Clean Streams sham shows need for dairy shift
Auckland October 2 2008 – The failure of the Clean Streams Accord shows the urgency of a shift to less intensive
dairying in New Zealand, says Greenpeace.
The Accord's failure has been outlined in a Forest and Bird/ Fish and Game report out today.
"The intensification of New Zealand's dairy sector is an environmental calamity and also our biggest contributor to
global climate change," said Greenpeace Senior Climate Campaigner Simon Boxer, "This report reinforces the need to move
to lower input, smarter farming practices that do less damage to the environment and climate."
One of the report's findings is lack of nutrient management on farms. Mr Boxer agreed chemical fertiliser use was out of
control on New Zealand dairy farms- ruining waterways and damaging the climate.
"Emissions of nitrous oxide (a greenhouse gas 300 times more potent than CO2 and largely the result of fertiliser use)
now account for more than total road transport emissions.
"New Zealand farming is suffering from an addiction to chemical fertiliser. If our farmers continue on this path,
they're essentially inviting consumers to reject their products."
He said it was an area that could easily be addressed. "Farmers should be using proven low-input systems that use no
chemical nitrogen fertiliser; this not only has less of an environmental impact, but also helps improve returns to
farmers.
"This was all outlined in a study by AgResearch , which shows that milk produced and delivered per cow per year was
highest under the low input system."
"Consumers in key overseas markets are becoming more concerned with where their food comes from and the environmental
and climate impact of its production. Agriculture in New Zealand must stay ahead of the game, and to do so, it must
improve its environmental performance.
Greenpeace is calling for agriculture to be brought into the emissions trading scheme before 2013, and for New Zealand
to set an emissions reduction target of 30 per cent by 2020.
ENDS