Farmers back bill to exclude climate rules in resource consents

Federated Farmers RMA spokesman Mark Hooper says they support the newly proposed bill that prohibits councils from factoring in greenhouse gas emissions in consenting decisions. Photo / RNZ

Federated Farmers is backing a members’ bill aimed at stopping regional councils from factoring in the negative effects of climate change in consenting decisions.

Act Party MP Mark Cameron, who submitted the bill, said councils’ efforts against climate change were “hopeless” and creating a “productivity crisis”.

Gisborne District Council has created a climate change roadmap to 2050, which guides how the council will reduce emissions and respond to climate change in the region.

Cameron said Act accepted that councils needed to prepare for extreme weather events, but challenged their claimed responsibility to reduce emissions.

“Reducing emissions in the Gisborne region will not change the climate and that is because climate change is global,” he said.

Efforts to reduce regional emissions under a cap-and-trade system like New Zealand’s would drive productive activity - and associated emissions - into neighbouring regions, he claimed.

“How is the council meant to validate offset activity in other parts of the country? This is better managed through a national system like the Emissions Trading Scheme,” he said.

The bill would only be speaking to greenhouse gas emissions, due to it being a global issue, he said.

“We’ve got farmers, business owners, heavy industry, right down to the commercial sector literally not being able to function because they are drowning in red tape ... and this bill would seek to remove that,” he said.

Federated Farmers RMA (Resource Management Act) spokesman Mark Hooper said they supported legislative changes that would prevent regional and district councils from regulating greenhouse gas emissions.

“Having local councils regulate greenhouse gas emissions could also cause some real headaches for farmers that add a lot of cost and uncertainty,” he said.

“For example, the local council could set a completely unreasonable target for emissions reductions that go much further and faster than is required under our national targets.”

This could see a farmer declined a resource consent if they were unable to show how they could meet those targets, he said.

“That may sound like an outrageous situation, but it’s actually what we’re starting to see unfold with the Wellington Regional Council who have proposed a 50% emissions reduction by 2030.

“With 38% of that region’s emissions coming from agriculture, it would be impossible to meet that target without shutting down farms – the economic impacts would be huge,” he said.

Hooper said it would be no different for a region like Gisborne.

Gisborne District Council’s Sustainable Futures director Joanna Noble said the council had not yet had an opportunity to discuss the newly proposed bill.

Mayor Rehette Stoltz said any legislative changes would have an impact - however, without knowing the substance of those changes, it was difficult to assess the effect.

“Climate change is significant for everyone and particularly for Tairāwhiti, and we’ll continue to consider it in our mahi,” she said.

A Local Government New Zealand spokesperson said councils were committed to addressing climate change and were at the frontline of dealing with it.

“The effects are more acute than ever.

“One of the biggest costs for councils is when successive governments chop and change what they want to make councils do.”

Political consensus on big issues like climate change was needed, the LGNZ spokesperson said.

“We welcomed the cross-party approach to climate adaptation announced by the Minister for Climate Change earlier this year.”

- LDR is a local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.