Environmental movement in New Zealand

Last updated July 09, 2024

The environmental movement in New Zealand started in the 1950s, a period of rapid social change. Since then numerous high-profile national campaigns have contested various environmental issues including forest protection, transport decarbonisation, and coal mining.^[1]^[2]^[3] The environmental movement eventually spawned the Values Party, which was the first political party with a strong focus on environmental issues to contest national elections. The Values Party eventually morphed into the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand.

Beginnings

A number of commentators^{[ who? ]} consider that the earliest major environmental issue in New Zealand was the national campaign to prevent the raising of the levels of Lakes Manapouri and Te Anau as part of stage two of the development of the Manapouri Power Project. A "Save Manapouri Campaign" ran from 1959 through to 1962, involving organisations such as the Forest and Bird Protection Society and the Scenery Preservation Society, resulting in two petitions to parliament and the formation of the Nature Conservation Council, a government advisory body. The "Save Manapouri Campaign", which commenced in Invercargill in October 1969, became a national campaign in 1970 with a third petition to parliament, a Cabinet Committee report and a Commission of Inquiry. The Save Manapouri debate lasted until the 1972 general election, when the incoming Kirk administration promised not to raise the levels of either Lakes Manapouri and Te Anau, establishing instead the Guardians of Lakes Manapouri and Te Anau to ensure that both lakes would be operated within their natural levels.

Certainly the Save Manapouri Campaign occurred during a time of heightened international concern for the popular concept of the 'environment', but it was neither the first - nor the last - of a succession of campaigns to preserve aspects of New Zealand's natural heritage dating back to the creation of the first scenic reserves and national parks. Earlier 'scenery preservation' campaigns, such as the Waipoua Forest debate, when the Waipoua Preservation Society, campaigned against the government's plans in 1946 to log the Waipoua Forest, included many recognisable elements of later 'environmental' campaigns - appeals to public opposition to the loss of natural landscapes, petitions and on-site consideration of the potential impacts of logging. What was different by 1969, therefore, was the sophistication of the conservation/environmental debate, which was able to use the new international lexicon of 'environmentalism' to describe those tangible and intangible features of the Manapouri landscape, which were threatened by the power project.^[4]

Campaigns

Other major issues have included nuclear energy, preventing native forest logging and halting the growing of GE food crops. Logging protests occurred in Whirinaki, Pureora, and on the West Coast of the South Island.

As of 2010 the environmental movement is active in many areas, including opposition to new large-scale hydro dams, protecting conservation land from mining and preventing overuse of water resources.

Organisations

The largest conservation organisation, formed in 1923, is Forest and Bird. Greenpeace New Zealand carries out advocacy and direct action in and around New Zealand. Environment and Conservation Organisations of Aotearoa New Zealand (ECO) is an umbrella organisation of about 50 environmental organisations.

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manapouri Power Station</span> Dam in Fiordland National Park, Southland

Manapōuri Power Station is an underground hydroelectric power station on the western arm of Lake Manapouri in Fiordland National Park, in the South Island of New Zealand. At 854 MW installed capacity, it is the largest hydroelectric power station in New Zealand, and the second largest power station in New Zealand. The station is noted for the controversy and environmental protests by the Save Manapouri Campaign against raising the level of Lake Manapouri to increase the station's hydraulic head, which galvanised New Zealanders and was one of the foundations of the New Zealand environmental movement.

Lake Manapouri is located in the South Island of New Zealand. The lake is situated within the Fiordland National Park and the wider region of Te Wahipounamu South West New Zealand World Heritage Area.

Forest & Bird, also known by its formal name as the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand, is an environmental organisation specialising in the protection and conservation of New Zealand's indigenous flora and fauna and unique wild places and natural ecosystems. Forest & Bird consists of 47 branches located in urban and rural centres throughout New Zealand. Branches are actively engaged in conservation projects and advocacy on a community, regional and national basis. Forest & Bird has offices and staff located in Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington, Nelson and Dunedin. Forest & Bird publishes a quarterly magazine Forest & Bird, one of New Zealand's definitive natural history and conservation publications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Save Manapouri campaign</span> Environmental campaign in New Zealand

The Save Manapouri campaign was an environmental campaign waged between 1969 and 1972 in New Zealand to prevent the raising of the levels of lakes Manapouri and Te Anau as part of the construction of the Manapouri Power Project.

Environment and Conservation Organisations of Aotearoa New Zealand (ECO) was formed in 1971 under the name of CoEnCo. The name changed to ECO in 1976.

