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A plan for agricultural emissions will be released on Wednesday (Photo: Getty Images)
A plan for agricultural emissions will be released on Wednesday (Photo: Getty Images)

The BulletinJune 7, 2022

Agricultural emissions plan to be released

A plan for agricultural emissions will be released on Wednesday (Photo: Getty Images)
A plan for agricultural emissions will be released on Wednesday (Photo: Getty Images)

In 2019 the government agreed to a proposal from the primary sector to develop an alternative system to the Emissions Trading Scheme for agricultural emissions. On Wednesday morning, the plan will be made public, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in The Bulletin.

 

Deadline for agricultural emissions plan met

In October 2019 the government agreed to a proposal from the primary sector to work together to develop an alternative system to the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) for measuring, managing and reducing agricultural greenhouse gas emissions. The partnership initiative, He Waka Eke Noa (HWEN), has involved various agricultural bodies, the ministries for the environment and primary industries and consultation with the sector. Farmer’s Weekly summarises some of that consultation feedback here with 99% of farmers saying they don’t want agricultural emissions to be priced through the ETS. HWEN had a deadline of May 31 to come up with the plan otherwise the government could roll agriculture into the ETS. On Wednesday morning, the plan will be made public. 

Plan will quieten claims “agriculture is a climate action truant”

In this analysis (paywalled) from the Herald’s Andrea Fox, HWEN programme director, Kelly Forster, says the plan will quieten claims “agriculture is a climate action truant”. Speaking to The Country last week, president of Federated Farmers Andrew Hoggard said farmers will definitely be better off than what they would have been under the Emissions Trading scheme (ETS). Greenpeace issued a press release on May 27 saying they will be scrutinising the numbers to make sure “they don’t get away with cooking the books to appear more ambitious than they really are”.

Issue creates schism among farmers

To say this issue has been fraught is an understatement. Many commentators and climate action groups have been highly critical of what they view as a carve-out for agriculture in our climate policies and unwillingness from the government to take on the country’s biggest emitters. When the Emissions Reduction Plan was released in May there were complaints about agriculture being given research funding when it wasn’t contributing to the ETS. Pete McKenzie has written for The Guardian about the schism that’s emerged among the sector itself. Disaffected farmers have become involved with the contentious Groundswell movement and taken to the streets to protest the government and express their dissatisfaction at their traditional lobby groups like Federated Farmers and Beef+Lamb, who’ve been part of HWEN. 

A complex situation for farmers

Sitting here this morning in my Auckland house drinking my fancy milky coffee, I am exactly the kind of person many farmers say don’t have a clue about what they’re being asked to grapple with. I really recommend reading Nicola Harvey’s December 2021 North and South story “The fight for the future of farming”. It succinctly explains the various scientific schools of thought on agricultural emissions and explores the tension and complexity for farmers. Harvey spent time with farmers throughout the country and writes: “Many New Zealanders see this group as the primary obstacle to the government’s attempts to introduce lasting environmental reforms that will ensure the country lives up to its clean green reputation. But in my travels I found a much more complex situation.”

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