26 May 2016

ETS change expected – now the real work begins

Now that the long telegraphed change to the emissions trading scheme has been made – to progressively remove the part-obligation on emitters to surrender units – the real work begins towards a greener economy, according to BusinessNZ and the Sustainable Business Council.

“Having made changes that will increase the domestic price of carbon we need to start filling in the missing parts of the puzzle such as access to international units and domestic auctions. This is critical to ensure that New Zealand businesses remain competitive as they start to face their full surrender obligations. New Zealand’s price of carbon is already one of the highest in the world,” said BusinessNZ Energy and Environment Manager John Carnegie.

“We need a pathway to net zero emissions by the second half of this century,” said Abbie Reynolds Sustainable Business Council Executive Director.

“This requires more than just the ETS. With rapidly increasing domestic emissions we need a coherent strategy that is aligned across energy, transport, agriculture and infrastructure. We’re starting to see this with the recent electric vehicle announcement but more is required, especially as we turn our attention to how we will meet our 2030 target - business is ready to be a part of this conversation.”

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