Climate Change Action

The science is clear - we need to get carbon emissions to zero or face unprecedented global warming. But if the rest of the world can’t get their act together, then New Zealand needs to be prepared to do both on its own. TOP believes New Zealand needs to reduce its carbon emissions AND prepare for epic warming.

There are several major sources of greenhouse gases in this country which all need to be tackled head-on. Urban development, transport infrastructure, vehicles, process heat, agriculture, and electricity generation. If all that seems a bit daunting, don’t panic, we’ve reviewed all the evidence for you, and we have a plan.

In collaboration with our Biodiversity and Freshwater policies, TOP will:

Build denser cities around public and active transport networks as per our policy for Sustainable Housing and Urban Development.

Alter the Building Code to allow energy-efficient materials to be imported into New Zealand, and ensure the building industry has the skills to use them.

Stop politicising infrastructure decisions and commit to a net-zero emissions future now. After all, we are stuck with transport infrastructure decisions for a long time.

Broaden the remit of the Electricity Authority to include reducing emissions.

Double the price of carbon and phase out free credits. This will incentivise companies to move away from burning coal for process heat and also generate $1b per year to reinvest in the rest of this plan.

Only use the offsets gained from tree planting for offsetting agricultural emissions.

Introduce incentives from the government and the financial sector for households and businesses to be energy smart.

Increase investment into initiatives such as planting riverbanks and erosion-prone land, using waste wood, producing and using biomass, regenerative agriculture, and optimal electricity demand management techniques.

Remove Fringe Benefits Tax from electric vehicles (including e-bikes and public transport).

Invest in Research & Development to figure out the optimal way forward for moving freight using the roads, rail and shipping.

Whilst other countries continue to point fingers at each other, we know TOP policy will put New Zealand in the best place to withstand the economic impacts of continued global warming and reduce our carbon emissions, and we want to get started today!

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Page last updated on 24-Sep 2020