We update the analysis of Allan et al. (2015) and re-examine whether New Zealand households have become greener consumers using newly available data. We combine input-output data from 2006 and 2012 with detailed data on household consumption from the 2006 and 2012 Household Economic Surveys (HES) to calculate the greenhouse gas emissions embodied in household...

The science is clear. When debating emissions, consider your goals. Biological emissions from agriculture (methane and nitrous oxide) make up almost half New Zealand’s total greenhouse gas emissions, so their importance relative to carbon dioxide is of particular policy interest. Motu Economic and Public Policy Research brought together a group of New Zealand climate change...

Farmers change slowly Avoid pain with clear signals Research; replace cows. This paper explores how New Zealand should address agricultural greenhouse gas emissions: methane and nitrous oxide. The starting point is the internationally agreed-upon goal of limiting global warming to below two degrees, and New Zealand’s commitment to contribute its ‘fair share’ to the international...

The New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme (NZ ETS) presents an opportunity to compare the theory of linked emissions trading with practice. From 2009 until late 2012 New Zealand was linked to the Kyoto market and there was no indication that this link would be broken. In November 2012 the New Zealand government announced that it...

New Zealand households are emitting 4.6 per cent less greenhouse gas than they used to. This is a fall of approximately one tonne of emissions for a two person household that spends $80,000 per year. That’s the equivalent of the emissions involved in driving from Picton to Bluff five times. Emissions from the consumption by...