Political cartoonist puts paintbrush to billboard over climate
Wellington Thursday 3 April, 2008 – Renowned political cartoonist Malcolm Evans (1) will do a live billboard drawing in
central Wellington today, as part of calls for stronger climate policies from New Zealand's political leaders.
The painting will take place at Queens Wharf, where Greenpeace ship the Rainbow Warrior is docked for the final leg of a
six-week tour of New Zealand (see www.greenpeace.org.nz/rainbow-warrior for more information).
"The cartoon will speak for itself and in one simple frame will communicate the big picture," said Mr Evans.
The billboard painting follows a political debate on the Rainbow Warrior last night, at which climate spokespeople from
Labour, National, the Maori Party and the Greens defended their climate credentials (for full coverage of the debate,
see: www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0804/S00030.htm).
It also follows the release of a major climate change political survey earlier this week, which revealed serious gaps
and flaws in most parties' climate policies ( http://www.greenpeace.org/new-zealand/press/reports/climate-politics-survey).
"Climate scientists say we have between 5-10 years to act to avoid dangerous climate change, yet most New Zealand
politicians are acting like we have all the time in the world," said Greenpeace Climate Campaigner Simon Boxer.
"As Maori Party MP Hone Harawira said last night, now is the time to be courageous.
"The most crucial and urgent thing for each party to do is set a domestic emissions reduction target of 30 by 2020 (2)
and hold the agriculture sector to account for the fact it makes up almost half of all New Zealand's greenhouse gas
emissions.
"This means bringing agriculture under the Government's emissions trading scheme within the next two years, rather than
in 2013 as provided for in the legislation.
"Only these commitments will achieve the level of emission cuts necessary to help avoid unmanageable levels of climate
change, and to ensure New Zealand can claim to be a world leader on climate change."
Currently the Green and Maori parties are the only two to support an earlier introduction for agriculture and an
emission reduction target of 30 per cent by 2020.
WHAT: Live billboard painting by cartoonist Malcolm Evans WHERE: Queens Wharf, Wellington TIME: 1:30pm
High resolution images and video of the activity will be available free of charge later today at:
http://www.greenpeace.org.nz/media (Multiple images can be added to the 'lightbox' and downloaded as a single zip file).
(1) A cartoonist for most of his working life, Malcolm Evans was the current NZ Cartoonist of the year when, in
2003, he was controversially dismissed from the NZ Herald for refusing to allow the Editor to dictate what subject
matter he could address. Since then his work has appeared in the Auckland Suburban Newspapers and New Zealand Catholic,
and his rural cartoon character Edna appears, as she has for over thirty years, in the country's largest farming paper
Rural News. With 12 books of cartoons published Evans has twice been Qantas New Zealand Cartoonist of the year and
several times a finalist, and his cartoons and caricatures continue to illustrate many books and articles.
(2) The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has identified a range of 25-40 per cent reductions by 2020 for
developed countries like New Zealand as necessary in order to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Greenpeace is
calling for the New Zealand Government and all political parties to set an emissions reduction target of 30 per cent by
2020. Countries that are serious about taking a leadership position on climate change have set national targets. The UK
has set a target of 20% by 2010 – this is above and beyond its Kyoto commitment. It is expected to achieve a reduction
of almost 17% as a result. Germany has a domestic target of 40% reductions from 1990 levels by 2020, which it's on track
to meet. Even Australia, a former laggard when it comes to climate, now has a long term overall emission reduction
target. Sweden recently agreed on an emission reduction range of 75-90% by 2050. The National Party has a target of 50
per cent reductions by 2050, but developed nations need to have reduced emissions by at least 80 per cent by 2050.
ENDS