gerry brownlee Archive

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  Best Earth Day present ever - by frog

  
  
  
  Well it was about time for a bit of good news on the environmental front wasn’t it? Today Metiria’s Bill to make it harder to mine in Schedule 4 land was drawn from the ballot, just in time for Earth Day and our series of “Love it, don’t mine it” events around the country. The [...] read more
  April 22, 2010 2:57 pm - 9 Comments
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  Minister leaves door open for truly smart meters - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  Electricity consumers around the country are having smart meters installed that aren’t really smart, and then have to pay for them through their electricity bill, without getting any of the benefits. read more
  April 22, 2010 10:41 am - 14 Comments
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  Send ’em all down pit, Paula - by frog

  
  
  
  Let’s hope Gerry Brownlee and Paula Bennett don’t pick up on this policy initiative from Australian Federal Opposition Leader Tony Abbott. read more
  April 22, 2010 9:27 am - 8 Comments
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  A postcard on Eden Park - by frog

  
  
  
  Gerry Brownlee likens the Government’s Schedule 4 mining proposals to “a postcard on Eden Park”. Coromandel Watchdog sees it somewhat differently, and has produced this scale image to help us all see it their way: read more
  March 30, 2010 1:26 pm - 19 Comments
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  Schedule 4 mining still on the table - by frog

  
  
  
  Just as we predicted back in August, the National Party is going to break a hard won consensus around Schedule 4 and punch holes in the most precious parts of our conservation estate. Kiwis have already made it pretty clear that they don’t want this, but we will have to make our voices heard over [...] read more
  March 22, 2010 4:56 pm - 55 Comments
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  Nats undermining open government - by frog

  
  
  
  The National-led Government is attempting to avoid public scrutiny of Bills by making Regulatory Impact Statements almost as hard to find as Phil Heatley’s and Gerry Brownlee’s Ministerial credit card receipts. A very poor look as far as open government is concerned. read more
  February 26, 2010 6:49 pm - 12 Comments
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  Sexy coal on sexy oil - by frog

  
  
  
  Isn’t Gerry Brownlee such a wonderfully clever Minister of Energy and Resources to be able to increase our oil production a thousandfold? read more
  February 12, 2010 2:40 pm - 24 Comments
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  Mokihinui – Brownlee’s burp - by frog

  
  
  
  So this week our Minister of Mining and Damming (aka Energy and Resources) let slip that the Mokihinui hydro-dam “would not go ahead”. Does he know something or was it just his ‘opinion’? Whatever the brain-burp was, he was ill-advised to say it but it’d be nice to think that there may be Moki fans in Government – perhaps they are closet readers of the 1400-fan facebook page! read more
  November 5, 2009 10:16 pm - 28 Comments
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  Mining Milford Sound? - by frog

  
  
  
  “Will he rule out of the review of Schedule 4 of the Crown Minerals Act any consideration of mining potential in Milford Sound; if not, why not?” National Parks, openness, ‘hysteria’ and cartoons. read more
  October 8, 2009 10:36 am - 12 Comments
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  Undermining our most generous gifts - by frog

  
  
  
  On 23 September 1887 – 122 years ago yesterday – Te Heuheu Tukino of Tuwharetoa gifted the mountains of Tongariro, Ngaruhoe and Ruapehu to the people of Aotearoa…. This anniversary was sullied by the fact that the Crown is now considering the Park’s mining potential. read more
  September 24, 2009 2:30 pm - 12 Comments
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  Gerry The Dinosaur - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  Once upon a time there was a large hungry dinosaur called Gerry who loved eating rocks more than anything else.   He lived near a beautiful forest but he had never been allowed to enter and eat the rocks and pull out the trees. He had been told he couldn’t tramp through the clear shining rivers [...] read more
  September 2, 2009 10:44 am - 91 Comments
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  Fiddling the electricity market, while consumers burn - by Jeanette Fitzsimons

  
  
  
  Once again the government is fiddling with the electricity market to try to make it do two contradictory things. Once again it will fail. The Minister of Energy is gradually drip feeding results of the Electricity Market Review,  which is to be considered by Cabinet this morning. It seems it will abolish the Electricity Commission, [...] read more
  August 10, 2009 11:49 am - 9 Comments
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  Driving efficiency - by frog

  
  
  
  The NACT government has justified much of its agenda with the catch cry ‘streamlining and efficiency.’ It’s the falsehood under cover of which they plan to gut environmental laws through changes to the RMA, for example.  And its part of the rationale they gave for bringing the ETS to a grinding halt. But in what [...] read more
  May 19, 2009 5:05 pm - 11 Comments
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  Air Freshener: A dose of reality - by frog

  
  
  
  The This Is Reality campaign has published their latest “Clean Coal” advertisement. It was directed by Academy-award winners Joel and Ethan Coen and it’s pretty funny. There is no such thing as clean coal, Gerry. read more
  February 27, 2009 9:13 am - 9 Comments
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  Energy Minister’s recipe for economic disaster - by frog

  
  
  
  The government’s call to scrap the New Zealand Energy Strategy is yet another instance of the environment being sacrificed on the altar of exponential growth, and is a recipe for economic disaster. However, there may be a tiny silver lining. At least this time the Energy Minister has not hidden behind the farce of “balance” [...] read more
  February 26, 2009 4:14 pm - 16 Comments
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  Brownlee’s EFA Bungle Says It All - by frog

  
  
  
  There’s something symbolic about Gerry Brownlee’s procedural mistakes holding up the EFA repeal reading last week. There was a bungled urgency motion followed by a fumbled adjournment motion and a reversal by the Speaker. The end result is that, after an objection by the Greens, the EFA’s second reading was delayed until today. Where to [...] read more
  February 17, 2009 7:37 am - 37 Comments
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  Coalergy: Smudge - by frog

  
  
  
  I suppose this could just as well star Gerry Brownlee, the way he goes on about sexy coal and carbon capture and storage…. read more
  February 9, 2009 3:34 pm - 1 Comment
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  Conservatives call for effective ban on thermal generation without CCS - by frog

  
  
  
  The debate in the UK has been slowly heating up since the middle of last year, when a right-wing think tank called on the Labour government to impose gradually reducing emissions standards for all power plants. The effect would have been a ban on new coal plants without Carbon Capture and Storage, (CCS), while allowing [...] read more
  January 30, 2009 10:52 am - 3 Comments
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  Carbon Capture and Storage not right for NZ - by frog

  
  
  
  Now that Gerry “Sexy Coal” Brownlee holds the Energy portfolio, it’s time to look once again at his favourite meme. Should we be investing in new coal fired generation, in the hopes that Carbon Capture and Storage, (CCS), will rescue us from the emissions downside? Recently published research says that CCS is questionable at best [...] read more
  January 29, 2009 3:54 pm - 8 Comments
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  More Circular Uncertainty from National - by frog

  
  
  
  Following the circular uncertainty created by John Key and his National government regarding the Emissions Trading Scheme, we now have another round of circular uncertainty, this time created by officialdom, no doubt because there is no clear leadership from the top. To start with, we have the utterly confused and ambiguous signals to business regarding [...] read more
  December 21, 2008 12:19 pm - 82 Comments