant the discharge consent breached the RMA, and that the council had failed to consider other relevant policies requiring it to avoid adverse effects on indigenous biodiversity and the "natural character" of coastal and freshwater environment - ELI took another look at the council's water management and protection. The group will also argue the council failed to consider the potential impacts on local drinking water supplies, and should have notified the community. It was just down to the court's timetabling that the cases had been scheduled back to back, Sintinie said. But it was no coincidence the organisation was scrutinising the Canterbury Regional Council's decison-making, consent management and protection of freshwater. "We've had a focus on water quality outcomes in Canterbury because we can see there's a significant nitrogen pollution issue in the region. "We believe in this context of significant pollution, there's a high responsibility on ECan [the regional council] to be sure it's properly managing these issues." The majority of the country's freshwater is located in Canterbury (about 70 percent), as is the bulk of the nation's irrigated land. The council declined to comment while the cases were before the court. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
11-05-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Canterbury council's freshwater management challanged in court
The Environmental Law Initiative wants a rule in the regional plan which allows certain farming discharges as a permitted activity to be quashed. File photo. Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon The first of two back-to-back court cases challenging the Canterbury regional council's freshwater management begins at the Christchurch High Court today. The Environmental Law Initiative (ELI) will ask the court to quash a rule in the regional plan which allows certain farming discharges as a permitted activity. Senior researcher Anna Sintenie said ELI will argue the rule - which allows the discharge of nutrients onto or into land to be a permitted activity in some circumstances, but can result in contaminants entering water - breaches the Resource Management Act. She said the council should be protecting the health of Canterbury's waterways and people for generations to come, but has instead been "illegally permissive" of activities that have led to significant pollution. The organisations will be back in the High Court the following week, as ELI seeks to have a consent for the Mayfield Hinds Valetta (MHV) irrigation scheme deemed unlawful . In 2021, the council granted MHV Water Ltd a consent to discharge nitrogen over more than 58,000 hectares in the Hinds/Hekeao Plains. Sintenie said the organisation is seeking a similar outcome as they won in 2024, when the court found the council had unlawfully granted a resource consent for the neighbouring Ashburton Lyndhurst Irrigation Ltd irrigation scheme (ALIL), and quashed the consent . The regional council and ALIL have appealed the decision. She said in the wake of the court's findings in the ALIL case - that the council's decision to grant the discharge consent breached the RMA, and that the council had failed to consider other relevant policies requiring it to avoid adverse effects on indigenous biodiversity and the "natural character" of coastal and freshwater environment - ELI took another look at the council's water management and protection. The group will also argue the council failed to consider the potential impacts on local drinking water supplies, and should have notified the community. It was just down to the court's timetabling that the cases had been scheduled back to back, Sintinie said. But it was no coincidence the organisation was scrutinising the Canterbury Regional Council's decison-making, consent management and protection of freshwater. "We've had a focus on water quality outcomes in Canterbury because we can see there's a significant nitrogen pollution issue in the region. "We believe in this context of significant pollution, there's a high responsibility on ECan [the regional council] to be sure it's properly managing these issues." The majority of the country's freshwater is located in Canterbury (about 70 percent), as is the bulk of the nation's irrigated land. The council declined to comment while the cases were before the court. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Sky News
19-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Sky News
The blobfish: 'World's ugliest animal' named fish of the year in New Zealand
