Forest & Bird AGM 2007 - Opening Speech by President Peter Maddison

22 June 2007

Good evening and a very warm welcome to Forest & Bird’s 2007 annual general meeting.  It is always a pleasure to see so many of our branch representatives gathered together –and a reminder that our nationwide network of branches is one of the key strengths that makes our organisation such an effective one. 

We are truly a community-based organisation, with members in every part of New Zealand, so I would like to begin by thanking our members for the many hours of unpaid work they do on behalf of Forest & Bird – we literally would not exist without you.

 After making changes in the way we are organised last year, we are seeing some significant gains, in particular the results of the talents and efforts of our new and existing staff members.  I am pleased to see a number of new staff here who have been appointed since our last AGM and I extend a special welcome to you all. 

At the same time I would like to offer my thanks to staff who have left Forest & Bird during the year:  Eugenie Sage, Teall Crossen, Jon Midwinter, Laura Richards, Gabrielle Wilson and David Pattemore.  Your contribution has been very much valued and I wish you well in your future endeavours.  I would also like to thank Stephen McPhail, who steps down as Treasurer this year, for all his excellent work.

I also offer my best wishes to those of you who are standing for election to the Executive, and I think it is timely to thank those who have served on the Executive over the past year – your efforts are much appreciated and have contributed greatly towards the good “health” and success of Forest & Bird.  Talking of successes, there have been many for our organisation over the past year.

Just this last week we have seen the release of a second batch of 30 hihi at Ark in the Park in the Waitakere Ranges.  This transfer of the hihi from Tiritiri Matangi Island follows an earlier transfer of the birds to Ark in the Park in February – and we hope that they will continue to thrive in their new home to form the first self-sustaining population of hihi on the Auckland mainland in more than 125 years.

Another recent announcement was the establishment of the Tapuae Marine Reserve off Taranaki, something that Forest & Bird has staunchly advocated.  This follows the opening of the Kupe/Kevin Smith Marine Reserve off Wellington’s south coast, and I hope will be followed by many more new marine reserves.

Also in the marine conservation area we have seen longline fishing vessels required to set their lines at night to avoid seabird bycatch – an important improvement of protection of seabirds.  We have also seen legal protection granted for great white sharks – not a creature that enjoys the best PR, but one which is as much in need of protection against human threats as many of its “cuddlier” counterparts.

At the risk of straying into anthropomorphism, Maui’s and Hector’s dolphins can certainly be considered “cuddly” and it appears our long-term campaigning for better protection for these marine mammals may finally be paying off, with a threat management plan at last expected to be drawn up before the end of this year.  I hope that Forest & Bird’s proposal for a marine mammal sanctuary off the north-west coast of the North Island to protect the critically endangered Maui’s dolphin will also be supported by the public and the government.

You all got in behind efforts to help protect another threatened marine mammal, the New Zealand sea lion, with our branches collecting more than 20,000 signatures on our Save Our Sealions petition.  Still too many sea lions are being killed in the squid fishery, but I am hopeful that our strong advocacy leaves the government in no doubt that these creatures require stronger protection.

There are also grounds for hope for better protection for our fisheries overall, with Fisheries Minister Jim Anderton’s Fisheries Amendment Bill now seeking to allow the minister to make more cautious decisions in favour of sustainability in situations where a lack of evidence makes the sustainability of fisheries questionable.

If passed, this legislation would make it much easier for the government to adequately safeguard protected species – such as sea lions and albatrosses – from excessive harm by fishing practices.

Back on land, possibly the biggest conservation issue faced by our native forests and animals is the threat posed by introduced pests such as possums, deer, stoats and rats.

The damage they do to our forests and native species is horrendous, and the continued use of 1080 in the battle against introduced pests is absolutely critical if we are to win that battle.  I hope I am not speaking too soon, but the indications from the Environmental Risk Management Authority, which is considering the re-assessment of 1080, are that it will support the view of Forest & Bird and many others that 1080 is the best tool we have in the fight-back against pests.

To the high country, and it was great to hear just yesterday that the tenure review process will be improved to take much greater account of environmental interests.  And there was more good news the other week with the announcement that the Crown has purchased Michael Peak Station for conservation and recreation, adding this valuable part of our iconic high country to a network of high country parks.  It is also fantastic to see more New Zealand sites being added to the tentative list of sites which will hopefully gain World Heritage Area status – this is something we have long been lobbying for.

Our freshwater campaigns have also brought successes – for example Forest & Bird was instrumental in negotiating with dairy company Fonterra to persuade it to substantially clean up the wastewater it was permitted to discharge into the Manawatu River.  While many of our farmers still have a long way to go, finally it seems like the message is starting to get through:  New Zealand’s dairy export industry needs to live up to its clean, green image in reality if it wants to continue to enjoy access to world markets that are increasingly environmentally demanding.

Those are just a few of the achievements from throughout the year which I could list – there are many more equally deserving of mention.  However, we still face many conservation challenges.

We must remain a vocal and credible advocate for increased pest control to protect our native forests and species.  Even if 1080 is officially sanctioned for continued use in our forests, we need to ensure that there is strong public and government support – and funding – for pest control to be much more effective.

In many cases our fisheries continue to be unsustainable, wreaking considerable damage to marine environments and non-target species, and threatening to collapse fish stocks altogether.  We are still awaiting a decision on our appeal against New Zealand’s hoki fishery receiving an international “green tick” as sustainable – if we are successful we hope this will serve as a wake-up call to fisheries that we need to ensure fishing practices are truly sustainable.

We still want to see more marine reserves established – Great Barrier Island and those proposed for the sub-Antarctic Campbell, Antipodes and Bounty Islands would be a good start.

Challenges also remain in the high country – while it has been pleasing to see additions to the conservation estate in the high country, the tenure review process has given us cause for concern.  The changes announced this week are a significant improvement, but we need to continue to lobby to ensure that those improvements are delivered.  We must remain vigilant to ensure that tenure review achieves better results for conservation in the high country, instead of leaving it open to the threat of destruction and inappropriate development.  Further high country parks – such as Oteake/Hawdun and Hakatere – are still needed to protect our high country ecosystems, landscapes, plants and animals.

Still too many farmers are not meeting legal requirements to comply with environmental standards.  More and more demands are being made by the farming sector on our precious water resources to irrigate farmland.  We need to continue to campaign to see that farmers do clean up their act, both for the good of our lakes and rivers, and for the long-term sustainability of our export industry.

The future energy needs of our country – and our planet – is one of the biggest challenges we are still to face as conservationists.  Locally proposals for hydro electric generation still threaten to cause irreparable harm to some of our rivers, such as the Wairau and the Hurunui, which are vital breeding grounds for threatened species such as black-fronted terns and wrybill.  Nationally and globally we must face up to the consequences of global warming – and act to do something about the potentially catastrophic consequences of human behaviour over the last century.

We cannot face up to these challenges alone.  While Forest & Bird is in good heart and continues to be a leading voice for conservation, we must take our messages to the wider public and win their support. 

The good news is that we are attracting more members:  we have arrested the decline in membership we had experienced in previous years and are now turning the numbers around.  For the second year in a row we have gained more members than the previous year – a trend I hope to see continue.

With so many pressing conservation issues in New Zealand, it is also encouraging to know that we have had success in gaining increased funding from international supporters.  Through our membership of BirdLife International we have been able to apply to the Packard Foundation in the USA, which has approved $US50,000 in funding for a new seabird advocate.  Another overseas source of funding is set to bring in $600,000 for restoration work over the next five years.

But we must look closer to home for support as well.  Conservation has become more “fashionable” over the last year, and the challenge now is to ensure that conservation is not merely flavour of the month, or even flavour of the year.  We must make sure the current high profile of conservation issues translates into real long-term change.

This weekend we are lucky to have both Prime Minister Helen Clark and Leader of the Opposition John Key at our AGM to speak to us.  I hope that while they are here they take on board some of our passion for and dedication to conservation, and match it with solid policy and commitment to conservation.

It is not enough for our politicians to merely go along with the feel-good sustainability vibe – we need real action that backs up promises which are all too easily made, but may later be forgotten.  Last general election, conservation barely got a look in.  Voters, politicians and the media were caught up with questions of tax cuts, the Exclusive Brethren and Don Brash’s emails.

I get the feeling that next election is going to be different – there is a genuine and significant groundswell of support for conservation issues, and I expect the election campaign and policies will reflect that.  I know you will all be generous with your welcome for our political leaders this weekend and will not be shy in letting them know about your concerns for conservation.  After all, conservation is not about who holds power for the next term of government, but is for all of us, forever.

I thank you again for your efforts around the country over the past year and wish everyone an enjoyable and constructive AGM.