Manapouri is a small town in Southland / Fiordland, in the southwest corner of the South Island, in New Zealand. The township is the westernmost municipality in New Zealand. Located at the edge of the Fiordland National Park, on the eastern shore of Lake Manapouri, close to its outflow into the Waiau River, tourist boat services are based in the town.

This is a timeline of environmental history of New Zealand. It includes notable events affecting the natural environment of New Zealand as a result of human activity.

The Save Happy Valley Coalition (SHVC) is an environmental activist movement formed with the express purpose of preventing the Cypress mine, an open cast coal mine on the West Coast of New Zealand, from proceeding.

The Waiau River is the largest river in the Southland region of New Zealand. 'Waiau' translates to 'River of Swirling Currents'. It is the outflow of Lake Te Anau, flowing from it into Lake Manapouri 10 kilometres (6 mi) to the south, and from there flows south for 70 kilometres (43 mi) before reaching the Foveaux Strait 8 kilometres (5 mi) south of Tuatapere. It also takes water from Lake Monowai.

The Kepler Track is a 60 km (37 mi) circular hiking track which travels through the landscape of the South Island of New Zealand and is situated near the town of Te Anau. The track passes through many landscapes of the Fiordland National Park such as rocky mountain ridges, tall mossy forests, lake shores, deep gorges, rare wetlands and rivers. Like the mountains it traverses, the track is named after Johannes Kepler. The track is one of the New Zealand Great Walks and is administered by the Department of Conservation (DOC).

Allan David Dick was a New Zealand politician of the National Party.

John Guy Chewings was a New Zealand politician of the National Party.

The Fiordland Trails Trust, New Zealand, was formed in March 2007, and is an Organisation, with Charitable and Donee Status. The Group was set up in response to the need for a recreational cycleway linking the Towns of Manapouri and Te Anau, much of which has high scenic and recreational values. The Trust aims to construct, Fund and Maintain regional multi use trails for the Department of Conservation In the Fiordland and Northern Southland area.

The Guardians of Lake Manapouri, Monowai and Te Anau is a statutory body appointed to make recommendations to the New Zealand Minister of Conservation on any matters arising from the environmental, ecological, and social effects of the operation of the Manapouri Power Station on the townships of Manapouri and Te Anau, Lake Manapouri and Lake Te Anau and their shorelines, and on the rivers flowing in and out of those lakes, having particular regard to the effects of the operation on social values, conservation, recreation, tourism, and related activities and amenities.

Leslie Hutchins was a New Zealand tourism operator and conservationist. Together with his wife, he bought a tourism company in 1954 that is today RealNZ; it still remains mostly in family ownership. Hutchins was one of the founding members of the Save Manapouri campaign and became one of the initial six Guardians of Lake Manapouri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan Mark</span> New Zealand botanist and environmentalist (born 1932)

Sir Alan Francis Mark is a New Zealand botanist and environmentalist. He was an initial member of the Save Manapouri campaign and the inaugural chair of the Guardians of Lake Manapouri for 26 years.

References

↑ McIntyre, Iain (8 July 2024). "Environmental blockading timeline, 1974-1997". Commons Social Change Library.
↑ Gulliver, Robyn (2023-03-20). "Auckland Transport Decarbonisation Campaign (2020 - 2022)". The Commons Social Change Library. Retrieved 2024-07-08.
↑ Hunter, Daniel (2024-03-05). "What to do when we 'Lose'". The Commons Social Change Library. Retrieved 2024-07-08.
↑ Peat, N. Manapouri Saved, New Zealand's First Great Conservation Success Story, Dunedin, 1994; Wheen, N. (2002) A history of New Zealand environmental law. pp 261-274, In Environmental histories of New Zealand, edited by Pawson, E. and Brooking,T. Oxford University Press, Melbourne, pages 266-269.

External links

New Zealand environmental organisations at Curlie .
Greenpages Archived 2018-11-30 at the Wayback Machine - a database of New Zealand environmental organisations

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[1] McIntyre, Iain (8 July 2024). "Environmental blockading timeline, 1974-1997". Commons Social Change Library.

[2] Gulliver, Robyn (2023-03-20). "Auckland Transport Decarbonisation Campaign (2020 - 2022)". The Commons Social Change Library. Retrieved 2024-07-08.

[3] Hunter, Daniel (2024-03-05). "What to do when we 'Lose'". The Commons Social Change Library. Retrieved 2024-07-08.

[4] Peat, N. Manapouri Saved, New Zealand's First Great Conservation Success Story, Dunedin, 1994; Wheen, N. (2002) A history of New Zealand environmental law. pp 261-274, In Environmental histories of New Zealand, edited by Pawson, E. and Brooking,T. Oxford University Press, Melbourne, pages 266-269.

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