The blobfish, described as the world's ugliest animal, has been voted fish of the year in New Zealand. The creature, which grows to about 12 inches (30cm) long, is known affectionately as Mr Blobby and is the official mascot of the Ugly Animal Preservation Society. It has a bulbous head, and loose, flabby skin, and lives in the deep sea, mainly off the southeastern coast of mainland Australia, the Australian island of Tasmania, and New Zealand. The blobfish topped the annual poll by the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust, an environmental non-profit group, winning almost 1,300 out of more than 5,500 votes. The animal, which has a gelatinous, tadpole-like body, benefitted from a late surge in support to overtake the endangered orange roughy, another deep sea dweller, by nearly 300 votes. In their natural habitat, on the seabed at depths of about 2,000ft to 4,000ft (600m-1,200m), blobfish resemble any other fish. But when brought to the surface, where the water pressure isn't high enough to maintain their shape, blobfish morph into mushy creatures with an unfortunate appearance. The trust's co-director, Kim Jones, described the competition as "a battle of two quirky deep sea critters, with the blobfish's unconventional beauty helping get voters over the line". The winner's late run benefitted from the backing of two New Zealand radio hosts, Sarah Gandy and Paul Flynn, who encouraged their listeners to vote blobfish. "We and the people of New Zealand had had enough of other fish getting all the headlines," the broadcasters said. They said the animal "has been bullied his whole life and we thought, 'stuff this, it's time for the blobfish to have his moment in the sun,' and what a glorious moment it is!" A spokesperson for the Environmental Law Initiative, which sponsored the orange roughy in the race, said it had "no bloblem" with the result, stressing that it's "still a win" for deep-sea ecosystems and can help raise awareness about the environmental impact of destructive bottom trawling. The longfin eel, the whale shark and the great white shark were among the other fish in the top 10.
The Guardian
18-03-2025
- Science
- The Guardian
Once named world's ugliest animal, blobfish wins New Zealand's fish of the year
It was once crowned the 'world's ugliest animal' and now the disgruntled-looking gelatinous blobfish has a new gong to its name: New Zealand's fish of the year. The winning species of blobfish, Psychrolutes marcidus, lives in the highly pressurised depths off the coasts of New Zealand and Australia and has developed a unique anatomy to exist. Blobfish do not have a swim bladder, a full skeleton, muscles or scales. Instead, their bodies are made up of blobby tissue with a lower density than water that allows them to float above the seafloor. The species is believed to be able to live to 130 years old, is slow growing and slow moving, says Konrad Kurta, a spokesperson from the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust that runs the annual competition. 'It sort of sits there and waits for prey to come very close and practically walk into its mouth before it eats them,' he says. It is also a 'dedicated parent' with females laying up to 100,000 eggs in a single nest, which they protect until they hatch. The fish found fame over a decade ago after a crew member on a New Zealand research vessel snapped a photograph of the rarely seen animal. Its distinctive appearance was quickly adopted into meme culture. The pressure of the water forces their shape into that of a regular – albeit bulbous – fish but out of the depths they can resemble 'a failed medical experiment', Kurta said. 'Regrettably, when it is pulled up … that sudden decompression causes it to become all disfigured,' Kurta says. Little is known about their conservation status due to a lack of research, but their populations and habitat are considered vulnerable to deep-sea trawling. 'Blobfish are fairly frequently pulled up from the bottom-trawling of orange roughy,' Kurta said. The Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust launched the Fish of the Year competition in 2020, inspired by the highly popular Bird of the Year. This year saw the highest number of votes cast in its competition – 5,583 in 2025, compared with 1,021 last year. The blobfish won on 1,286 votes, pipping the orange roughy by 300 votes, despite the latter having powerful backers including Greenpeace, Forest & Bird and the Environmental Law Initiative. 'We are very pleased for the blobfish,' said Aaron Packard, a spokesperson for Environmental Law Initiative. 'From an ecosystem perspective, a win for blobfish is a win for orange roughy.' New Zealand is responsible for about 80% of the global orange roughy catch. Environmental watchdogs regularly call for a halt on fishing the species due to the destructive effects of bottom trawling on ecosystems and vulnerabilities in fish populations. Other contenders in the competition included the mysterious longfin eel – known as tuna in Māori language – a pygmy pipehorse, a critically endangered mud-fish, sharks and rays. 'We have a dizzying variety of native marine and freshwater fish,' Kurta says, adding roughly 85% are considered vulnerable. 'That [these fish] exist is often the first step to getting people invested and interested in what's happening below the waterline.'
