National appointing a Dairy Polluter as Chief Science Advisor is like appointing a flat Earther to host a geography conference

I know this didn’t get a hell of a lot of attention last week because National announced it on Friday afternoon when the media have gone to sleep, but this is an unbelievable appointment …

Greenpeace slams PM’s science pick: “Polluters are running the show”

Greenpeace says the appointment of a former DairyNZ scientist as Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s Chief Science Advisor shows the Government is handing power to polluters.

“For years, DairyNZ has ignored science and lobbied to weaken protections for rivers, drinking water, and the climate,” says Greenpeace campaigner Amanda Larsson.

“We’re facing a climate and nature crisis. The dairy industry is New Zealand’s worst environmental polluter, and science shows we need strong limits on it to protect the environment and our future. But instead of taking action to restrict intensive dairy’s pollution, Luxon is allowing industry lobbyists to sit at key decision-making tables.”

Larsson warns that the appointment could further undermine action on climate change. She says DairyNZ has led efforts to promote misleading methods for measuring methane emissions from livestock – methods that downplay the need for real cuts to climate pollution from intensive dairy.

Working with Federated Farmers and Beef + Lamb, DairyNZ has pushed for a system called no additional warming to measure methane emissions. Greenpeace says this approach isn’t grounded in science and is designed to justify doing less.

“These agri-business-backed tools are based on the flawed premise that current methane emissions are an acceptable baseline. But scientists agree that methane emissions are far too high and we need to reduce them,” says Larsson.

New Zealand’s independent Climate Change Commission has already rejected no additional warming. But the Government sidestepped the Commission and set up a separate panel to review methane targets using that same flawed approach. The Government is set to make a decision on the methane target this year.

“Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas that heats the planet much faster than carbon dioxide,” Larsson says. “And here in New Zealand, livestock methane makes up most of our climate pollution.”

“At a time where the need to address the climate crisis is more urgent than ever, we cannot afford for the Luxon-led Government to elevate the voices of those who are causing the problem, because the cost will be the future of life on earth.”

Greenpeace has long raised concerns about the dairy industry’s influence on Luxon’s government. Last year, the group revealed that Federated Farmers had drafted freshwater policy and communications plans for the Government, which were subsequently implemented.

“We’re now seeing the consequences of polluters running the show,” says Larsson.

“Weakened freshwater protections are leading to new dairy conversions, especially in Canterbury and Southland.

“The dairy industry’s pollution is already causing unswimmable rivers, unsafe drinking water, and more climate disasters. This will only get worse as the few protections we have are rolled back.

“While Luxon wages a war on nature, people across the country are stepping up to protect the places they care about. If the Government won’t stand up to polluters, the people will.”

…they’ve appointed a Pollution Spin Dr from the Dairy Industry as the bloody Chief Science Advisor, which is a bit like appointing Sean Plunket the Broadcasting Minister or Tim Jago as a Youth Outreach Consultant.

DairyNZ is one of the worst climate change apologists who have driven hard against any real mitigation of cows, in fact their solution to everything is ‘more cows’.

As the planet burns, this Government appoints a main polluter to the role of Chief Science Advisor on a Friday media dump so you wouldn’t notice.

You should notice now.

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