7-8 August 2013
Aotea Centre, Auckland
PROGRAMME AVAILABLE NOW. CLICK HERE TO VIEW.
ONLINE REGISTRATION IS AVAILABLE NOW!
CLICK HERE TO GO TO OUR REGISTRATION PAGE.
There has been much debate about the state of our environment. Argument has raged about freshwater quality. But what about the rest of New Zealand’s natural resources? How well are they standing up to the impacts of growth? And what are the real solutions on offer?
EDS is planning to examine the way we use land and sea resources and reach some science-based conclusions about the state of New Zealand’s environment in 2013. We will then examine problem areas in some depth and ask what should and can be done to remedy shortcomings.
We’ll look at lakes, rivers, lowland streams, oceans and coasts, and explore current and future human impacts on them. We’ll do a stocktake of our terrestrial and marine biodiversity and see if there really is a crisis as some have claimed. We’ll look closely at how we manage our coast and our outstanding landscapes and identify best-practice management techniques. And we’ll investigate our energy future and ask whether New Zealand’s approach is tuned to the clear dangers posed by climate change.
New Zealand is becoming increasingly urbanised. What does this mean for our environment? Are current approaches to managing urban growth up to the challenges we face? How can Auckland both expand and become more liveable? And what are the implications of Auckland’s growth for the rest of New Zealand?
A wideranging review of the state of New Zealand’s environment is timely. Government in this mid-term year is proposing a number of changes to the way we manage our environment, some of them radical. Understanding the problem areas is vital if we are to tune the system up to work more effectively – and not just lower environmental standards and make things worse. Changes expected include amendments to the Resource Management Act, to the planning functions and powers of councils, the promulgation of EEZ regulations and marine management reforms. And we can expect to see first responses to the Land and Water Forum’s recommendations.
EDS’s 2013 conference is the big opportunity to engage in an informed and highly topical national forum on the environmental challenges we face as a nation.
