Region continues strong environmental investment

27 November 2014

Taranaki continues to increase its spending on environmental protection and enhancement, with a new report conservatively estimating the total at $117 million a year over the past six years.

The report, by Business and Economic Research Ltd (BERL), focuses on direct environmental spending by industry, agriculture and councils. A similar report in 2008 estimated the total at $85 million a year from 2002 to 2007.

The reports were commissioned by the Taranaki Regional Council for its state of the environment reporting. The Council Chairman, David MacLeod, says the findings continue to underline a simple fact: it’s not by accident that Taranaki enjoys a generally good-quality environment.

“A great deal of money and effort goes into environmental protection and enhancement. It is well and truly part of the mainstream,” says Mr MacLeod. “What these reports tell us is that all sectors in Taranaki have clearly taken on board the need to be environmentally responsible.”

The latest report finds that capital investment stabilised at $43 million a year in 2008-2014, the same as in the previous period. Operating costs, however, are now at $74 million a year compared with $41.8 million in the previous period. BERL notes that the very strong capital investment over the past two decades has resulted in increased operating costs.

Other findings:
• Freshwater quality investments have more than doubled compared to the 2002 – 2007 period with significant change also occurring in farming with a move from investment in effluent treatment to riparian planting.
• The energy sector’s capital investment in environmental protection and enhancement totalled $40 million over the past six years, out of the $47.2 million invested by all industry. Most of the spending was on water quality, greenhouse gas reduction and environmental monitoring services.

The latest BERL report is online at www.trc.govt.nz/Environment/

ENDS

© Scoop Media