News | Parliamentary Commissioner of Environment

23 SEPTEMBER 2025

Address to the 2025 QEII National Trust Conference

The Commissioner recently spoke about biodiversity and property rights to the QEII National Trust conference.

1 SEPTEMBER 2025

Address to the 2025 SETAC AU/ACTRA Conference

The Commissioner recently spoke about the regulation of chemicals to the SETAC AU/ACTRA Conference.

15 JULY 2025

Address to the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions Working Group on Environmental Auditing Assembly

The Commissioner recently spoke to an international assembly of external government auditors on his work to improve performance and accountability for the environment.

28 MAY 2025

New research reveals New Zealand’s natural resource footprint

New research from the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment reveals that about 107 million tonnes of natural resources are required to produce the goods and services consumed by New Zealanders annually– approximately 21 tonnes per person on average.

13 MAY 2025

Address to EDS Conference 2025

The Commissioner gave a speech to the Environmental Defence Society Conference outlining key findings from his recent reports on rural land use change and forestry.

9 APRIL 2025

Are we growing the forests we need?

New Zealand needs to take a long, hard look at its approach to forestry and ask whether we are establishing the forests we want in the long run says the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment in his new report, ‘Alt-F Reset: Examining the drivers of forestry in New Zealand’.

22 FEBRUARY 2025

Address to the Bluegreens Forum

The Commissioner presented a speech to the Bluegreens Forum this morning which outlined six conclusions that policy makers need to confront when considering the environment.

13 FEBRUARY 2025

Budgeted Govt spend on environment similar to past year, with increased spend on extreme weather events and drops in other areas

Central government agencies are expected to spend approximately $3.55 billion on the environment in the 2024/25 fiscal year according to the latest estimate of environmental expenditure from the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.

4 DECEMBER 2024

In memory of Helen Hughes

The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment notes with sadness, the passing of Helen Hughes, who served as New Zealand’s first Parliamentary Commissioner from 1987 until 1996

28 NOVEMBER 2024

Address to the New Zealand Ecological Society Conference

The Commissioner gave an address at the New Zealand Ecological Society Conference which discussed how ecology could shape the world of policy more effectively.

22 NOVEMBER 2024

Address at Local Government NZ regional sector meeting

The Commissioner presented an address at LGNZ's regional sector meeting where he outlined his thinking on the rebalancing of roles of central and regional government in our environmental management system.

8 NOVEMBER 2024

Address at Chapter Zero New Zealand

The Commissioner gave a speech at a meeting of Chapter Zero New Zealand outlining five unpalatable realities businesses need to confront in terms of the environment.

26 JUNE 2024

Health of New Zealand's waterways requires improved freshwater modelling support and coordination

If we are to turn around the declining state of New Zealand’s lakes, rivers and streams, then better coordination and support for freshwater modelling is critical says the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.

16 JUNE 2024

Proposed marine farm bill needs to better recognise the public interest

Aquaculture takes place in public spaces that are managed on behalf of all New Zealanders. Permission to occupy public space and use public resources is a privilege, and comes with a responsibility to use those resources in a way the community considers appropriate, the Commissioner says in his latest submissions.

12 JUNE 2024

Address at the Environmental Defence Society 2024 Conference

The Commissioner presented a keynote speech at the Environmental Defence Society 2024 Conference entitled Environment and economics: A marriage of (in)convenience? This outlined five truths that involve some hard thinking about the sort of economy we want to have and the trade-offs that cannot be wished away.

23 MAY 2024

Presentation to the Environment Committee on the Fast-track Approvals Bill

The Commissioner gave an oral submission to the Environment Committee on the Fast-track Approvals Bill which outlined his key concerns with the proposed legislation and offered recommended amendments.

22 MAY 2024

New Zealand needs to confront the challenges of land use change

How do we respond to the environmental challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss and water quality while looking after the economic, social and cultural life of our regions? This is the pressing question addressed in a new report released by the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.

