Kōrero: Economy and the environment

Prime Minister Robert Muldoon (left) is guided around the Kāpuni ammonia urea plant in south Taranaki in 1982. The Kāpuni plant was part of a swathe of large industrial and energy developments termed ‘Think Big’, which were designed to reduce New Zealand’s dependence on imported oil and to diversify its economy. The Kāpuni plant produces urea, a chemical containing nitrogen, from natural gas. Urea is the most widely used nitrogen fertiliser in New Zealand, and is also used in some manufacturing processes.