Two months on from the Government's backdown over mineral prospecting on protected conservation land, the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, Jan Wright, today called for the Conservation Minister to retain sole decision-making power over mine
Two months on from the Government's backdown over mineral prospecting on protected conservation land, the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, Jan Wright, today called for the Conservation Minister to retain sole decision-making power over miners' access to another five million hectares of conservation land.
Dr Wright was today due to launch a report -- Making Difficult Decisions: Mining the Conservation Estate -- which canvassed Government ambitions to open up for mining companies the 60 percent of Department of Conservation (DOC) land which is not "protected" by being listed on Schedule 4 of the Crown Minerals Act.
It wants decisions on miners' access to Crown land to be made jointly by not only the land-holding minister but also Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee, who has repeated called for "unlocking New Zealand's mineral potential".
This would cut across a fundamental separation of functions and powers, warned Dr Wright.
"The Minister of Conservation will remain accountable for the conservation estate but not in control," she said in the 37-page report: "His or her core role as guardian of the conservation estate will be undermined".
"I recommend that Parliament does not support legislation that requires decisions on access to public conservation land for mining to be made jointly," said Dr Wright, who reports to Parliament as a whole, rather than just the Government.
Mr Brownlee and cabinet colleagues backed down on their proposal to open up 7058ha -- drawn from Schedule 4 land -- to mining after 40,000 people marched through Auckland and 37,500 submissions were made in consultation efforts.
The environmental impacts of mines on the rest of the conservation land -- about 5.1 million ha -- are currently controlled by access conditions set by DOC, and by resource consents set by local authorities.
Dr Wright noted that "provided conservation takes precedence", some mining operations could well provide a net conservation benefit, such as extra revenue for DOC, or direct improvements in control of the pests that threaten native plants and animals. But the opportunity to provide extra revenue for DOC should not be exploited to cut baseline funding for conservation.
"To provide a net benefit and to deliver a win to conservation, it must go beyond compensating for damage," she said. Great care would be required in such decisions, as well as national guidelines on detailed assessments of conservation value at specific sites.
Public confidence could be increased by allowing public input on significant applications for commercial activities on conservation land.
"It looks likely that this change will occur but a clear definition of 'significant' is crucial," said Dr Wright.
The Government's proposal to remove some conservation land from Schedule 4 would have eroded public confidence in mining taking place on the remaining 60 percent of the conservation estate.
"The difficulty in obtaining information about existing and proposed mining operations on conservation land should be addressed urgently," she said. "Unnecessary secrecy serves no one."
