__NOTOC__ The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment (''Te Kaitiaki Taiao a Te Whare Pāremata'' in

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

) is an independent Officer of the

New Zealand Parliament The New Zealand Parliament ( mi, Pāremata Aotearoa) is the unicameral legislature of New Zealand, consisting of the King of New Zealand (King-in-Parliament) and the New Zealand House of Representatives. The King is usually represented by hi ...

appointed by the Governor-General on the recommendation of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

for a five-year term under the

Environment Act 1986 The Environment Act 1986 of New Zealand established the Ministry for the Environment and the Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment. References About the Environment Act 1986 Statutes of New Zealand Urban planning in ...

. The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment replaced the Commission for the Environment, a Government agency which was formed in 1972.

Role

The Commissioner is one of three officers of Parliament (the Ombudsmen and the controller and auditor general) who are independent of the executive and who may review activities of the executive government and report directly to Parliament. The Commissioner's role is to review and provide advice on

environmental A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...

issues and the system of agencies and processes established by the Government to manage the environment. The primary objective of the office is to contribute to maintaining and improving the quality of the environment in New Zealand through advice given to Parliament, local councils, business,

tangata whenua In New Zealand, tangata whenua () is a Māori term that literally means "people of the land". It can refer to either a specific group of people with historical claims to a district, or more broadly the Māori people as a whole. Etymology Accordi ...

, communities and other public agencies. The Commissioner may: * investigate any matter where the environment may be, or has been adversely affected; * assess the capability, performance and effectiveness of the New Zealand system of environmental management; and * provide advice and information that will assist people to maintain and improve the quality of the environment.

Commissioners

Commissioners for the environment

* Ian Baumgart (1974–1980)

Parliamentary commissioners for the environment

References

External links

Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment
{{authority control Environment, Parliamentary Commissioner for the PCE Officers of the Parliament of New Zealand