Climate Change and Energy

Last updated on 7/12/2009 8:48 a.m. 

The transport sector is one of the largest and the fastest growing contributor to New Zealand's greenhouse gases, responsible for approximately 19 percent of the total greenhouse gases emitted in New Zealand. As the transport sector is also one of the largest greenhouse gas emitting sectors, the Ministry of Transport is working with other government agencies to reduce these emissions.

The government's main initiative to reduce liquid fossil fuel consumption and its associated greenhouse gas emissions is the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme. The transport (liquid fossil fuels) sector will enter the scheme on 1 July 2010.

Find out more about the Scheme here. 
 

Policy Background

Most motor vehicles are powered by non-renewable fossil fuels. A major by-product of burning these fuels is carbon dioxide CO2, which is a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming.

The New Zealand Government has signed the Kyoto Protocol, which is an international agreement that addresses global warming and aims to reduce climate change by reducing total greenhouse gas emissions.

New Zealand's Kyoto Protocol target is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to the level they were in 1990, or take responsibility for excess emissions.

The New Zealand Government announced a number of sustainability targets in September 2007. Two have direct relevance to the transport sector.

  • By 2040, our per capita transport greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced by half compared to 2007.
  • New Zealand will be one of the first countries in the world to widely deploy electric vehicles.

During 2006, cabinet decisions were made on the following climate change policies: 'Overview of Progress Towards Reducing Transport CO2 Emissions' and 'Options for Controlling Vehicle Entry - Fuel Economy Standards'.

Fuel economy Cabinet paper (2006)

Climate Change Policy: Options for Controlling Vehicle Entry - Fuel Economy Standards
There are currently limited controls or incentives affecting the uptake of fuel-efficient vehicle technology into the New Zealand fleet. Introducing fuel economy standards based on international best practice is thought to be one way of improving both the quality of the New Zealand fleet and reducing CO2 emissions.

The Cabinet paper looks at policy interventions for fuel economy controls and it identifies the preferred approach of working with the motor industry to develop options for a mandatory sales-weighted fuel economy standard. The paper also identifies the need to collect fuel economy data from all imported vehicles as a means of informing future policy options. 

Read the Fuel Economy Cabinet Paper September 2006

Read the Fuel Economy Cabinet Minutes October 2006

A discussion document on a sales weighted average fuel economy standard will be released in February 2008.

Fuel Consumption Information Project

The Ministry of Transport is leading a 'vehicle fuel consumption information' project that aims to influence consumers to purchase more fuel efficient cars and to measure the fuel consumption of the New Zealand vehicle fleet.

This will be achieved by:

  • Recording fuel consumption information for imported light vehicles. From 1 June 2006 vehicle importers were required to provide fuel consumption data when presenting their vehicles to be registered.
  • A Rule has been developed that requires vehicle certifiers to supply fuel consumption information to the Government. The Rule came into force on 1 February 2009. View the media release (PDF v7.0, 30kb) and questions and answers (PDF v7.0, 66kb) about this Rule. 
  • Monitoring the fuel consumption of the vehicle fleet to aid further policy development. A report on the New Zealand Light Vehicle Fleet displays this information and is available under Vehicle Registration Statistics.
  • Providing information on the fuel consumption of new and selected used vehicles to the public via a website. The fuel saver website was launched in 2006 by the former Transport Safety Minister Harry Duynhoven. It is located at www.fuelsaver.govt.nz. Another site, www.rightcar.govt.nz also contains information on vehicle emissions and vehicle safety. 
  • Regulations requiring new and used car vendors to display fuel consumption information at the point of sale took effect on 7 April 2008. For further information go to the Energy Efficiency Conversation Authority Website.

    For more general information, please go to:
  • Climate Change project website 
  • Air Quality 
  • Energy Efficiency Conservation Authority (EECA) website 
  • Ministry for the Environment website 

 


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