Climate Change Commission’s advice released
The Government has released the Climate Change Commission’s final advice on the first three emissions budgets.
The Government now has until the end of the year to publish its Emissions Reduction Plan, which takes the advice given by the Commission and lays out a plan to hit the five year carbon budgets.
The Commission identifies critical outcomes New Zealand will need to achieve:
- Expanding native forests to build a long-term carbon sink.
- Increasing the number of people who walk, cycle, use public transport and emerging low emissions options like e-scooters and e-bikes rather than petrol cars.
- Accelerating EV uptake and phasing out light ICE engine vehicle imports sometime between 2030-2035 – consistent with the phase out dates being set by a growing number of countries – and importing more efficient ICE vehicles, including conventional hybrids, while the EV supply grows.
- Improving the efficiency of heavy transport and freight, including through freight optimisation, and increasing the share of rail and coastal shipping.
- Scaling up low emissions fuels like biofuels or hydrogen-derived synthetic fuels. Biofuels are particularly useful in decarbonising the current vehicle fleet.
- Increasing energy efficiency in homes, commercial and public buildings.
- Phasing out new fossil gas connections and switching existing fossil gas appliances to low emissions fuels.
- Eliminating coal use in commercial and public buildings by 2030, and for food processing before 2040.
- Expanding the electricity system in a timely, reliable, and affordable way, while managing the opposing risks of under- or over-investing in the system. Over-investment risks increasing the delivered cost of electricity or stranded assets, which would disincentivise electrification. Under-investment risks delaying progress on wider decarbonisation efforts in transport, industry, and buildings.
- Adopting farm management practices that will reduce biogenic methane and nitrous oxide emissions.
- Developing and deploying new technologies that could reduce biogenic methane emissions from agriculture.
- Opening up opportunities for more conversion to lower emissions production systems and land uses, including horticulture.
- Increasing the availability of low-waste and low emissions options for businesses and consumers when purchasing and disposing of goods.
Posted: 10 June 2021