Embargoed until 6am
24 October 2007

New Zealand is best to lead on climate change.

The world will not sit back and allow four million people at the bottom of the world to go slow in doing their part to help control climate change by "fast following" at 1% emission reductions a year from 2020.

A go slow approach being advanced by the New Zealand Institute, which says New Zealand should delay meeting its emissions reduction targets under the Kyoto Protocol to 2020 rather than 2012, will postpone business taking advantage of massive opportunities arising from climate change. It will also put our major food and tourism trade industries at risk.

The New Zealand Institute today releases a paper saying the country should be "fast followers" and tell the world "we're right behind you" on climate change.

The New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development whose 60 member companies' annual sales of $44 billion equate to 34% of gross domestic product New Zealanders want and need exactly the opposite approach.

New Zealand should not forgo the major advantages to trade, the New Zealand brand and business growth afforded by acting as quickly as possible to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, consistent with not making the country uncompetitive.

Business Council Chief Executive Peter Neilson says the country could cut agriculture's emissions by 10% before 2012 by applying best practice technologies, including nitrogen inhibitors and make money by doing so. So why wait? Who are we protecting here?

63% of New Zealanders want their country to become a global leader when managing climate change. According to scientifically conducted ShapeNZ nationwide research covering 1370 respondents in June this year, only 27% think we should move at the same pace as other countries, and 7% think we should do a little and not worry too much about it. (Poll results at http://www.nzbcsd.org.nz/project.asp?ProjectID=37)

Mr Neilson says the world won't know until much nearer 2012 whether all major emitters will sign up to reducing emissions post the first Kyoto protocol commitment period.

"There's no point in delaying reducing emissions when we can cut costs by lowering emissions. We can't have a 'fry later' approach to our quality of life and the world. We also can't risk the New Zealand brand. The world won't sit by and let four million people at the bottom of the world not play their part.

"We are leading on research on reducing agricultural emissions, we've proven we can produce bio fuel from amoeba in sewage waste and low-emission bio fuel from micro organisms grown in steel plant emissions. Soon we may well have the first airline to fly on low emission bio fuel. There's no time to sit on our hands when we can put a price on emissions and reward people who cut them through a world-leading emissions trading scheme. Why postpone the financial gains from cutting our energy use, and planting millions of new trees?"

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