Agriculture in the Emissions Trading Scheme
How is agriculture affected by the ETS?
Agriculture will have obligations to report their activities and surrender New Zealand Units (NZUs) under the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). They will receive allocations of NZUs to help offset the cost of this.
Like all New Zealanders, they’re likely to notice a small increase in energy prices due to the ETS. For more information on these effects and how to reduce your energy costs, please see What does the ETS mean for me?
Obligations
Please see Agriculture’s obligations: Reporting emissions and surrendering NZUs for more information.
Allocations
Please see Agriculture Allocations: NZUs for Agriculture for more information.
Agriculture and climate change
New Zealand’s biologically-based economy relies on a temperate and stable climate for production. Action on climate change – here and internationally – is crucial for New Zealand’s long-term economic, social and environmental wellbeing.
The agriculture sector is the largest single source of greenhouse gas emissions in New Zealand, making up approximately 48 per cent of our total emissions. Emissions in the sector are continuing to grow.
By placing a price on carbon, the ETS provides an incentive to reduce the level of emissions for every unit of agricultural output. Emissions reductions can be made by:
