World's eyes focus on New Zealand's disappearing forests

New Zealand stands at the brink of losing some of our most precious plants and animals unless the Government works smarter to protect them, the Green Party said today.

New Zealand’s native forests have been ranked as second only to Indo-Burma as containing the most at-risk ecosystems in the world according to a report from Conservation International.

“The world’s eyes will be on New Zealand this year, and this report draws attention to the fact that we’re failing to protect our most precious plants and animals from possible extinction,” said Green Party conservation spokesperson, Kevin Hague.

The report found that invasive predators (rats, stoats, possums, cats, goat, deer, weasels, ferrets, hedgehogs etc.) and invasive weeds pose the greatest threat to our endemic native species.

“National's $54 million cut to DOC's budget was a reckless gamble with the conservation estate given the extreme level of threats our plants and animals face,” said Mr Hague.

“This is money that will no longer be able to be used protect iconic species like kiwi, kakapo, or kea, or lesser-known but no less special species like our native bats, mistletoes, or fresh-water fish.

“DOC is left with a budget to actively manage the protection of 6 per cent of our threatened species. If nothing changes, we’ll witness another great wave of extinctions within our lifetimes.

“The Green Party has been successful in securing an additional $4 million for the trial of promising new self-resetting traps, but this alone is not enough.

“If we love our unique spaces and the plants and animals that live there, we’ll need to reprioritise the way we spend our money.

“I also plan to introduce a Member's Bill into the House to place complete protection over our native plants and animals. Many of our most precious and vulnerable species remain unprotected even today,” Mr Hague said

Threatened Forest Hotspot Report: http://www.conservation.org/newsroom/pressreleases/Pages/The-Worlds-10-Most-Threatened-Forest-Hotspots.aspx