We're all in it together!
OPINION: Hill Country farmers and foresters have common concerns about regulations and climate change.
If elected next term, Labour says it will require resource consent for any conversion of highly productive farmland into forestry.
Labour Party Forestry spokesperson Stuart Nash said food producing soil will take priority over planting trees to meet climate change challenges.
“Within the first six months of the next term of government, we will revise the National Environment Standards for Plantation Forestry to enable councils to once again determine what classes of land can be used for plantation and carbon forests.”
“Resource consent would be required for plantation or carbon forests on Land Use Capability Classes 1-5 – often known as elite soils – above a threshold of 50 hectares per farm to allow farmers flexibility in creating small plantations to support environmental goals,” said Nash.
Labour Party rural communities spokesperson Kieran McAnulty says 90% of forestry planting for ETS purpose happens on less productive soils in classes 6-8.
McAnulty says Labour wants to ensure all planting happens away from valuable soils in classes 1-5.
“Forestry is not bad: we need the right tree in the right place, but we also need the right mechanism to ensure this,” said McAnulty.
New Zealand has approximately 12.1 million hectares in farmland and 1.7m in forestry.
Labour says 22,000 hectares of farmland was converted to forestry in 2019, a figure conflicting with Beef + Lamb New Zealand, who claim about 70,000 hectares of productive sheep and beef land has been converted to forestry since 2019.
Federated Farmers president Wayne Langford is claiming “some real success” on the 12 policy priorities it placed before the Coalition Government.
Federated Farmers is throwing its support behind the Fast-track Approvals Bill introduced by the Coalition Government to enable a fast-track decision-making process for infrastructure and development projects.
The latest report from ANZ isn’t good news for sheep farmers: lamb returns are forecast to remain low.
Divine table grapes that herald the start of a brand-new industry in Hawke’s Bay have been coming off vines in Maraekakaho.
In what appears to be a casualty of the downturn in the agricultural sector, a well-known machinery brand is now in the hands of liquidators and owing creditors $6.6 million.
One of New Zealand’s deepest breeder Jersey herds – known for its enduring connection through cattle with the UK’s longest reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II – will host its 75th anniversary celebration sale on-farm on April 22.