I have become increasingly concerned with so-called carbon farming, which promotes the use of exotic plantations (usually radiata pine but sometimes eucalypts) to earn quick carbon credits while promising a longer-term transition to natives.
There’s a lot to commend in the 50 Shades of Green submission to the Climate Change Commission on the Commission’s draft recommendations to the government on meeting greenhouse gas emission goals. 50 Shades questions the accuracy of information on forest planting rates.
Draft advice to Government states that planting trees to offset carbon emissions is unsustainable.
We think this is a great time to delve deeply into the conversation and we encourage debate around some assumptions within the report which we have concerns about.
Reading this week about the launch of Fonterra’s ‘Five anchor milks are now carbon zero’, we learned that this product claim would be achieved by gaining off-sets through funding a solar farm in India and a wind farm in New Caledonia.
In our opinion, the embracing of the ETS and the use of off-setting is being used simply as a greenwashing marketing tool and duping New Zealanders who perhaps don’t understand the nuance of offsetting on our country.
As the select committee deliberates, recent comments in the media has prompted us at 50 Shades of Green to write again to share the concerns we have for the hill country sector and the proliferation of farms being sold to blanket plant in exotic trees as a means of managing climate change. The comments referred to “the privilege and responsibility of managing the primary sector to carry on operating while the country manages its response to Covid19”.
The release of the Essential Freshwater Report, ‘Action for Healthy Waterways’ will undoubtable add further turbulence to an already stormy torrent of proposed Central Government policy effecting Regional Councils and land based industries.
I did a back of the envelope calculation on what the potential returns were for me if I planted 100ha of my farm. The result after 25 years was over $3 million in favour of forestry. I would benefit greatly to plant my whole farm. Our staff, and our local school and merchandisers, stock agents, processing plants etc would not.
Your plan to plant billions of trees has certainly raised a lot of interest, and not a little concern. I read today of a new lobby group, calling itself 50 shades of Green, which has as its motivation a growing concern about the continued viability of rural communities.
50SOG posted Interesting reading comments like these. “Jones said farmers resented rules being tightened regarding the purchase of land by foreigners.” Ah, we beg to differ, the conditions that overseas investors need to meet to gain OIO approval are LESS stringent. That’s why we are seeing the sale of productive food producing land being sold …
Nations like Norway and the USA have relished the opportunity to be self sufficient for energy. Energy security and food security should never be taken for granted.
