Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand

Last updated
Forest and Bird
Formation1923
TypeNon-governmental Organisation
Legal statusCharity
Purpose Conservation
Headquarters Wellington, New Zealand
President
Mark Hanger
Website forestandbird.org.nz/

Forest & Bird, also known by its formal name as the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand Inc., 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. [1] 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.

Conservation biology the study of threats to biological diversity

Conservation biology is the management of nature and of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction and the erosion of biotic interactions. It is an interdisciplinary subject drawing on natural and social sciences, and the practice of natural resource management.

Auckland Metropolitan area in North Island, New Zealand

Auckland is a city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country, Auckland has an urban population of around 1,628,900. It is located in the Auckland Region—the area governed by Auckland Council—which includes outlying rural areas and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf, resulting in a total population of 1,695,900. Auckland is a diverse, multicultural and cosmopolitan city, home to the largest Polynesian population in the world. A Māori-language name for Auckland is Tāmaki or Tāmaki Makaurau, meaning "Tāmaki with a hundred lovers", in reference to the desirability of its fertile land at the hub of waterways in all directions.

Christchurch City in South Island, New Zealand

Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. The Christchurch urban area lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula. It is home to 404,500 residents, making it New Zealand's third-most populous city behind Auckland and Wellington. The Avon River flows through the centre of the city, with an urban park located along its banks.

Contents

Forest & Bird has published a comprehensive commentary book on environmental law in New Zealand. [2] Forest & Bird are also actively engaged in advocating and lobbying for resource management law and practices to more consistently protect ecosystems. [3]

History

The Forest and Bird logo that was in use until November 2009. Forest and Bird logo.jpg
The Forest and Bird logo that was in use until November 2009.

The society was founded in 1923, as the Native Bird Protection Society. Later renamed as the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand, it has consistently advocated conservation issues, particularly for forested land. [4]

Val Sanderson is acknowledged as the founder of Forest and Bird. In 1921, after his return from the First World War, the then Captain Val Sanderson was angered that the Kapiti Island wildlife reserve was unfenced and extensively damaged by cattle, sheep and goats. Sanderson campaigned for better management of Kapiti Island and succeeded in having it re-dedicated as a Wildlife Reserve. After this success, Sanderson held a public meeting in March 1923 which established the Native Bird Protection Society with Sir Thomas Mackenzie as the Society's first President. The New Zealand Forestry League, a forest conservation group already existed but it gradually died out. In 1935 Mackenzie and Sanderson renamed the society the Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand. Sanderson drove an expansion of the society's range of interests into such areas as soil erosion and use of native trees for soil stabilisation. He became the president in 1933 a position which he held until his death in 1945 aged 79. [5]

Ernest Valentine "Val" Sanderson was a notable New Zealand businessman and conservationist. He was born in Dunedin, New Zealand in 1866. Sanderson is known for founding in 1923 the Native Bird Protection Society. In 1935 the society became the Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand.

Kapiti Island island in New Zealand

Kapiti Island is an island about 5 km (3 mi) off the west coast of the lower North Island of New Zealand. It is 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) long, running southwest/northeast, and roughly 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) wide, being more or less rectangular in shape, and has an area of 19.65 km2 (7.59 sq mi).

Thomas Mackenzie 18th Prime Minister of New Zealand

Sir Thomas Mackenzie was a Scottish-born New Zealand politician and explorer who briefly served as the 18th Prime Minister of New Zealand in 1912, and later served as New Zealand High Commissioner in London.

Until the 1970s, the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society remained the only New Zealand environmental group. However, in October 1971 the New Zealand Government proposed to harvest large areas of native South Island lowland beech forest with half the cleared area to be converted to exotic Pinus radiata. Along with the Save Manapouri campaign, the native forest harvesting prompted more public awareness of conservation and the formation of new environmental groups such as the Beech Forest Action Committee. In response to the native forest harvesting, on 4 July 1975 Forest & Bird and Beech Forest Action Committee started the Maruia Declaration as a public petition demanding an end to native forest logging and legal recognition of native forests. The Maruia Declaration was submitted to the New Zealand Government in 1977. [6]

<i>Nothofagus fusca</i> species of plant

Nothofagus fusca, commonly known as red beech is a species of southern beech, endemic to New Zealand, where it occurs on both the North Island and South Island. Generally it is found on lower hills and inland valley floors where soil is fertile and well drained. In New Zealand the species is called Fuscospora fusca.

