Green issues

The fact that New Zealand is, at least by European standards, apparently both clean and green is more by accident than design, a result of its isolation and relatively short human history. And although many New Zealanders are trying to preserve the country's environment, their efforts are often hampered by a vacillating government and the paramount interests of big business - wildlife has had to pay the price for some short-sighted and flagrant profiteering.

Traditionally meat, wool and dairy products have been New Zealand's main exports, but today a greater proportion is made up of forestry, machinery, aluminium and chemicals, all of which take their toll on the environment in terms of land usage, pollution and energy demands. Today none of the animals or crops and few of the trees harvested are endemic to New Zealand: the countryside is a confusion of native, European and Australian birds, exotic and indigenous trees, and a profusion of plants and animals from each hemisphere. Since human habitation began, forty-three indigenous birds have been consigned to the ranks of the extinct, and New Zealand now accounts for eleven percent of the world's endangered bird species

Other useful information for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections):