Rural Living: How do you see things ahead for the rural community given the current economic climate?

Russel Norman: The economic climate, and the changing environmental climate, will bring additional challenges to the rural community. These include a less secure markets, depressed prices and variable weather patterns with more droughts and floods. However, domestic food production will become important because while global markets may become tighter, we will always have 4+ million people to feed here at home. We can also improve our access to premium markets and premium prices by increasing the quality and value of our food production. Remaining GE Free, converting to organic and low-input production systems, and capitalising on our efficient pastoral-based agriculture by leading the world in research into greenhouse gas emissions and protecting our waterways from pollution, will enhance our products’ value and quality to overseas markets.

RL: How do you see the growth of the lifestyle block in New Zealand?

RN: There are positives and negatives. A divide between rural and urban communities has been growing in NZ with many ‘townies’ having little awareness of where food comes from. Conversely, rural communities sometimes struggle to understand the concerns and attitudes - social and environmental - of city folk. Lifestylers fall in between and can provide a bridge. On the other hand, there will be conflict of rural and urban values in lifestyle block situations, seen in attempts to farm without getting ones hands dirty or objections to roosters crowing in rural areas. However, these can mostly be resolved locally through good planning and social networking. Where lifestyle blocks allow home-grown food production, facilitate local farmers’ markets and less dependence on imported foods transported long distances, then lifestyle blocks are a valuable part of the transition to a sustainable low-carbon local economy.

RL: Farmers – especially dairy farmers – seem to be accused of being responsible for everything from global warming to the rising cost of living. Do you think this is accurate or fair? How can we change this view?

RN: There is no question that new industrial dairy farming has primary responsibility for the massive increase in agricultural emissions and water pollution. Traditional dairy farming, including lifestyle dairy herds like my co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons has, are not so much the problem. It is the advent of large-herd corporate farming, which has less emphasis on land stewardship and more on making a fast buck. NZ agricultural can become a world-leader in sustainability, but we must address our emissions blowout and freshwater crisis or our markets will begin to see through the ‘clean green’ brand and dry up as surely as some of our over-allocated rivers now do in summer.

Fonterra has some responsibility for forcing dairy prices on New Zealanders that are related to the international price rather than the local cost of production. The Greens put pressure on Fonterra and are pleased that there will now be some relaxing in local dairy prices with little impact on suppliers.

RL: What is the one thing you do everyday to help the planet?

RN: Go to work in the morning! Being a Green Party co-leader is a job that revolves around constantly considering how Government policy could shift from endangering the planet to enhancing it, and treating all people fairly along the way. And to get there I catch the bus or ride my bike.

RL: What is the most interesting book you have read recently and you would recommend to others?

RN: Jared Diamond’s ‘Collapse’ about societies facing ecological challenges.

RL: What three people would you invite to dinner if you could?

RN: David Suzuki, Naomi Klein, Robyn Malcolm.

RL: Is New Zealand still the clean green haven it has traditionally been viewed as?

RN: Unfortunately no. Our greenhouse gas emissions, dependence on scarce oil and dirty coal, water pollution, and poor quality of cheap food threaten our clean green image. The world is waking up to our deepening deception, and Kiwis are also waking up to the impact of pollution on their lives. It is outrageous that so many of our public waterways are dangerous to swim in let alone drink from. However, with Green Party solutions we can become the clean green haven we thought we were, put our economy on a sustainable and secure footing, and have a healthy society where resources are shared fairly.

RL: What is the most important thing lifestylers could do to help the environment?

RN: In the next few weeks? Party Vote Green this election.