Amendments would modernise environmental reporting and improve access to key data
The government has introduced legislation to overhaul the environmental reporting framework, a move Environment Minister Nicola Grigg said will improve the quality, accessibility and usefulness of information used in environmental decision-making.
The bill would amend the Environmental Reporting Act 2015, which Grigg described as outdated, inflexible, and increasingly inefficient. According to the government, the changes are intended to modernise environmental reporting by improving data quality and ensuring information is more relevant, timely, and accessible to policymakers and the public.
Grigg said the current reporting regime no longer provides the flexibility needed to respond to emerging environmental information needs. “These changes are necessary because the current reporting regime is inflexible and has become inefficient. They will ensure reports better support the government to make effective and informed decisions about the environment and environmental impacts”, Grigg said in a statement.
A central feature of the legislation is the introduction of a new priorities report to identify critical areas for environmental investment and data collection. The report would help guide research and funding decisions across the science sector, local councils, and central government, while identifying information gaps and setting priorities for addressing them.
The proposed changes accompany the government’s recent $61 million investment over four years in environmental data to support the implementation of a new planning system.
The bill would also revise reporting timelines under the Environmental Reporting Act. Comprehensive state-of-the-environment reports would be issued every six years rather than every three years, while routine environmental reports would shift from a six-monthly to an annual schedule. The government said the revised reporting cycle is better aligned with the pace of environmental change and would provide more meaningful insights.
“A fit-for-purpose Environmental Reporting Act 2015 will serve as an important statutory and stewardship foundation for the Ministry of Cities, Environment, Regions and Transport, ensuring that New Zealand continues to have a valuable, independent, evidence-based environmental reporting program informing decision-making”, Grigg said.
