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Gisborne District Council has won several lawsuits against forestry companies this year. However, Manu Caddie (pictured), a spokesman for environmental group Mana Taiao Tai Rāwhiti, questioned whether insurers should have to pay fines after the Government recently repealed environmental laws.
photo: Emma Hatton/RNZ/Manu Caddie/LDR
Gisborne District Council has celebrated a number of legal victories against forestry companies this year, but environmentalists are questioning who will pay the fines.
The comments follow recent changes to the law, which means insurers could once again pay court fines, rather than the forestry company itself, if it is found to be at fault.
Inclement Weather Tai Rāwhiti has been left with woody debris and forestry logging in recent years Across beaches and waterways.
Environment Court Judge David Kirkpatrick recently issued a judgment following a hearing in Gisborne in early May.
The commission successfully prosecuted two forestry companies operating in the Waingaromia Forest – Samnic Forest Management Ltd (fined $91,000) and Forest Management Solutions Ltd (fined $35,000).
They were fined for discharging pollutants into waterways and carrying out illegal earthworks, including building a 400-metre road through erosion-prone land without the required resource consents.
Mana Taiao Tai Rāwhiti (MTT) spokesman Manu Caddie questioned whether forestry companies would feel the pain of the fines, or whether their insurers would cover the costs.
Companies can buy insurance to cover fines imposed by the courts, but it is unclear whether forestry companies have such insurance.
MTT, an environmental group, launched a petition signed by 10,000 people. Triggered a ministerial inquiry into land use.
In a letter to the editor of the Gisborne Herald, Mr Cardy said insurance companies would eventually pay fines imposed on forestry companies sued by Gisborne District Council for discharges of pollutants and illegal earthworks.
“Another consequence of the current government’s reckless repeal is that businesses have lost the incentive to protect the environment rather than pollute it.
“Allowing entities to insure to avoid penalties would fundamentally undermine the deterrent effect of environmental laws,” he said.
The Coalition Government repealed the Natural and Built Environment Act in 2023.
The bill, introduced by the previous government, prohibits insurers from paying fines, violation fees or financial penalties on behalf of companies.
Forest Management Solutions Ltd. did not respond when asked who would pay the fine.
The Herald attempted to contact Samnic Forest Management Ltd through various channels but was unsuccessful.
Julian Kohn, president of the Eastland Wood Council (EWC), said members have made significant improvements in operations over several years, a transformation that may take some time to be noticeable to the public.
EWC is a membership-based collective of the Tai Rāwhiti District Forestry Sector.
“The forestry heritage has been with our region since the first trees were planted in Vallerata in 1959,” Cohen said.
“Given that forest cycles are typically 25-30 years, it may take a long time to fully implement and realize these improvements.
“Members of City Council are committed to creating an environmentally, economically and socially responsible environment for our community and it would be inaccurate and inappropriate to suggest otherwise.
“Any decision as to whether or not a member company insures against these potential liabilities is a commercial decision for its board of directors, who all have varying degrees of exposure in this area,” he said.
Chris Bishop, the minister responsible for RMA reform, said the government was aware of the problem.
“I am actively considering increasing the penalties for non-compliance with forest harvesting conditions,” he said.
Gisborne District Council has previously said that under the current system, the small fines they are legally able to impose on forestry companies are not enough to cover their costs if they prosecute a company.
Council chief executive Nedine Thatcher Swann told a council meeting in June that for every $1 million spent on legal and investigative costs, “you’re likely to get $250,000 back”.
Gisborne District Council is looking at ways to get the forestry industry to pay for legal costs through a levy.
But this will not be implemented until 2025/26.
It celebrates Another court victory Last month, the New Zealand Ministry of Environment took China Forestry Group New Zealand and Timber Marketing Services to the Auckland Environment Court.
On August 9, the court ordered China Forestry Group New Zealand and forestry management company Timber Marketing Services Ltd to stop discharging forestry waste and debris, clean up rubbish on beaches and improve their operations in Kanuka Forest in the upper Waimata River catchment.
The order also includes retiring some forests to farmland, with forest owners responsible for replanting and restoring native plants and controlling pests and diseases on the land.
Meanwhile, the council is also seeking an injunction requiring Aratu Forestry Ltd to remove signs of logging on steep land near Tolaga Bay.
Neither China Forestry Group New Zealand nor Timber Marketing Services commented.
Aratu Forest Ltd said it did not wish to comment.
LDR is a local news organisation jointly funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
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