Māori place names have been restored to the small central North Island town of Benneydale, and a nearby stretch of the North Island Main Trunk railway announced Minister for Land Information Eugenie Sage. Benneydale has been changed to a dual name ‘Maniaiti / Benneydale’ and the main trunk railway between Te Awamutu and Taumarunui, is now named ‘Te Ara-o-Tūrongo’ following a request from Ngāti Maniapoto. “I am pleased to restore official place names which bring to light our history for...

A project with a zero waste vision for marae is getting extra support to expand into new regions as part of the Government’s plan to tackle New Zealand’s long term waste problem announced Associate Environment Minister Eugenie Sage in Raglan today. A grant of $528,000 from the Ministry for the Environment’s Waste Minimisation Fund (WMF) will help the marae-based Para Kore programme to expand to four new regions: Te Tai Tokerau (Northland), Wairoa, Maniapoto (Waikato/Waitomo) and Wairarapa. “It’s great to...

Aucklanders will soon have a new community recycling centre as part of the Government’s plan to reduce the amount of waste ending up in landfills announced Associate Minister for the Environment Eugenie Sage alongside Auckland Mayor Phil Goff in Auckland today. A major new community recycling centre will be developed by Auckland Council in Onehunga supported by $2.2 million of funding from the Ministry for the Environment’s Waste Minimisation Fund. The Waste Minimisation Fund recycles the landfill levy into projects...

A programme to build a skilled tourism workforce and a recovery plan for the critically endangered kākāpō are among the first projects to receive funding through the International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy (IVL), Tourism Minister Kelvin Davis and Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage announced today. An initial investment plan of ten tourism and conservation projects will receive $18 million from the IVL this year, with an expected $42 million to be invested in these ten projects over five years. Kelvin Davis said...

As the clean-up of the Fox River draws to a close the Minister of Conservation and Associate Minister for the Environment Eugenie Sage is thanking volunteers and government agencies involved in the massive clean-up since the Government stepped in to unify efforts. “This is a beautiful part of the country and it’s been incredible to see the massive effort put into Operation Tidy Fox to clean up the rubbish in the Fox and Cook Rivers and along the coastline with...

The Government is proposing a new way to deal with environmentally harmful products before they become waste, including plastic packing and bottles, as part of a wider plan to reduce the amount of rubbish ending up in landfills. Associate Minister for the Environment, Eugenie Sage released a public consultation document titled, “Proposed priority products and priority product stewardship scheme guidelines” at the Sustainability Trust in Wellington today. “New Zealanders are proud of our country’s clean, green reputation and want to help...

Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage and the New Zealand Conservation Authority have directed the Department of Conservation (DOC) to undertake partial reviews of the Conservation General Policy and the General Policy for National Parks, to give better effect to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi. The direction is in response to the recent Supreme Court decision in Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki, a case which examined the way DOC considered Treaty principles when it granted two commercial tour concessions on Rangitoto and...

The Government is set on restoring the dawn chorus and giving nature more of a helping hand, Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage and Associate Minister for the Environment Nanaia Mahuta said today as they launched a new action plan for biodiversity in Wellington this morning. Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage launched Te Koiroa O Te Koiora – Our shared vision for living with nature, for all New Zealanders to help shape our biodiversity strategy for the next 20 years.  “New Zealand, like...

Government, Iwi and a community organisation have banded together to turn around the fortunes of the nationally endangered hoiho/yellow-eyed penguin, which recently suffered a series of poor breeding seasons. At the annual hoiho/yellow-eyed penguin symposium in Dunedin today, the Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage announced Te Kaweka Takohaka mō te Hoiho/Yellow-eyed Penguin Recovery Strategy. It is a draft strategy to restore hoiho populations in the face of pressures from human activities, climate change, and predators alongside a supporting action plan....

As part of the plan to turn around New Zealand’s mounting waste problem, the Government is investing in research to reduce the impact of plastics, improve knowledge about composting, and reduce product labelling waste, the Associate Environment Minister Eugenie Sage announced in Rotorua today. “We know New Zealanders want to see less single use plastic waste and less environmental harm from plastics. Compostable packaging materials are one option when there is no reusable alternative and critically, when the materials are...