Party vote

Environment

Tackling climate change has been a priority of the current government since it was elected in 2017. But its climate policies have been met with resistance in some quarters, especially among farmers who say efforts to reduce emissions threaten the industry's bottom line. However, others say the government’s climate change measures don’t go far enough, as the devastating impacts of climate change become ever more visible.

Environment

Tackling climate change has been a priority of the current government since it was elected in 2017. But its climate policies have been met with resistance in some quarters, especially among farmers who say efforts to reduce emissions threaten the industry's bottom line. However, others say the government’s climate change measures don’t go far enough, as the devastating impacts of climate change become ever more visible.

Key policiesClimate adaptationConservationEmissions reductionFresh water and pollutionOceansWaste management

  • Continue renewable energy funding partnership with BlackRock

    Help Fonterra cut coal use at dairy factories

    Increase the Hauraki Gulf protection area

    Develop credit system to encourage conservation on private land

    Create a process for community-led rāhui

    Continue to support Jobs for Nature projects

    Continue to aim for 100% renewable energy

    Support iwi and hapū-led solutions to protect sites affected by sea level rises

    Consider a fund for Māori climate change researchers and scientists

    Continue to fund research and development of technology that reduces agricultural emissions

    Maintain plan to price agricultural emissions from 2025

    Establish new research centres focused on tech, climate change, and pandemics

    Provide tax rebates for improving energy efficiency in existing houses

    Provide rebates for installing rooftop solar and battery storage

    Increase funding for community renewable energy projects

    Continue programme that installs solar panels on social housing

    Develop a second emissions reduction plan

    Establish a Minister for Just Transitions to oversee the transition to a low emissions economy

    Invest $300 million in NZ Green Investment Finance to support emissions reduction

    Prioritise climate change in research and development

    Introduce mandatory reporting requirements for agricultural emissions

    Reward on-farm emissions sequestration

    Remove all remaining coal boilers in schools, tertiary institutions and hospitals

    Remove diesel generators from all schools

    Set separate targets for gross emissions reductions and carbon dioxide removals

    Establish a centre to train renewable energy workers

    Work with the private sector to expand electric vehicle charging network

    Provide grants for low-emissions heavy vehicles for freight

    Decarbonise the public transport network by 2035

    Improve the delivery of walking and cycling infrastructure

    Give the Climate Change Commission more independence

    Limit the amount of exotic carbon afforestation caused by the emissions trading scheme

    Electrify the main trunk line between Papakura and Te Rapa

  • Return conservation land to whānau, hapū and iwi

    Increase diplomatic support for Pasifika leaders

    Ban oil and gas exploration

    Ban the use of synthetic nitrogen fertiliser by 2025

    Fund Māori farmers to transition from emissions-intensive farming

    Fund Māori owned community energy projects

    Acknowledge Māori rights over fresh water

    Ensure that water rights are allocated fairly

    Ban seabed mining

    Expand coverage of ban on mining in conservation land

    Develop a national Māori strategy for renewable energy and clean technology

    Maintain target of 100% renewable energy by 2030

    Phase out industrial coal burning by 2030

    Bring agricultural methane emissions into the emissions trading scheme

    Establish climate change adaptation plans with whānau, hapū and iwi

  • Abolish the Clean Car Discount

    Reform the planning rules for renewable energy generation

    Issue a new national policy statement on renewable electricity generation

    Introduce a national policy statement on hydrogen

    Introduce a national policy statement on electricity distribution

    Create a minister for hunting and fishing

    Designate wapiti, sika and tahr as herds of special interest

    Allow the Game Animal Council to make more decisions about game animal management

