Dairy and Deforestation

I sent a letter to the listener today with the general subject of deforestation, dairy and biofuel. Somethings been bugging me recently about how high and mighty NZ can be about its world leading agricultural systems...and now our sustainable biofuel source through tallow. I reckon its only a quirk of fate and timing that has given us this opportunity, and we should be grateful for it.

"It's not that I support the importation of Kwila or deforestation of the worlds last 'paradises'. But isn't it time we get to grips with the irony that the Kwila deck chairs we laze on while downing our favourite lagers often rest on rimu floorboards and boxing. Just as our 'booming' dairy industry and wider agricultural sector rest on the gross deforestation of our country in the last one hundred and fifty years.

When Paul Kerr (letters) and Sarah Barnett (ecologic) discuss the true cost of dairying and the tragedy of bio-fuels, they could continue to note that both the dairy industry and our government are harvesting the proceeds of deforestation through 'dairy pay-outs' and 'sustainable' bio-fuels created from agricultural waste. In a globalised world, it is perhaps the treasures, biodiversity and carbon of places like West Papua that our government and largest company should seek to protect rather than our milk prices and false carbon conscience."