The Government has unveiled its second Emissions Reduction Plan, outlining a path to keep New Zealand on track to meet its climate change targets while supporting the economy to thrive, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says.
“The plan sets the foundation to meet our net zero 2050 target as early as 2044 and delivers the first and second emissions budgets,” Mr Watts says.
“New Zealand needs to be stronger in a changing climate. We want our way of life to be protected and minimise the impacts of climate change to our country.
“We can have affordable and secure clean energy, an efficient competitive agriculture sector, and a booming economy while meeting our climate change commitments. This plan sets out how we can get there.”
The plan has targeted actions in the sectors of our economy that produce the greatest emissions: agriculture, transport, energy, and waste. It also includes other areas that will be critical to meeting our climate targets such as the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme and sustainable finance.
There are eight key policies that will have the greatest potential emissions savings over the next five years:
- Enabling more renewable energy projects through Electrify NZ
- Recognising carbon capture, utilisation and storage in the NZ ETS
- Targeting a network of 10,000 EV charging points by 2030
- Introducing agricultural emissions pricing by 2030 and incentivising the uptake of new technologies
- Exploring private-sector partnerships to plant trees on low-conservation Crown-owned land
- Introducing a regulated product stewardship scheme for refrigerants from 2025
- Leveraging the Waste Minimisation Fund to enable resource recovery systems and infrastructure to process organic waste
- Improving organic waste management and landfill gas capture to increase landfill gas recovery rates.
“I want to thank everyone who took the time to submit their feedback on the draft emissions reduction plan. As a result, new sections on technology and innovation, and building and construction have been added to the plan,” Mr Watts says.
“The private sector plays an important role in reducing New Zealand’s emissions. Their feedback on the draft plan provided further insights into their work and areas for additional focus from the government.
“Achieving our goals will require collaboration across all sectors to reduce emissions, unlock renewable energy, foster innovation, and leverage nature-based solutions. Our plan highlights the significant progress already being made by businesses in the private sector, showcasing ongoing efforts to drive meaningful change across the board.”
The Government is also amending the first emissions reduction plan to make sure it reflects this Government’s approach to meeting the first emissions budget. Current emissions projections indicate we are on track to meet the first emissions budget, even with the changes in policy.