<i>Pinus radiata</i> species of plant

Pinus radiata, family Pinaceae, the Monterey pine, insignis pine or radiata pine, is a species of pine native to the Central Coast of California and Mexico.

Save Manapouri campaign

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.

From 2005 the society has held an annual poll Bird of the Year, voted on by the public. [7] Winners to date include the kakapo, the tui and the pukeko.

Kakapo A large flightless nocturnal parrot endemic to New Zealand

The kakapo, also called owl parrot, is a species of large, flightless, nocturnal, ground-dwelling parrot of the super-family Strigopoidea, endemic to New Zealand.

Tui (bird) species of bird

The tui is an endemic passerine bird of New Zealand, and the only species in the genus Prosthemadera. It is one of the largest species in the diverse Australasian honeyeater family, and one of two living species of that family found in New Zealand, the other being the related New Zealand bellbird. The species has a wide distribution in the archipelago, ranging from the subtropical Kermadec Islands to the sub-Antarctic Auckland Islands, as well as the main islands.

Campaigns

Aims

The society has the following aims: [12]

Attitudes

Former National Office building in Wellington, now at 205 Victoria Street Forest & Bird headquarters.jpg
Former National Office building in Wellington, now at 205 Victoria Street

Perceptions on Forest & Bird are varied. While the group is one of the most well-known mainstream environmental groups of the country, it has also come under criticism, such as in 2010 when Prime Minister John Key accused them of engaging in "predictable scaremongering" when the group warned that a yet unreleased government report proposed to allow mining in 7000ha of high-value conservation land in Paparoa National Park, Great Barrier Island and the Coromandel Peninsula. [13] Key also labelled news coverage quoting Forest and Bird's revelations of the Government's intentions for mining conservation land as "hysterical". [14]

A week later, as predicted by Forest and Bird, [15] the Government released the "Schedule 4 stocktake" proposal to open up 7058 hectares of protected conservation land for mining. Parts of the Coromandel Peninsula, Great Barrier Island, and parts of Paparoa National Park were proposed for removal from Schedule Four of the Crown Minerals Act 1991, which otherwise prevents mining. [16] Journalist John Armstrong commented that "Forest and Bird knocked the Government sideways with leaked information revealing the extent of National's plans to open up land currently off limits to mining companies" and that the Government was suffering from hysteria if any one was. [17]

After 40,000 people marched in Auckland in protest against the proposal, [18] and after the vast majority of 37,552 public submissions opposed the proposal, the Government announced that no conservation land would be removed from Schedule 4 to allow mining. [19]

Publications

Related Research Articles

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Kawau Island island

Kawau Island is in the Hauraki Gulf, close to the north-eastern coast of the North Island of New Zealand. At its closest point it lies 1.4 km (0.87 mi) off the coast of the North Auckland Peninsula, just south of Tawharanui Peninsula, and about 8 km (5.0 mi) by sea journey from Sandspit Wharf, and shelters Kawau Bay to the north-east of Warkworth. It is 40 km (25 mi) north of Auckland. Mansion House in the Kawau Island Historic Reserve is an important historic tourist attraction. Almost every property on the Island relies on direct access to the sea. There are only two short roads serving settlements at Schoolhouse Bay and South Cove, and most people have private wharves for access to their front door steps.

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Conservation in Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea together with the West Papua region of Indonesia make up a major tropical wilderness area that still contains 5% of the original and untouched tropical high-biodiversity terrestrial ecosystems. PNG in itself contains over 5% of the world's biodiversity in less than 1% of the world's total land area. The flora of New Guinea is unique because it has two sources of origin. The Gondwana flora from the south and flora with Asian origin from the west, as a result New Guinea shares major family and genera with Australia and the East Asia, but is rich in local endemic species. The endemicity is a result of mountainous isolation, topographic and soil habitat heterogeneity, high forest disturbance rates and abundant aseasonal rainfall year-round. PNG boasts some 15-21,000 higher plants, 3,000 species of orchids, 800 species of coral, 600 species of fish, 250 species of mammals and 760 species of birds and 8 species of tree-kangaroos out of which 84 genera of animals are endemic. Ecosystems range from lowland forests to montane forests, alpine flora down to coastal areas which contains some of the most extensive pristine mangrove areas in the world. Much of this biodiversity has remained intact for thousands of years because the ruggedness of the terrain made the interior lands inaccessible; furthermore low population density and restrictions on the effectiveness of traditional tools, ensured that these biodiversity was never overexploited.

