This is a commentary by the Commissioner on Environment Aotearoa 2015 – the state of the environment report published last year by the Ministry for the Environment and Statistics New Zealand. The Commissioner’s commentary begins with a review of that report. It then presents the Commissioner’s take on the state of New Zealand’s environment and identifies priority issues that stand out for particular attention.

The report concludes that air quality is generally good in most places most of the time. Water quality is very good in undeveloped parts of the country, but is poor in many catchments. Much of this is a consequence of historic bush clearance on unstable soils and increasingly intensive farming. Lakes and estuaries are particularly vulnerable. Our native plants and animals are in serious trouble with most of our iconic bird species in decline. When it comes to the state of our ocean, we simply do not know very much. We do, however, know that climate change is by far the most worrying environmental issue. Already, global temperatures are increasing, the surface waters of the ocean are acidifying, and the level of the sea is rising.

Six recommendations are made. The first five recommendations are to the Government Statistician and the Secretary for the Environment, and follow from the assessment of Environment Aotearoa 2015 in Chapter 2. Each identifies an aspect for improvement in future state of the environment reports. The last recommendation is to the Secretary for the Environment and seeks a response to the findings of Environment Aotearoa 2015 and this commentary.