Protecting and restoring plants, animals and ecosystems.
The Green Party will protect our precious whenua, moana and taonga species from corporate exploitation.
Aotearoa is home to natural taonga found nowhere else in the world. Our ngahere (forests), awa (rivers) and moana are central to our national identity and way of life.
The Luxon Government has made it easier for corporations to plunder and tear up te taiao (nature), putting private profits ahead of our treasured native wildlife. Meanwhile, many of our native species are on the brink of collapse. Without urgent action, we’re at risk of losing them forever.
The Green Party will work towards protecting 30% of land and oceans because we know the mauri and health of te taiao is foundational to the wellbeing of our people, our climate and our communities. We will achieve this by giving effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and recognising tangata whenua as the original and ongoing kaitiaki of Aotearoa.
New Zealanders deserve to experience our national parks and hear the calls of our native manu for generations to come. That’s why the Green Party will ensure conservation decisions are made for the public good, not in the interests of private profiteers.
We won’t just restore what’s been lost. We will invest in an Aotearoa where people and nature flourish together.
Our plan
- Reform conservation and wildlife protection laws to give effect to Te Tiriti, elevate Indigenous-led land stewardship and ensure the conservation management system prioritises halting and reversing nature loss in Aotearoa.
- Ban new mining on conservation land, including stewardship land.
- Expand funding for Jobs for Nature – Mahi mō te Taiao to protect our biodiversity and create thousands of regional jobs.
- Protect all remaining natural wetlands in legislation, including coastal wetlands and estuaries, and implement a plan to restore at least 30% of degraded wetland area, prioritising areas most important for biodiversity recovery and community resilience.
- Fund Action for Nature, the implementation plan for the biodiversity strategy, and implement national guidance to protect indigenous biodiversity, including the protection of taonga species.
- Increase overall public conservation funding, including increasing funding and support for the Predator Free 2050 goal.