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The Maruia Declaration was a public petition calling for the immediate phasing out of the logging of virgin native forest in New Zealand.

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Environment of New Zealand

The environment of New Zealand is characterised by an endemic flora and fauna which has evolved in near isolation from the rest of the world. The main islands of New Zealand span two biomes, temperate and subtropical, complicated by large mountainous areas above the tree line. There are also numerous smaller islands which extent into the sub antarctic. The prevailing weather systems bring significantly more rain to the west of the country. New Zealand's territorial waters cover a much larger area than its landmass and extend over the continental shelf and abyssal plateau in the South Pacific Ocean, Tasman Sea and Southern ocean.

Crown Minerals Act 1991 Act of Parliament in New Zealand

The Crown Minerals Act is an Act of Parliament passed in 1991 in New Zealand. It controls the management of Crown owed minerals. Potential changes to Schedule 4 of the Act created controversy and opposition in 2010. The definition of minerals under the Act is very broad - it includes gravel, industrial rocks, building stone, coal and petroleum.

References

  1. ↑ Croker, Olive Rita (1966). "Flora and fauna, preservation of; modern policy". An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, edited by A. H. McLintock . Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand . Retrieved 25 March 2012. The Forest and Bird Society are active in all problems concerning preservation of flora and fauna.
  2. 1 2 "RMA Information Database". ECO, (Environment and Conservation Organisations of New Zealand). Retrieved 15 March 2010.
  3. ↑ Mitcalfe, Kate (2002). "Valuing Our Environment - The costs of the RMA". Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand. Retrieved 8 February 2010.
  4. ↑ Nathan, Simon (2 March 2009). "Conservation – a history - A background issue, 1908–1965". Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  5. ↑ Galbreath, Ross. "Ernest Valentine Sanderson". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography . Ministry for Culture and Heritage . Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  6. ↑ Nathan, Simon (29 March 2009). "Conservation – a history - Environmental activism, 1966–1987". Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  7. ↑ Birds battle again in annual poll. 3 News NZ. 30 September 2013.
  8. ↑ Wassilieff, Maggy (2 March 2009). "Seafood New flavours, old habits". Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  9. ↑ "Don't turn the Mackenzie Basin green, Forest & Bird warns". Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand. 31 May 2009. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  10. ↑ "Mining New Zealand's Green Heart". Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society. Archived from the original on 22 May 2010. Retrieved 15 March 2010.Cite uses deprecated parameter |dead-url= (help)
  11. ↑ "Wild Rivers". Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society. Retrieved 15 March 2010.
  12. ↑ http://www.forestandbird.org.nz/campaigns/forest-bird%E2%80%99s-story-new-zealand%E2%80%99s-story
  13. ↑ Tapaleao, Vaimoana (15 March 2010). "Key refuses to confirm mining plans". The New Zealand Herald . Retrieved 15 March 2010.
  14. ↑ Editorial (20 March 2010). ": Double-talk betrays where real mining 'hysteria' lies - Opinion -". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  15. ↑ NZPA/Newstalk ZB (22 March 2012). "Govt announces mining plans". Television New Zealand News. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  16. ↑ "Schedule 4 stocktake". Ministry of Economic Development. Retrieved 23 March 2010.
  17. ↑ Armstrong, John (20 March 2010). "Opinion: 'Hysteria' against mining has only scratched surface". Otago Daily Times. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  18. ↑ "Thousands march in protest against mining". Radio New Zealand. 1 May 2010. Retrieved 1 May 2010.
  19. ↑ "No land to be removed from Schedule 4" (Press release). New Zealand Government. 20 July 2010. Retrieved 20 July 2010.

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