    Recategorise game animals, trout and salmon

    Establish national management plans for game animals

    Guarantee managed access to public land for hunters and fishers

    Create partnership agreements to maintain huts on conservation land

    Oppose recreational licencing system for game animal hunting or sea fishing

    Establish seats for hunters and fishers on conservation bodies

    Review game animal management programmes

    Reverse water infrastructure reforms

    Require councils to produce a plan for water infrastructure

    Expand the scope of the water quality regulator to include waste and storm water

    Establish a water infrastructure regulator

    Continue joint venture with businesses for reducing agricultural emissions

    Introduce a pricing system for agricultural emissions by 2030

    Review methane emissions targets

    Make on-farm carbon sequestration eligible for units in the emissions trading scheme

    Restrict the conversion of farmland to exotic forestry

    Prohibit using foreign direct investment for converting farms to forestry

    Narrow the scope of Significant Natural Areas

    Amend rules for defining culverts and wetlands

    Limit the scope of wetlands protections

    Relax stock exclusion rules

    Relax drinking water standards in some rural communities

    Delay requirement for farmers to obtain resource consents for winter grazing

    Replace winter grazing rules with catchment-level rules

    Stop support for companies' emissions-reductions projects

    Fund tax cut using emissions trading scheme revenue

    Continue to fund green investment finance

    Support more research on the construction sector

    Encourage sustainable and environmentally friendly building standards

    Increase funding for public electric vehicle charging infrastructure

    Remove consenting requirements for electric vehicle charging infrastructure

    Set minimum standards for electric vehicle chargers

    Require electricity distribution companies to share information with electric vehicle charging providers

    Upgrade Waiau-Toa/Molesworth trail into a Great Walk

    Require DOC to make concession decisions for tourism businesses within one year

    Remove most consent requirements for building water storage on farmland

    Remove consent requirements for creating wetlands

    Reverse the ban on offshore oil and gas exploration

    Consider making wood processing eligible for emissions trading scheme credits

    Plant trees on public land with low conservation or farming value

  • End all climate taxes, subsidies and regulations

    Maintain restrictions on genetic modification

    Increase funding for climate resilience measures

  • Provide free public transport to under 30s

    Provide a $1500 credit for bikes and e-scooters to under 30s

    Replace all urban buses with electric buses by 2030

    Require investor visa applicants to fund refugee resettlement

    Provide incentives for farmers to adopt more sustainable land use practices

    Exclude new forestry from the emissions trading scheme

    Introduce a fixed cap on units in the emissions trading scheme

    Empower the Climate Change Commission to set the carbon price

    Use emissions trading scheme revenue for renewable energy and emissions free transport

    Review planning systems to ensure they consider climate adapation

  • Provide extra height allowance for developments that meet sustainability and other standards

    Establish a Ministry of Climate Change

    Empower the Climate Change Commission to set unit supply in the Emissions Trading Scheme

    Strengthen the Zero Carbon Act

    Introduce a price on agricultural emissions

    Expand the emissions trading scheme to include sequestration

    Meet NZ's Paris Agreement commitments

    Pass a Climate Change Adaptation Bill

    Ensure climate adaptation planning affirms tino rangatiratanga

    Prioritise long-term, nature-based solutions over short-term engineering solutions

    Ensure planning frameworks give effect to the need for climate adaption

    Fund climate adaption and resilience measures

    Increase support for Pacific countries adapting to climate change

    Reform the Reserves Act to incorporate te Tiriti o Waitangi

    Ban new mining on conservation land

    Aim to double natural wetlands by 2050

    Provide financial incentives to protect and enhance indigenous biodiversity

    Increase funding for predator, weed and pest control

    Continue funding Jobs for Nature

    Eradicate pests on the sub-Antarctic Maukahuka Auckland Islands

    Implement global biodiversity targets

    Use proceeds from the visitor levy for conservation and biodiversity projects

    Ban new extraction of fossil fuels

    Install solar panels on public buildings

    Reform the electricity market to encourage renewable energy

    Use dividends from energy companies to invest in clean energy

    Prohibit new fossil fuel gas connections in most cases

    Legislate for a right to a healthy environment

    Ensure resource management or local government system changes uphold tino rangatiratanga

