Big Sticks and Carrots - the Road to Sustainability
The Maruia Society has recently questioned the wisdom of relying on voluntary self-regulation to achieve sustainable land management outcomes. David Rhodes comments on the Maruia Society’s concerns.
Options for advancing sustainable management practices include legislative enforcement, direct intervention to purchase environmental outcomes, or voluntary self-regulation.
When the Government’s Sustainable Land Management Strategy was implemented in 1996, voluntary actions by land users were seen as the best mechanism. Regulation, in comparison, was associated with numerous difficulties. It was noted, however, that unless there was clear evidence of progress over the following 10-15 years there "are likely to be more calls for direct regulatory or tax-related intervention".
The Maruia Society is now questioning the progress New Zealand has made. The Society’s view is that New Zealand is complacent, and progress has been inadequate. It suggests that voluntary initiatives have failed and the emphasis should now be on greater use of regulation.
Before determining whether progress has been adequate, we need to agree on what is an acceptable length of time in which to achieve sustainable land management. The Chief Executive of the Maruia Society, Guy Salmon, has concluded that it will take about 2000 years to achieve stabilisation of land on the East Coast of the North Island. Most people would agree that such a time frame is unacceptable, but the question of what is an appropriate time frame remains.
The Sustainable Land Management Strategy states that there was insufficient understanding of biophysical and socio-economic systems to justify widespread regulation. The need for environmental data was also noted in the OECD review of New Zealand in 1996. Subsequent work to develop environmental indicators for monitoring progress is still in the development stage.
Given this, and the fact that it is not quite three years since the strategy was introduced, what is reasonable progress?
Recent work commissioned by MAF on the sustainable land management communication needs in the North Island hill country concludes:
evidence of change does exist
achievement of sustainable land management will take more than a generation
access to information needs improving
sustainability messages need to be incorporated into farm business considerations
communication using discussion groups, and trusted sources of information, is preferred
once adopted, sustainable practices appear to be durable.
Whatever methods of promotion are used, it is clear they must incorporate an effective communication component. Many landowners have farmed through times that did not recognise the key issues we now identify in sustainability and they therefore require a new awareness. Without an understanding of how, and why, change is needed, progress towards sustainability will be laboured, and even regulation will be resisted and require substantial monitoring and enforcement.
Co-ordinating resources to demonstrate new practices and share information with the involvement and endorsement of community groups and key information deliverers, is a part of MAF’s environmental efforts.
Such efforts include: management of a Focus farm and Focus orchard programmes where sustainable land management practices can be developed in collaboration with landowners; and development of best management guidelines and decision support systems, such as water usage for irrigation, nitrate management, soil quality monitoring and nutrient budgeting.
The demand by international consumers and suppliers can be expected to promote the adoption of environmentally sustainable practices. For a primary produce-exporting nation, which is typically a price-taker in world markets, external perceptions of our sustainability are highly important. Recent examples of voluntary initiatives driven by market concerns in the agriculture sector include the North Otago Sustainable Land Management Group Guidelines for Farmers, EQUAL – national best management practices for dairying, and the New Zealand Fertiliser Users’ Code of Practice.
No single recipe exists for achieving sustainable management. Regulation, incentives and market dictates will have a role along with voluntary approaches in achieving sustainable land management. The measures are not mutually exclusive. To return to the East Coast, as an example, the Government has recognised the unique combination of environmental, economic, social and climate characteristics that constrain progress in the East Cape area by introducing the East Coast Forestry Project to supplement voluntary planting. Target planting under this project averages 1200 hectares per annum. Including this planting and using the Parliamentary Commissioner’s estimate of 195,000 hectares of land needing protection means that around 150 years would be required to address New Zealand’s worst erosion.
In a similar way Taranaki Regional Council has assisted voluntary change by subsidising the development of farm management plans.
Voluntary efforts can also be supported by regulation.
As an example, when considering applications from forestry companies for resource consents, Environment Waikato permits such activities if the company has a Code of Practice that covers the activities and that also satisfies the Council’s environmental requirements. This potential is also under investigation by Weyerhaeuser NZ, Tasman District Council and the Ministry for the Environment as part of a sustainable management fund project.
Erosion control in the East Coast of the North Island.
In some situations, notably where economic returns are marginal and sustainable management requires up-front investment, voluntary efforts may not be sufficient. However where it is possible to allow land managers to impose their own disciplines, it is MAF’s view that this should be a first choice solution. MAF will continue to work with resource managers on the basis that voluntary measures, as part of a mix of economic and regulatory tools, are the most desirable way to achieve sustainable land management changes.
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David Rhodes Team Leader, Policy Information Group, Wellington David has worked in the agriculture and forestry sectors on environmental and resource economic issues for the past 10 years. Prior to this he worked for the ecological division of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. David is currently the co-ordinator of the MAF Sustainable Agriculture and Forestry Programme. |
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Amber Duncalfe
Editor - RM Update
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
PO Box 2526
Wellington
NEW ZEALAND
Tel: +64 4 894 0710
Fax: +64 4 894 0745
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