New Zealands promised action on climate is nothing more than a tottering babys first steps – The Guardian

On the campaign trail during New Zealands 2017 election, Labour leader Jacinda Ardern talked about climate change as her generations nuclear-free moment. She went on to become prime minister, taking Labour to a second-term victory in 2020 with an outright majority, unusual in New Zealands proportional representation system.

Her preface to this weeks budget talks about making investments to secure our future and says it makes the greatest strides in climate action by any government to date.

As it turns out, these great strides are more like a tottering babys first steps. And I certainly hope that it is only New Zealand governments being referenced here. Thankfully more is being done in other jurisdictions.

The budgets climate response is headlined by an overall investment of $2.9bn over four years into a climate emergency response fund, paid for in total by expected emissions trading scheme (ETS) proceeds with nothing from elsewhere in the governments coffers.

Urgent calls from environmental groups like Greenpeace to de-intensify dairy farming, cut synthetic nitrogen fertiliser and support regenerative farming at scale have gone unheard. Agriculture produces around 50% of New Zealands carbon dioxide and methane emissions.

While some resources are allocated for research and development in the agricultural sector, agriculture itself remains outside the ETS. The sector will now benefit from a program to which it has contributed nothing.

The new fund includes a cash for clunkers program that will trial a discount for some low- to middle-income earners who trade in their old and dirty cars for lower-emissions alternatives. This initiative has perhaps created the most public interest in the climate change announcement, but what the scheme will actually look like in detail is yet to be determined. There is nothing in the emergency response fund about banning imports of petrol and diesel vehicles or of moving systematically towards free or very cheap public transport.

A good proportion of the new schemes funding goes into the creation and operation of various planning and development groups, often to carry out work that effective government and local government bodies should be leading and resourcing in the first place.

While $230m is allocated to the conversion of industrial coal boilers, there is no mention of what could or should be done about the tonnes of coal burnt daily at Huntly to help power Auckland.

There is no significant support for large-scale renewable energy projects or for urgently needed reform of the countrys privatised energy sector.

The New Zealand government talks a good game when it comes to climate change but is in fact taking the minimum action necessary to meet its obligations, whether through legislation like the Zero Carbon Act or international agreements. Current policy settings are projected to support emission reductions of 4.1% by 2025. Even the climate change minister, Green party leader James Shaw Labour is in a formal cooperation agreement with the Greens voiced anxiety that newly established emission targets do not go far enough.

When viewed through the lens of its commitment to the global effort to reduce net greenhouse emissions by 50% by 2030 and to zero by 2050, this weeks budget takes the minimum action possible.

New Zealand has a tendency to pride itself on taking a responsible role on the world stage, and on being a leader in major reforms such as womens right to vote, early adoption of welfare state programs and declaring itself nuclear-free. The fortitude and courage necessary to lead this calibre of change are not on display this week.

Given that Labour has now been in power for five years, the governments efforts are nothing short of an abrogation of our responsibility to our own land and people, to the climate-change-imperilled Pacific region and to the world.

Instead of taking on vested interests in the agriculture and corporate sectors and making accelerated and effective steps to cut emissions, New Zealand continues to take the line of least resistance in the face of this existential crisis. No nuclear-free moment to see here.

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New Zealands promised action on climate is nothing more than a tottering babys first steps - The Guardian