March for Nature
On Saturday, 8 June, over 20,000 people turned out for a peaceful protest against the Fast-Track Approvals Bill on Queen Street in Auckland.
What was the March for Nature?
With a broad coalition of environmental and community groups, Greenpeace and Forest & Bird put out a call for people to join a march against the Fast Track Approvals Bill on June 8 called the March For Nature.
This demonstration was a peaceful protest against the Luxon Government’s War on Nature and against the one-stop shop for environmental destruction that is the fast track approvals bill.
Over 20,000 people turned up and the march filled Queen Street from Aotea Square to the sea!
Why do we need to oppose the fast track legislation?
The vast majority of people in New Zealand care deeply about protecting nature. But the fast track consenting bill the Luxon Government has introduced could be the single worst law ever passed for the environment.
It’s a war on nature, and it undermines democracy and Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
We cannot stand by and allow the forests and oceans of Aotearoa to be turned into open-cast mines, their rivers and lakes turned into sewers, or precious wildlife to be condemned to extinction.
That’s why we Marched for Nature!
What is the fast track approvals bill?
The fast-track approvals bill is at the heart of this Government’s systematic war on nature, which includes an attack on environmental protections critical to preserving fresh water, forests, oceans, and wildlife.
The fast-track legislation would give just one minister and a hand-picked panel of ‘expert advisors’ the power to approve or deny development projects. The draft Bill was designed to grant almost unrestricted power to the just three Ministers to grant consent for projects they perceive to be significant. An update announced on 25 August means that has been reduced to just one minister and more power given to the expert panel. It remains wide open to corruption, comes at the expense of the environment, and ignores the concerns of local communities and tangata whenua.
How can we stop the fast track bill?
No single tactic on its own can win, but we have seen before that big marches can have a great impact. When the John Key Government announced that it would open conservation land to mining, we organised a similar protest. It was huge, and the Key Government soon backed down.
We’ve already shown the strength of opposition to the bill, gathering more than 15,000 submissions from Greenpeace supporters telling the government why the fast track is the wrong track. Now we’re ready to escalate.
There are moments in every campaign where the energy builds to a point that a march can be big and effective, and now is one of those times!