    Improve environmental reporting laws

    Increase funding for the Environmental Protection Authority

    Create a national food strategy

    Ban synthetic nitrogen fertilisers over time

    Increase funding for indigenous forests

    Reform the emissions trading scheme to reduce the use of forestry offsets

    Ban products sourced from illegally logged forests

    Provide grants and loans for home energy efficiency improvements

    Expand programme that installs solar electricity in social housing

    Implement Te Mana o te Wai for water management

    Increase funding to protect natural wetlands

    Allow rivers to follow their natural course

    Set limits on nitrogen in waterways

    Restore waterways and control freshwater pests

    Implement a fair system for commercial water allocation

    Focus defence spending on climate change, humanitarian aid and environmental monitoring

    Promote climate change response initiatives through international institutions and trade

    Work with unions, employers and Māori to transition to a low emissions economy

    Prioritise the Māori economy in developing low-emissions jobs

    Transform Rau Paenga into the Ministry of Green Works

    Expand and strengthen protected marine areas

    Establish an independent ocean commission

    Restore the life-supporting capacity of oceans

    Ban seabed mining

    Ban set netting and dredging by 2028

    Increase fishing restrictions in the Hauraki Gulf

    Strengthen limits on fisheries bycatch

    Require cameras on all commercial fishing vessels

    Support Tagata Moana leadership on climate action

    Assist Pacific Island states in marine protection initiatives

    Support low-emissions industries

    Facilitate the return of wrongfully alienated land to tangata whenua

    Establish a Zero Waste Agency

    Implement a right to repair for consumer products

    Establish a beverage container return scheme

    Introduce regulated stewardship schemes for certain products

    Increase the landfill levy

    Standardise labels for compostable and recyclable products

    Set waste reduction targets for the building and construction sector

    Encourage climate resilience in urban planning

    Fund the restoration and protection of nature in urban areas

    Expand energy efficiency scheme for low income households

    Establish an ocean commission to provide advice and set targets for marine systems

    Create a fund for developing mātauranga and tikanga-based ocean management tools

    Establish an independent science advisory group for marine research

    Expand marine protected areas to cover 30 percent of NZ's oceans

    Ban bottom trawling in some marine areas and phase out set netting and dredging

    Increase funding for marine biosecurity and review legislative framework

  • Reduce the number of weeks parliament sits

    Reverse water infrastructure reforms

    Tie NZ's carbon price to that of our trading partners

    Grant carbon credits for wood products that store carbon for at least 50 years

    End subsidies for commercial forestry

    Reduce waste sent to landfills through modern waste technology

    Improve environmental reporting laws

    Provide tax refund using emissions trading scheme revenue

    Abolish the Clean Car Discount and Clean Car Standard

    Abolish Significant Natural Areas

    Abolish existing forestry programmes

    Sell Landcorp and use proceeds to fund conservation on private land

    Allow farmers to offset all on-farm sequestration from their emissions liability

    Lessen regulations around emissions reducing technologies

    Reform resource management laws to reduce restrictions on private property

    Repeal the Zero Carbon Act

    Abolish the Climate Change Commission

    Fund conservation initiatives on private land

    Introduce a market-based system for managing water pollution

    Introduce a pricing system for water allocation

    Abolish the Climate Change Chief Executives Board

    End initiatives to improve industrial energy efficiency

    Abolish the Climate Emergency Response Fund

    Create additional funding options for local government to upgrade their water infrastruture

    Create long-term water infrastructure improvement plans with local councils

    Expand water supply exemption to include suppliers of fewer than 30 users

    Reverse the ban on offshore oil and gas exploration

    Encourage the use of carbon capture technology

    Speed up approval for offshore wind projects

    Remove Te Mana o te Wai from freshwater resource consenting

  • Develop the Dargaville Aerodrome

    Stop the creation of new landfills

    Create a fuel security plan

    Oppose introducing emissions pricing for agriculture

    Support standardised farm-level emissions reporting

    Incentivise emissions reduction technology using funds intended for overseas carbon credits