19 APRIL 2024

Fast-track Approvals Bill poses significant risks to the environment

The Fast-track Approvals Bill poses significant risks to the environment and will achieve sub-optimal decision-making, poor allocation of resources and increased litigation risk if it proceeds as proposed.

7 MARCH 2024

Greater protections needed for urban soil to safeguard vital environmental services

Healthy urban soil is the unseen engine room supporting the essential environmental services that our cities’ green spaces provide. But urban soil is under pressure from current approaches to residential development.

14 FEBRUARY 2024

Govt to spend $3.6 billion on environment in 2023/24 fiscal year

The Commissioner has released his third annual estimate of environmental expenditure which covers the spending of 20 central government agencies mapped against six enduring environmental outcomes.

23 JANUARY 2024

Rethinking the RMA: the need for enduring reform

The Resource Management Act was on the statute book for 32 years and 32 days. Its successors, the Natural and Built Environment Act and the Spatial Planning Act, survived just 123 days.

22 NOVEMBER 2023

Address at the Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand Tax Conference

Are environmental taxes the perfect solution that nobody wants? This address discusses considerations of the five possible environmental taxes suggested by the Government’s Tax Working Group: increasing solid waste charges, congestion charging, water takes and water pollution.

16 NOVEMBER 2023

Carbon stored in marine sediments needs protection

A new report released today reveals how much organic carbon is stored in marine sediments in New Zealand waters and how vulnerable this is to disruption from bottom trawling.

20 OCTOBER 2023

Address at the Wilding Pine Network Conference 2023: Wildings in the backyard

The Commissioner's address outlined important lessons in managing invasive species learned from the National Wilding Conifer Control Programme.

6 SEPTEMBER 2023

Improved process needed for emissions reduction plans, Commissioner says

To ensure we meet our climate objectives, the Government needs to improve the way it assembles New Zealand’s emissions reduction plans.

29 JULY 2023

Address at the Forest & Bird Centennial Conference: 100 years of conservation

The Commissioner's address at Forest & Bird's Centennial Conference focused on how the organisation's experience and expertise, together with local people and knowledge has created real environmental change.

16 JUNE 2023

Fair comparisons needed for major electricity investments

The Commissioner has released modelling results that illustrate what four different future electricity system pathways might mean for New Zealand electricity consumers.

23 MARCH 2023

Address at the Environmental Defence Society Conference 2023: Pivot Point

The Commissioner's speech focused on the need for foundational investment in environmental monitoring and research.

16 MARCH 2023

The start of a series on annual environmental expenditure

There is an absence of comprehensive information on the magnitude of public spending on the environment, and how the funds that are spent are allocated to address specific environmental issues.

16 MARCH 2023

Levelling the playing field – green spaces as vital urban infrastructure

As we densify our cities to accommodate population growth, we must not lose sight of the environmental benefits that urban green space provides.

1 MARCH 2023

Address at the New Zealand Agricultural Climate Change Conference 2023

The Commissioner's speech focused on the scale of the challenge facing livestock farmers as they attempt to meet the legislated target to reduce biogenic methane emissions by 10% by 2030 and 24–47% by 2050, relative to the 2017 level.

17 FEBRUARY 2023

Resource management reforms falling short

The reforms proposed by the Natural and Built Environment Bill and the Spatial Planning Bill amount to a far-reaching reorganisation of environmental management in New Zealand.

31 JANUARY 2023

Concern over pace of system-wide energy strategy

New Zealand is on the cusp of the greatest energy system transformation for generations. How we produce, transmit and consume energy will be a key factor in whether the country meets its climate change commitments over the next three decades. How we manage agricultural emissions will be the other.

9 JANUARY 2023

Dr Jan Wright made Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit

Dr Wright was Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment for two terms from 2007 until 2017.

3 AUGUST 2022

Address at the New Zealand Biosecurity Institute national education and training seminar

On 3 August, the Commissioner gave an address at the New Zealand Biosecurity Institute national education and training seminar, Changing Landscapes 2022 via Zoom.