imnofox visited Esdale Reserve to campaign for BHjr132’s election campaign

“Tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa. I’ve come here to Eskdale Reserve to highlight the importance of strong Green governance. Behind us is this beautiful bush reserve, and reminds us of what New Zealand was and just how special that is. This is only a small reserve, but beautiful natural places like this, and the unique biodiversity that lives within them, have suffered. And they’ve suffered largely due to the devastating conservation policies- or lack thereof- of the last two governments with National and New Zealand First.”

“The harsh reality is this: 85% of our native lizards are threatened with extinction. 75% of our indigenous freshwater fish are also threatened. 40% of our native bird species. 40% of our native plant. These are all threatened, all closer every day to extinction. This is the biodiversity crisis we are faced with. And the statistics have only gotten worse over the past two terms, because of National and NZ First negligence. It was National who slashed the Department of Conservation’s funding by a massive 50%. It was National who slashed the funding for Predator Free 2050 by half. It was National who scrapped the $621 million of funding towards cleaning up rivers, supporting farmers, planting native trees, and more. That was environmental terrorism from the highest floors of government. And we confronted them on that fact all term. We confronted them because it was irresponsible and reckless, all just a cost cutting measure.”

“And because of that strong Green advocacy, the National Party and New Zealand First backed down when they became government, with 5 simple environmental promises- I guess in an attempt to save face after their destructive environmental record. Tax breaks to firms with environmentally friendly policies, more investment in environmental science, expanded marine reserves, an extension of the Sustainable Farming Fund, and a promise to clean up our waterways by 2060. And yet, despite National’s commitments and NZ First’s supposed ‘environmentalism’, not one of these simple, easily achievable, low-bar goals was even attempted. And ACT is no different/”

“So while National and the ACT Party continue to see zero value in our native environment- in the trees, the fish, the birds, the lizards, the waterways-, this government is getting to work to halt or even reverse the decline in the wellbeing and prevalence of our native forests and fauna. We’re doubling the Department of Conservation’s baseline funding. We’re doubling the Department of Conservation’s funding for predator control. We’re doubling funding for Predator Control 2050. This is affordable, necessary for the protection of our birds, and something ACT believes is a waste of money. We are doubling grant money for the Queen Elizabeth II National Trust, for Ngā Whenua Rāui, for the DOC Conservation Fund, and we’re increasing funding for the Nature Heritage Fund, We’re investing in community backyard trapping, which I know a lot of people around here are so passionate about. These are great programmes, but programmes neglected by successive iterations of National and ACT. BHjr132 and the Greens are committed to protecting our beautiful natural spaces, our conservation land, our reserves, our national parks- and only the Greens in government have a record that reflects that commitment.”

“But our environmental agenda doesn’t stop there. If you look behind you, you’ll sadly see a pile of plastic waste littering those bushes. It’s quite disgusting, and honestly quite upsetting. After this we’ve got some rubbish bags so we can clean this place- real practical action. And real practical action regarding plastic waste is what this government is pursuing. There are lessons we can learn from across the world. South Australia has maintained an effective bottle deposit scheme for over 40 years, and has the lowest percentage of drink containers in their rubbish of the whole country of Australia, and employs 5,000 workers. It’s an effective way to incentivise recycling, placing a 10c deposit on all plastic bottles, glass bottles, and aluminium drink cans, which can then be redeemed at any recycling station. This kind of programme accelerates recycling rates, and will get more rubbish off of our streets and out of our landfills.”

“We’re also working towards combating the scourge that is soft plastic packaging, totally unrecyclable and New Zealand and generally totally unnecessary. The right wing parties don’t seem to understand this, but the Waste Minimisation Act 2008, a great Green piece of legislation, gives the minister the power to designate certain products as ‘priority’ products, for which product stewardship schemes are mandatory. These kinds of schemes make the producer responsible and accountable for the entire life cycle of the product, from production to disposal. Many producers already voluntarily adhere to accredited product stewardship schemes, but we need all producers of plastic packaging, or products using that throwaway soft plastic packaging, to be responsible for the life cycle of that packaging. Because plastic waste does too much harm to our environment, our forests, and our waterways. This is simple action, but meaningful action, that the right-wing refused to take. A vote for BHjr132 is a vote for that kind of environmental leadership.”

“Don’t let ACT win. We need to maintain a government that recognises the value of our indigenous forests and our native creatures, not an opposition that only sees these places as resources to exploit and plunder. The last government refused to protect our conservation land from mining, and yet once again it is the Greens taking the necessary action for the protection of our natural heritage. A vote for BHjr132 is a vote to protect our forests, save our declining native bird populations, protect our indigenous fish, clean up our waterways,and to end mining on conservation land. A vote for BHjr132 is a vote to maintain stable government, in the interests of New Zealand and New Zealand’s beautiful environmental. Because we are the guardians, it is our job to protect, and that is what BHjr132 and the Greens are committed to. This government’s agenda and it’s record speak for itself, and unfortunately for them, the National/ACT alliance’s record speaks for them too. Let’s get out there, and fight for good green change!”

the crowd applauds, before stopping for green tea and cleaning up the reserve from nasty plastic waste and discarded ACT flyers