Extinction Rebellion Rebels presented a Fossil of the Day Award to the Climate Ministers Office this morning.

‘As ordinary citizens we are driven to take such actions’ Caril Cowan, Spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion Tāmaki Makaurau, ‘decades of protest of marches, delegations, lobbying petitions and more has not prevented this climate crisis. We are desperate for real action on the climate crisis’.

This government has a war on nature, with the Fast Track Act, deregulating fresh water protections, removing biodiversity protections, emphasizing motorways and not public transport, removing EV subsidies, allowing sea bed mining, trawling and removing cameras from fishing vessels, renewing oil and gas exploration, not addressing agricultural emissions, methane emissions and altering the emissions trading scheme.

These regulations come as it is confirmed the planet broke the 1.5 degrees post industrial temperature rise. It is heading for a disastrous 2 degrees. This flies in the face of the long term reality. The legislation of this and previous governments ensures the next generation will struggle to survive in a degraded environment with depleted biodiversity, wracked by violent storms, floods and areas of devastating drought.

The scientific consensus has been clear for decades that unless we radically transform our energy use and reduce our exploitative industries, global temperatures will have risen above two degrees by the end of the century. Parts of the earth will be uninhabitable, basic resources will be fought over everywhere.

Is this government ignorant of ice caps melting, of the methane released from warming tundra, of increased ocean temperatures and acidifying seas? Do they believe we are remote from these effects?

Extinction Rebellion Tāmaki Makaurau took this action because the government’s actions amount to climate change denial. They are out of sync with our trading partners and are insulting to those 80% of citizens who understand climate science and look for leadership.

Extinction Rebellion Tāmaki Makaurau demands that this government tell the truth, that it acts now to halt biodiversity loss and reduce greenhouse gas emissions and that it be led by a citizens’ assembly on climate and ecological justice, and constitutional change consistent with Tiriti O Waitangi as expressed in Matiki Mai

Until the Government is no longer under the direction of the corporations putting profit above the ability of the ecosystem to support life, we are driven to be taking these acts of civil resistance.

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