No reason to demonise farming
OPINION: New Zealand has said it is going to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by ‘a lot’ and ‘in a short time’. One of those gases is methane. Our biggest producer of methane is livestock farming.
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says the strategy is built on five core pillars, all underscoring the Government's commitment to delivering its climate change goals.
The pillars are:
- Infrastructure is resilient and communities are well prepared
- Credible markets support the climate transition
- Clean energy is abundant and affordable
- World-leading climate innovation boosts the economy, and
- Nature-based solutions address climate change.
“Households, businesses, and our economy are already feeling the effects of climate change,” Watts says. “We have seen what severe weather can do to infrastructure and property, and how that disrupts our supply chains and communities.”
“Our Government has committed to meeting our climate change targets - reducing net emissions is one of the nine Government targets to achieve better results from the public service,” he adds.
The Government will soon be consulting on the Emissions Reduction Plan for the period 2026-2030. This will form the basis for the Government's response to reduce New Zealand’s emissions in line with the country’s targets.
“The Emissions Reduction Plan will set out policy proposals across the five pillars and focus on the largest drivers of emissions in New Zealand – energy, transport, agriculture, and waste sectors,” Watts says.
