Increasing worries around drinking water nitrate levels and cancer risks, says OraTaiao
OraTaiao: NZ Climate and Health Council strongly supports the recent call by Forest & Bird, Greenpeace, the Environmental Defence Society, and Choose Clean Water urging Government to limit freshwater nitrate levels to less than 1mg/L.
"This is a perfect example of where public health, ecological, and climate concerns overlap," says Dermot Coffey, Co-convenor of OraTaiao, "and where setting and achieving a safe limit on nitrate levels will benefit all three simultaneously."
Read more >New Zealand ranked zero in damning global climate health scorecard
MEDIA STATEMENT, 8 July 2021
“New Zealand’s ranking of zero points on the Global Climate and Health Alliance health scorecard for climate commitments sounds the siren for urgent action,” says Dr Dermot Coffey, Co-convenor of OraTaiao: NZ Climate and Health Council. The GCHA today publicly released the climate health scorecard for the nationally determined contributions (NDCs) of 66 countries with NZ sharing bottom place with just 3 others.
Read more >Hīkina te Kohupara / Pathways to Net Zero by 2050
OraTaiao submission, 24 June 2021
The health and wellbeing co-benefits of climate change mitigation strategies that increase active and public transport are well documented. These co-benefits need to be elevated within Hīkina te Kohupara to become a central focus of the transport system transformation.
Read full submission here
OraTaiao calls for healthier government response to climate advice
Christchurch, 9 June 2021 -- Responding to today’s release of the Climate Change Commission’s advice to the government on New Zealand’s climate ambitions, OraTaiao called on Minister for Climate Change Hon. James Shaw to safeguard the health of Aotearoa and step up to our fair share when the world meets in Glasgow this November to keep human-adaptable 1.5 degrees warming within reach.
Read more >OraTaiao appeals to Government: plate up for climate change and health
OraTaiao underwhelmed by the Budget’s support for climate or health
Simply going by the 2021 Budget, one wouldn’t know our government has declared a climate emergency; rather it was another disappointment in a long string of underwhelming Budgets, said Dr Dermot Coffey, Co-convenor, OraTaiao: NZ Climate and Health Council.
Please read OraTaiao's response to the 2021 Budget.
Auckland Regional Land Transport Plan
OraTaiao submission, 2 May 2021
"While we support the intent of the draft advice, much more ambitious targets for active and public transport increases, and modeshare shifts from private motor vehicles need to be included. There has not been enough consideration of the health and health equity gains that can be made by emission reducing policies and Te Tiriti o Waitangi has not been centralised."
Read full submission here.
Climate Change Commission's first package of advice to the Government "Climate action for Aotearoa"
OraTaiao submission, 26 March 2021
We cannot support the majority of the Commission's recommendations as they do not take into account the health and health equity gains that can be made by emission reducing policies, and the advice does not account for the harm climate change will cause to health and healthy equity.
Read full submission here.
Stuff: Climate change: Calls for public health expert to be appointed to commission
Article about OraTaiao and other health professional organisations asking for a public health expert to be appointed to the Climate Change Commission. Read here.
Letter to Climate Change Minister March 2021
Twelve health professional organisations have written to Climate Change Minister James Shaw asking for public health representation on the Climate Change Commission.