New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme:
Draft Fishing Allocation Plan
Summary of Submissions

This document summarises the key issues raised by submitters in response to the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme: Draft Fishing Allocation Plan Consultation Document.

1 Introduction

The New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme (NZ ETS) aims to reduce New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions by creating a financial incentive for people to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It will be phased in over seven years, starting in 2008. The primary unit of trade in the NZ ETS is a New Zealand Unit (NZU) issued by the Crown. Participants1 are required to surrender NZUs to the Crown to meet their obligations under the scheme.

One of the effects of the NZ ETS is a fuel price rise of about 3 cents a litre, expected in mid-2010 when transport fuels are included in the scheme. To compensate for the fall in value of fishing quota which may result from this increase in the cost of fuel, the Government will give fishing quota owners a one-off allocation of NZUs. This allocation is required by law under the Climate Change Response Act 2002 (the Act).

The Act contains the following rules:

  • The total amount of emission units to be allocated to fishing quota owners (700,000 NZUs).
  • The people who are eligible to receive an allocation of NZUs are those shown on the quota register as owners of fishing quota at the end of the day on 24 September 2009.
  • A formula for calculating how many NZUs each eligible person may receive.

The Act allows for the Fishing Allocation Plan to impose rules for further tests and thresholds and the type of information that must be supplied with applications. These rules were consulted on between 22 March and 26 April 2010 as part of developing a final Fishing Allocation Plan.

The Draft Fishing Allocation Plan Consultation Document2 sought feedback on:

  • thresholds
  • information to be supplied with applications
  • any other matters
  • workshops.

Consultation was notified through public notices in six daily newspapers on two occasions
(22 and 26 March 2010). Owners of fishing quota on 24 September 2009, industry stakeholders, the Climate Change Iwi Leadership Group, and the Māori Reference Group Executive were emailed or posted the consultation document (including the Draft Fishing Allocation Plan). Both the consultation document and the draft plan were made available on the Ministry for the Environment website.

The Government received 21 submissions in response to the consultation document (by 26 April 2010). A list of organisations and people who responded to the consultation document is included in Annex 1.

This document summarises the key issues raised by submitters in response to the consultation document as well as additional issues identified by officials. Not every detail raised in submissions is provided in this summary because many were points of clarification or out of scope. Such details have nevertheless been considered in decision making.

1 A participant is someone who carries out a greenhouse gas-producing activity detailed in the Climate Change Response Act 2002. Participants can be from the following sectors: forestry, stationary energy, industrial processes, liquid fossil fuels, synthetic gases, agriculture and waste. Fishing quota owners or vessel operators are not participants in the NZ ETS and are not required to surrender NZUs or monitor and report on their emissions.

2 Ministry for the Environment. 2010. New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme: Draft Fishing Allocation Plan Consultation Document. Wellington: Ministry for the Environment.

 

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June 2010
Ref: ME 1019

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