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April 26, 2022
Nash carbon forest rule change to cost Māori $7b
Adam Gifford
Posted On April 26, 2022
Download AudioMāori landowners say they stand to lose $7 billion in future earnings if permanent exotic forests are taken out of the emissions trading scheme.
Forestry Minister Stuart Nash has given just six weeks for consultation on a proposed change to rules set just 12 months ago encouraging carbon farming of exotics.
Te Kapunga Dewes from Ngā Pou ā Tāne, the National Māori Forestry Association, says that’s not enough time for what is a major attack on the Māori economy and treaty settlements.
He says carbon forestry is often the only option Māori owners have to sustainably develop land in remote areas.
“Using the government’s own figures, it’s roughly around $7 billion lost to Māori and our landowners, but on top of that, it also loses the opportunity for rapid canon sequestration, which contributes to (addressing) our climate change emergency that our Prime Minister told us about a couple of years ago,” Mr Dewes says.
He says under Mr Nash’s plan the Government will spend billions of dollars overseas on forestry projects while denying Māori the opportunity to do the same thing on their whenua here.
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