Massey scientists join plea to save endangered conservation jobs

Massey University scientists have added their names to a message from the science community urging the government to reconsider its restructure of the Department of Conservation. They say the resulting job cuts will put New Zealand’s vulnerable wilderness and endangered native species at further risk.

The letter to the Minister of Conservation Kate Wilkinson, signed by 107 scientists from around the country, says the loss of nearly 100 jobs over the next six months to save $7.5m will seriously erode the department’s efforts in conservation management and planning, as many species and ecosystems “teeter on the edge of oblivion”.

Among the 39 Massey professors, lecturers and PhD candidates from the University’s Albany and Manawatu campuses that signed the letter are conservation biologists Associate Professor Dianne Brunton, Professor Doug Armstrong and Dr Mike Joy.

The letter was released today at a gathering of some 1300 scientists from around the world attending the 25th International Congress for Conservation Biology 2011 in Auckland this week.

Signatories to the letter, including eminent scientists such as Emeritus Professor Alan Mark, University of Otago’s Department of Botany, Professor David Lowe, Waikato University’s Earth and Ocean Sciences and Associate Professor Ian Jamieson, Zoology Department, University of Otago, say they are dismayed at the “ongoing reduction in capacity, support and funding for New Zealand conservation” which is undermining the work of dedicated, passionate staff whose expertise has seen iconic species such as the kakapo, takahe, saddleback and Chatham Island robin saved from extinction.

Even amid the current economic challenges, New Zealand needs a well-funded Department of Conservation to ensure its “100% Pure New Zealand” branding to attract tourists and sell quality agricultural produce is more than just a slogan, the scientists say.

“The Department of Conservation is characterised by an incredibly dedicated staff who are passionate about their jobs. Unfortunately, this dedication to conservation is not reflected by government,” they add.

Conservation management and science should be acknowledged, they state, as “a strategic asset for the wealth of all New Zealanders and funded as such”. “Recessions come and go; extinction is forever,” concludes the message, organised by Emeritus Professor Alan Mark and Dr Kevin Parker, from Massey University’s Institute of Natural Sciences at Albany.

“The government prides itself in being responsive to the business community. We hope that they will also respond to the conservation science community,” says Dr Parker.