Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment - Te Kaitiaki Taiao a Te Whare Pāremata

Welcome to our new website – I hope you find it easier to navigate around and find the information you are seeking. We will continue to add new functions and features. In addition, we are inviting you to submit photos you think worthy of featuring as a banner. Just send in your suggestions via email.

The first report to be given our ‘new look’ web treatment is Stockton revisted: The mine and the regulatory minefield. The investigation began as a review of the recent environmental performance at the Stockton mine on the West Coast. I am pleased to report that Solid Energy has made significant progress.

During the writing of the report I discovered that there are over a hundred ‘old’ mining licences with weak environmental protection dating from an era when we thought children didn’t need to ‘buckle-up’ in a car. Over time our values about the environment have shifted as have our concerns about child safety, yet the environmental regime of these old licences still dates back to that former time. Some of these old licences will not expire for more than 20 years. I have asked Ministers to respond to my concerns.

Other important work has also been underway. Last week I made a submission to the Finance and Expenditure Committee on the changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) legislation. While there are a few proposed changes that I regard as improvements, overall the bill weakens the scheme. I have made several practical recommendations to help improve the amendments put forward by the Government. You can read our media release here, and our submission here.