    Remove Te Mana o te Wai from freshwater resource consenting

    Continue to support Farm Environment Plans

    Require forestry harvesters to clean up slash

    Recognise on-farm forestry in the Emissions Trading Scheme

    Continue to support Jobs for Nature programme

    Establish catchment boards to manage freshwater

Key policiesClimate adaptationConservationEmissions reductionFresh water and pollutionOceansWaste management

  • Continue renewable energy funding partnership with BlackRock

    Help Fonterra cut coal use at dairy factories

    Increase the Hauraki Gulf protection area

    Develop credit system to encourage conservation on private land

    Create a process for community-led rāhui

    Continue to support Jobs for Nature projects

    Continue to aim for 100% renewable energy

    Support iwi and hapū-led solutions to protect sites affected by sea level rises

    Consider a fund for Māori climate change researchers and scientists

    Continue to fund research and development of technology that reduces agricultural emissions

    Maintain plan to price agricultural emissions from 2025

    Establish new research centres focused on tech, climate change, and pandemics

    Provide tax rebates for improving energy efficiency in existing houses

    Provide rebates for installing rooftop solar and battery storage

    Increase funding for community renewable energy projects

    Continue programme that installs solar panels on social housing

    Develop a second emissions reduction plan

    Establish a Minister for Just Transitions to oversee the transition to a low emissions economy

    Invest $300 million in NZ Green Investment Finance to support emissions reduction

    Prioritise climate change in research and development

    Introduce mandatory reporting requirements for agricultural emissions

    Reward on-farm emissions sequestration

    Remove all remaining coal boilers in schools, tertiary institutions and hospitals

    Remove diesel generators from all schools

    Set separate targets for gross emissions reductions and carbon dioxide removals

    Establish a centre to train renewable energy workers

    Work with the private sector to expand electric vehicle charging network

    Provide grants for low-emissions heavy vehicles for freight

    Decarbonise the public transport network by 2035

    Improve the delivery of walking and cycling infrastructure

    Give the Climate Change Commission more independence

    Limit the amount of exotic carbon afforestation caused by the emissions trading scheme

    Electrify the main trunk line between Papakura and Te Rapa

  • Return conservation land to whānau, hapū and iwi

    Increase diplomatic support for Pasifika leaders

    Ban oil and gas exploration

    Ban the use of synthetic nitrogen fertiliser by 2025

    Fund Māori farmers to transition from emissions-intensive farming

    Fund Māori owned community energy projects

    Acknowledge Māori rights over fresh water

    Ensure that water rights are allocated fairly

    Ban seabed mining

    Expand coverage of ban on mining in conservation land

    Develop a national Māori strategy for renewable energy and clean technology

    Maintain target of 100% renewable energy by 2030

    Phase out industrial coal burning by 2030

    Bring agricultural methane emissions into the emissions trading scheme

    Establish climate change adaptation plans with whānau, hapū and iwi

  • Abolish the Clean Car Discount

    Reform the planning rules for renewable energy generation

    Issue a new national policy statement on renewable electricity generation

    Introduce a national policy statement on hydrogen

    Introduce a national policy statement on electricity distribution

    Create a minister for hunting and fishing

    Designate wapiti, sika and tahr as herds of special interest

    Allow the Game Animal Council to make more decisions about game animal management

    Recategorise game animals, trout and salmon

    Establish national management plans for game animals

    Guarantee managed access to public land for hunters and fishers

    Create partnership agreements to maintain huts on conservation land

    Oppose recreational licencing system for game animal hunting or sea fishing

    Establish seats for hunters and fishers on conservation bodies

    Review game animal management programmes

    Reverse water infrastructure reforms

    Require councils to produce a plan for water infrastructure

    Expand the scope of the water quality regulator to include waste and storm water

    Establish a water infrastructure regulator

    Continue joint venture with businesses for reducing agricultural emissions

    Introduce a pricing system for agricultural emissions by 2030

    Review methane emissions targets

    Make on-farm carbon sequestration eligible for units in the emissions trading scheme

