New rules fall short of delivering a level playing field when overseas investors buy our farmland for forestry, Federated Farmers says. It’s a “step in the right direction” to scrap the much-criticised special forestry test, Feds Gisborne-Wairoa President Toby Williams said. Instead, overseas investors purchasing farmed land for conversion to forestry would be required to […]
Biodiversity
Ki uta ki tai: NIWA’s role in mountains-to-sea estuarine management
NIWA is underway with work on better understanding communities’ aspirations for protecting estuaries, and the factors that weigh on estuarine health. Estuaries are coastal waterbodies where freshwater mixes with seawater. Many estuaries in Aotearoa New Zealand have been impacted by pollutants and contaminants entering via freshwater. Regional councils are developing coastal environmental plans to comply with […]
Wilding conifer weedkiller approved
Media release – Environmental Protection Authority A weedkiller to target wilding conifers has been approved for use in New Zealand, with controls. Method 240 SL is a herbicide used to control wilding conifers and other woody plants on non-crop farmland, conservation land and recreational parks. It contains the active ingredient aminocyclopyrachlor, which is new to […]
Guidance to help new farm wetlands flourish
A wetland developed by Federated Farmers members Gray and Marilyn Baldwin on their Putaruru dairy farm has become something of a ‘poster child’ for how wetlands can help manage a farm’s environmental footprint and boost biodiversity. The farm was chosen as the venue for the launch of a new NIWA-DairyNZ resource aimed at helping farms […]
AI solutions on the way for war on pest species
by Simon Edwards Traps and surveillance cameras using artificial intelligence (AI) will soon be joining the arsenal of tools available to achieve New Zealand’s ‘predator-free by 2050’ ambitions. In a webinar last month hosted by Predator Free NZ, Dr Helen Blackie – a Biosecurity Consultant at Boffa Miskell – said field trials of AI-driven traps […]
Superworms capable of munching through plastic waste
Media release – The University of Queensland A species of worm with an appetite for polystyrene could be the key to plastic recycling on a mass scale. Researchers at the University of Queensland have discovered the common Zophobas morio ‘superworm’ can eat through polystyrene, thanks to a bacterial enzyme in their gut. Dr Chris Rinke […]
Biodiversity budget support falls woefully short
While the latest draft National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity (NPS-IB) is a significant improvement its success is undermined by woeful funding in Budget 2022 to assist private landowners, Federated Farmers says. Only $20 million of the $150m needed over the next five years was allocated. Keys to Federated Farmers’ support of the new biodiversity […]
Feds: Proposed changes to exotic forest incentives fall short
Changes proposed in the MPI discussion paper ‘Managing Exotic Afforestation Incentives’ fall short of what’s required to restore a level playing field to land use policy settings, Federated Farmers says. In its submission to government, the Federation has said achieving that balance will require all eight of the recommendations set at the Federated Farmers National […]
Research on repellents to keep kea safe
Department of Conservation – media release New research to test the use of repellents to help keep kea safe during predator control operations is underway near Arthur’s Pass in Canterbury. The Department of Conservation and OSPRI (TBfree) are funding the research, which will test the effectiveness of two bird repellents (d-pulegone and anthraquinone) in reducing […]
New beehive surveillance project supports biosecurity
Biosecurity NZ – media release The search is on for 100 volunteer beekeepers to join a new Biosecurity New Zealand surveillance project, looking out for future bee threat– the small hive beetle. Biosecurity New Zealand Deputy-Director General Stuart Anderson says the project is the latest of 14 targeted biosecurity surveillance programmes run around New Zealand. “These […]