Fonterra backs conditional approach to emission targets
August 17th, 2009
John Hutchings, Fonterra’s general manager for sustainable production says meeting the proposed new targets for emissions reductions will be “very difficult” for the agricultural sector. He says reducing NZ’s greenhouse gas output below 1990 levels by 2020 will be “impossible without harming the agriculture sector.” This is why NZ’s largest exporter has given its support to the ‘realism’ in the Govt’s proposals, which depend on global consensus, ensuring the nation isn’t forging the way for other competing countries.
The Govt took its proposed target range of 10% to 20% reductions to Bonn, the prelude to December’s global summit on climate change. Firming up the target will depend what other nations do. The co-operative argues NZ is actually an efficient and low-emission producer of agricultural products, so the nation’s targeted reductions can’t risk pushing output to other, less-efficient countries.
Fonterra says it is on track to curb energy use by 16% as measured by unit of output this year, amounting to an annual reduction in emissions of 280,000 tonnes. The co-operative is a key member of the Greenhouse Policy Coalition, which represents major emitters including Carter Holt and the major coal miners. The group has called the Govt’s proposed targets ‘ambitious.’ Fonterra is still pushing for allocations of emissions permits to the dairy industry based on efficiency per unit of output, or ‘intensity.’
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