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4.17. On 6 August 2020, following a comprehensive review of the Dairy Industry Restructuring Act (DIRA) and consultation with the dairy sector, the DIRA was amended to reduce some of the regulatory requirements on Fonterra, including by allowing it the discretion to accept or decline applications from new or returning farmers to become shareholders; clarifying that Fonterra can price differentiate on the basis of various on farm performance matters, and refuse milk supply in circumstances where milk is non compliant; and supporting and encouraging better environmental performance of the dairy industry. (...)

4.18. (...) The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has identified 16,000 marine species in New Zealand waters, of which 130 species are commercially fished. Approximately 400,000 tonnes of fish is harvested from New Zealand's waters each year with a further 118,000 tonnes of aquacultural production. During 2019/20, there were approximately 860 registered fishing vessels in New Zealand, of which approximately 10 were foreign-owned. The authorities' current efforts in the fisheries industry seek to improve environmental performance and modernize fisheries management, i.e. promote electronic monitoring of commercial catches, and management measures that further protect New Zealand's protected species from the effects of fishing.

4.19. The legal framework has remained largely unchanged since the previous Review. The primary legislation for the management of fisheries is the Fisheries Act 1996. It provides for the utilization of fisheries resources while maintaining their potential to meet the reasonably foreseeable needs of future generations. Fisheries New Zealand, under the MPI, is responsible for its implementation.

4.21. Fisheries 2030 is implemented through, inter alia, ensuring the sustainability of fish stocks by limiting catches to specific levels, using a Quota Management System (QMS). (...) There are currently 98 species (or species groups) listed in the QMS.

4.24. There are a number of funding opportunities available to the fishing and aquaculture industries. The aquaculture planning fund supports regional councils to plan for sustainable aquaculture growth and development through, inter alia, creating zones for new consent applications and provisions for new species for aquaculture. Several support programmes established in New Zealand's agricultural sector also translate into fisheries, mainly with respect to sustainable resources management.

4.25. Nearly half of New Zealand's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions come from agriculture. The main source of agricultural emissions is methane from ruminant animals. The Government is taking steps towards addressing methane emissions, including through He Waka Eke Noa, the Primary Sector Climate Action Partnership.

4.26. The 2019 Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Act provides a domestic GHG emissions reduction target. This includes net zero emissions of all GHGs other than biogenic methane by 2050, and a 24% to 47% reduction below 2017 levels of biogenic methane emissions by 2050, including a 10% reduction by 2030. It also established the independent Climate Change Commission to provide expert advice and monitoring to help keep successive Governments on track to meet long term goals.

4.27. Under the 2020 Climate Change Response (Emissions Trading Reform) Amendment Act, biogenic emissions from agriculture (methane and nitrous oxide) will be priced by 2025.

4.28. He Waka Eke Noa, the Primary Sector Climate Action Partnership, a partnership between the Government, the primary sector, and Māori was established in 2019 to equip farmers to measure, manage, and reduce on-farm agricultural GHG emissions and enhance the sector's resilience to climate change.

4.29. New Zealand has also adopted several measures in line with resources management in agriculture. The 2020 Resource Management (National Environment Standards for Freshwater) Regulations prescribe environmental standards in relation to freshwater and set requirements for carrying out certain activities that pose a risk to freshwater and freshwater ecosystems.