Mining ban voted down

Hon Eugenie Sage’s members Bill, Crown Minerals (Prohibition of Mining) Amendment Bill (Bill) failed at its first reading; being voted down by Parliament in late June this year. The intent of the Bill was “to prohibit new exploration, prospecting and mining activity on conservation lands and waters to protect the landscapes, natural features, indigenous plants and wildlife, and scientific, cultural and recreational values on public conservation land.” With the backdrop of one third of New Zealand’s land being in the conservation state, this would have presided over a significant portion of our land mass.
In addition, the Bill would have prohibited the granting of permits for new coal mines or the expansion of existing mines, after 1 January 2025, on any land, “to protect the climate from the greenhouse gas emissions generated by burning coal.”
At its first reading, Labour MP Angela Roberts initially reconfirmed Labour’s commitment to no new mines on conservation land – a commitment that goes back to the then Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s 2017 Speech from the Throne. However, she went on to say that although Labour supported the intent of the bill, “it goes beyond our commitment to no more mines on conservation land”, in that it does not provide for the “process” to make sure we get this right. She voiced concerns that the Bill included significant assumptions about Treaty relationships that may have been impacted, and as such would pre-empt “a true engagement in partnership with iwi about the implications for them.”
We will have to watch this space to see how and if Labour will be able deliver on their commitment.