    Restrict the conversion of farmland to exotic forestry

    Prohibit using foreign direct investment for converting farms to forestry

    Narrow the scope of Significant Natural Areas

    Amend rules for defining culverts and wetlands

    Limit the scope of wetlands protections

    Relax stock exclusion rules

    Relax drinking water standards in some rural communities

    Delay requirement for farmers to obtain resource consents for winter grazing

    Replace winter grazing rules with catchment-level rules

    Stop support for companies' emissions-reductions projects

    Fund tax cut using emissions trading scheme revenue

    Continue to fund green investment finance

    Support more research on the construction sector

    Encourage sustainable and environmentally friendly building standards

    Increase funding for public electric vehicle charging infrastructure

    Remove consenting requirements for electric vehicle charging infrastructure

    Set minimum standards for electric vehicle chargers

    Require electricity distribution companies to share information with electric vehicle charging providers

    Upgrade Waiau-Toa/Molesworth trail into a Great Walk

    Require DOC to make concession decisions for tourism businesses within one year

    Remove most consent requirements for building water storage on farmland

    Remove consent requirements for creating wetlands

    Reverse the ban on offshore oil and gas exploration

    Consider making wood processing eligible for emissions trading scheme credits

    Plant trees on public land with low conservation or farming value

  • End all climate taxes, subsidies and regulations

    Maintain restrictions on genetic modification

    Increase funding for climate resilience measures

  • Provide free public transport to under 30s

    Provide a $1500 credit for bikes and e-scooters to under 30s

    Replace all urban buses with electric buses by 2030

    Require investor visa applicants to fund refugee resettlement

    Provide incentives for farmers to adopt more sustainable land use practices

    Exclude new forestry from the emissions trading scheme

    Introduce a fixed cap on units in the emissions trading scheme

    Empower the Climate Change Commission to set the carbon price

    Use emissions trading scheme revenue for renewable energy and emissions free transport

    Review planning systems to ensure they consider climate adapation

  • Provide extra height allowance for developments that meet sustainability and other standards

    Establish a Ministry of Climate Change

    Empower the Climate Change Commission to set unit supply in the Emissions Trading Scheme

    Strengthen the Zero Carbon Act

    Introduce a price on agricultural emissions

    Expand the emissions trading scheme to include sequestration

    Meet NZ's Paris Agreement commitments

    Pass a Climate Change Adaptation Bill

    Ensure climate adaptation planning affirms tino rangatiratanga

    Prioritise long-term, nature-based solutions over short-term engineering solutions

    Ensure planning frameworks give effect to the need for climate adaption

    Fund climate adaption and resilience measures

    Increase support for Pacific countries adapting to climate change

    Reform the Reserves Act to incorporate te Tiriti o Waitangi

    Ban new mining on conservation land

    Aim to double natural wetlands by 2050

    Provide financial incentives to protect and enhance indigenous biodiversity

    Increase funding for predator, weed and pest control

    Continue funding Jobs for Nature

    Eradicate pests on the sub-Antarctic Maukahuka Auckland Islands

    Implement global biodiversity targets

    Use proceeds from the visitor levy for conservation and biodiversity projects

    Ban new extraction of fossil fuels

    Install solar panels on public buildings

    Reform the electricity market to encourage renewable energy

    Use dividends from energy companies to invest in clean energy

    Prohibit new fossil fuel gas connections in most cases

    Legislate for a right to a healthy environment

    Ensure resource management or local government system changes uphold tino rangatiratanga

    Improve environmental reporting laws

    Increase funding for the Environmental Protection Authority

    Create a national food strategy

    Ban synthetic nitrogen fertilisers over time

    Increase funding for indigenous forests

    Reform the emissions trading scheme to reduce the use of forestry offsets

    Ban products sourced from illegally logged forests

    Provide grants and loans for home energy efficiency improvements

    Expand programme that installs solar electricity in social housing

    Implement Te Mana o te Wai for water management

    Increase funding to protect natural wetlands

    Allow rivers to follow their natural course

    Set limits on nitrogen in waterways

    Restore waterways and control freshwater pests

    Implement a fair system for commercial water allocation

    Focus defence spending on climate change, humanitarian aid and environmental monitoring

