Govt review recognition ETS isn't working - B+LNZ

B+LNZ chief executive Sam McIvor says the levy organisation has been calling for changes to the ETS since the introduction of the Zero Carbon Bill in 2019.

“The sheep and beef sector and rural communities have been severely impacted by policy settings that have led to out-of-control land-use change into forestry, particularly for entry into the ETS,” McIvor says.

He says it is “heartening” to see the Government has listened to concerns from the levy organisation, farmers, and the wider public.

McIvor says it is also good to see there are now concrete and substantial options on the table aiming to address the issue.

“The Government has acknowledged that too much exotic planting is happening and that the current ETS settings are not driving real emissions reductions,” he says.

“What has been released is significant – in terms of the scale of reform being considered for the ETS, but also in terms of the volume of information. It will take us some time to work through the details and test the options with farmers.”

McIvor says that, from B+LNZ’s initial analysis, some options will be more effective than others, while some appear to be out of step with what the Climate Change Commission has recommended.

“However, we’ll continue to examine all options in detail.

“Our early analysis also indicates there are some good concrete options for changes to the permanent forest category of the ETS,” McIvor says. “We will continue to push for settings in this area that restrict the amount of whole farms being converted into carbon-only farms, but that still encourage and enable the integration of trees on farms and that work for Māori farmers.”

He says B+LNZ also welcomes the consultation’s consideration of recognizing a wider range of forms of sequestration, such as pre-1990 natives and wetlands and giving a greater reward for those types of sequestration, as they also deliver wider environmental outcomes, such as biodiversity.

“B+LNZ is not anti-forestry. What we’re concerned about is the scale and pace of whole farms that have been sold in the last few years to convert into forestry, which has been driven by the carbon price. We are very supportive, however, of the integration of trees within farms.

“Many climate policy settings globally focus on incentivizing forestry that deliver co-benefits, such as a focus on natives and the integration of trees within farms, rather than large-scale plantation forestry as New Zealand’s policy settings currently do,” says McIvor.

B+LNZ will provide analysis to farmers and seek feedback from them for its submission on the consultation, which closes on 11 August. It will also provide advice to farmers on how they can take part in this important process by making their own submissions.