....while The Treaty guides weather science funding
The view from a ministerial office can be very different from the view from the office of an agency such as the Climate Change Commission.
Climate Change Minister James Shaw issued two statements yesterday, one to draw attention to new data on greenhouse gas emissions and the other to say he welcomes the Climate Change Commission’s latest advice on the settings for the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Shaw said the latest official Greenhouse Gas Inventory shows gross emissions declined by 0.7 per cent in the 12 months to the end of 2021 to 76.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent. This follows a 3 per cent decline in 2020, mostly due to COVID-19.
“It is good to see that government action is starting to reduce our climate emissions. We just need more of it.”
But:
“While today’s data shows we are taking the right steps, to get where we need to be the steps will need to keep getting bigger.”
Regarding the Climate Change Commission report,
“A well-designed system for pricing emissions is a central part of our Government’s climate change policy framework. The advice published today will guide Cabinet in its decisions about how to ensure the Emissions Trading Scheme cuts climate pollution in line with our targets,” James Shaw said.
And:
“The changes we have made to the Emissions Trading Scheme, along with the Emissions Reduction Plan and other policies we have put in place – such as the Clean Car Discount – have done more to address the climate crisis than the past 30 years of governments combined,” James Shaw said.
We may suppose that press statement was crafted and released in response to a ministerial reading of the same report which generated these headlines in the media:
“It is good to see that government action is starting to reduce our climate emissions. We just need more of it.”
But:
“While today’s data shows we are taking the right steps, to get where we need to be the steps will need to keep getting bigger.”
Regarding the Climate Change Commission report,
“A well-designed system for pricing emissions is a central part of our Government’s climate change policy framework. The advice published today will guide Cabinet in its decisions about how to ensure the Emissions Trading Scheme cuts climate pollution in line with our targets,” James Shaw said.
And:
“The changes we have made to the Emissions Trading Scheme, along with the Emissions Reduction Plan and other policies we have put in place – such as the Clean Car Discount – have done more to address the climate crisis than the past 30 years of governments combined,” James Shaw said.
We may suppose that press statement was crafted and released in response to a ministerial reading of the same report which generated these headlines in the media:
RNZ
The Climate Change Commission has told the Government to change the Emissions Trading Scheme or risk failing to meet climate goals.
Newsroom
The Government’s top climate advisors have told it to shape up or risk failing to meet its own climate targets.
NZ Herald
The carbon price has risen slightly on the back of the Climate Change Commission (CCC) recommending the Government takes more drastic action…
Stuff
Ministers’ actions are “out of step” with their climate promises, according to the Climate Change Commission
Interest.co.nz
Climate Change Commission warns Government not to ignore its Emissions Trading Scheme advice for a second time.
James Shaw’s statements can be found on the Beehive website along with these new posts:
The Government is rolling out new programmes in areas that have seen spikes in youth offending to help steer rangatahi into training and employment.
Minister of Transport Michael Wood marked the completion of the Northern Corridor Improvements project this morning, opening the final six kilometre section of shared path on Auckland’s North Shore between Constellation Station and Oteha Valley Road.
The Government has made $10.8 million available for urgent research and science services to aid the recent extreme weather response and recovery.
The latest data confirming a reduction in New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2021 shows the government’s actions are working, says Climate Change Minister James Shaw.
Climate Change Minister James Shaw has welcomed the Climate Change Commission’s latest advice on the settings for the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Talking of climate change, it’s worth taking a look at news of the Government pitching in $10.8 million “for urgent research and science services to aid the recent extreme weather response and recovery”.
There is a high demand for evidence to address immediate needs and inform recovery decisions following devastating weather events such as Cyclone Gabrielle, Research, Science and Innovation Minister Ayesha Verrall said.
To help with the response and recovery, the funding will support a range of research and science activities, such as assessing the risk of stop bank damage, monitoring air and water quality and advanced mapping of the landscape changes.
“We must capture knowledge and learn from this experience if we are to build resilience in the face of future emergencies and extreme weather events.”
So far, $5.76 million has been allocated to projects involving nine research institutes.
Verrall said the funding is being allocated “to the most urgent and potentially impactful projects” and she is pleased to see many science organisations, institutions and researchers re-prioritising their existing funding to support research and science activities relevant to the response.
But she also acknowledged the Treaty of Waitangi will influence who gets how much money.
“In line with Te Ara Paerangi – Future Pathways objectives to embed Te Tiriti in the research, science and innovation system and invest in Māori aspirations, a portion of funding has been allocated to enable Māori communities to access science services to support decision-making.”
The Treaty-based portion was not specified.
Verrall said that through the Te Ara Paerangi – Future Pathways reforms,
“… we are working to create a sustainable, resilient and cohesive research, science and innovation system that equips New Zealand to meet complex challenges and make the most of the opportunities ahead.”
Funding will be allocated to short and medium term projects by 31 June 2023.
Information about specific projects is being updated regularly on the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment website.
Point of Order is a blog focused on politics and the economy run by veteran newspaper reporters Bob Edlin and Ian Templeton
1 comment:
To James Shaw and all his alarmist mates. Please provide we taxpayers with empirical evidence that made made co2 generates dangerous climate change. If you can’t and you won’t “Stop spending billions which is further damaging our country to solve a problem that doesn’t exist.” This is nothing more than a religious crusade.
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