    Promote climate change response initiatives through international institutions and trade

    Work with unions, employers and Māori to transition to a low emissions economy

    Prioritise the Māori economy in developing low-emissions jobs

    Transform Rau Paenga into the Ministry of Green Works

    Expand and strengthen protected marine areas

    Establish an independent ocean commission

    Restore the life-supporting capacity of oceans

    Ban seabed mining

    Ban set netting and dredging by 2028

    Increase fishing restrictions in the Hauraki Gulf

    Strengthen limits on fisheries bycatch

    Require cameras on all commercial fishing vessels

    Support Tagata Moana leadership on climate action

    Assist Pacific Island states in marine protection initiatives

    Support low-emissions industries

    Facilitate the return of wrongfully alienated land to tangata whenua

    Establish a Zero Waste Agency

    Implement a right to repair for consumer products

    Establish a beverage container return scheme

    Introduce regulated stewardship schemes for certain products

    Increase the landfill levy

    Standardise labels for compostable and recyclable products

    Set waste reduction targets for the building and construction sector

    Encourage climate resilience in urban planning

    Fund the restoration and protection of nature in urban areas

    Expand energy efficiency scheme for low income households

    Establish an ocean commission to provide advice and set targets for marine systems

    Create a fund for developing mātauranga and tikanga-based ocean management tools

    Establish an independent science advisory group for marine research

    Expand marine protected areas to cover 30 percent of NZ's oceans

    Ban bottom trawling in some marine areas and phase out set netting and dredging

    Increase funding for marine biosecurity and review legislative framework

  • Reduce the number of weeks parliament sits

    Reverse water infrastructure reforms

    Tie NZ's carbon price to that of our trading partners

    Grant carbon credits for wood products that store carbon for at least 50 years

    End subsidies for commercial forestry

    Reduce waste sent to landfills through modern waste technology

    Improve environmental reporting laws

    Provide tax refund using emissions trading scheme revenue

    Abolish the Clean Car Discount and Clean Car Standard

    Abolish Significant Natural Areas

    Abolish existing forestry programmes

    Sell Landcorp and use proceeds to fund conservation on private land

    Allow farmers to offset all on-farm sequestration from their emissions liability

    Lessen regulations around emissions reducing technologies

    Reform resource management laws to reduce restrictions on private property

    Repeal the Zero Carbon Act

    Abolish the Climate Change Commission

    Fund conservation initiatives on private land

    Introduce a market-based system for managing water pollution

    Introduce a pricing system for water allocation

    Abolish the Climate Change Chief Executives Board

    End initiatives to improve industrial energy efficiency

    Abolish the Climate Emergency Response Fund

    Create additional funding options for local government to upgrade their water infrastruture

    Create long-term water infrastructure improvement plans with local councils

    Expand water supply exemption to include suppliers of fewer than 30 users

    Reverse the ban on offshore oil and gas exploration

    Encourage the use of carbon capture technology

    Speed up approval for offshore wind projects

    Remove Te Mana o te Wai from freshwater resource consenting

  • Develop the Dargaville Aerodrome

    Stop the creation of new landfills

    Create a fuel security plan

    Oppose introducing emissions pricing for agriculture

    Support standardised farm-level emissions reporting

    Incentivise emissions reduction technology using funds intended for overseas carbon credits

    Remove Te Mana o te Wai from freshwater resource consenting

    Continue to support Farm Environment Plans

    Require forestry harvesters to clean up slash

    Recognise on-farm forestry in the Emissions Trading Scheme

    Continue to support Jobs for Nature programme

    Establish catchment boards to manage freshwater

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