Agricultural Climate Action - The He Waka Eke Noa partnership propose farms pay a capped rate for methane for the first three years.

Climate activists have criticised the agricultural industry’s proposed system to reduce its greenhouse emissions. Yet policy experts are more positive about the progress.

Since 2019, farming bodies have worked with tangata whenua and government agencies to design the scheme, which was publicly unveiled today. Under the recommendations, most farms will calculate how much methane, nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide they create, and pay a levy on these greenhouse gases from 2025.

With farmers asking to pay a fraction of the cost charged on petrol, the system wouldn’t be fair, environmental campaigners argue. The suggestion that farming bodies hold sway over the process to set the levy rates was also met with derision.

Oxfam Aotearoa climate expert Alex Johnston said the scheme, as proposed, didn’t have enough bite to achieve its purpose of cutting emissions. “It doesn’t do what it says on the tin.”…”If implemented, the sector would receive special treatment, Johnston said. “It would take 98 years for agribusiness to be paying the same price for its emissions pollution that everyone else is currently paying at the petrol pump.”

A meaningful price on methane and nitrous oxide – without discounts – would require farmers to pay higher annual bills. But it would also raise much more revenue that could be given back to farmers to make systemic change, such as switching to organic farming or replacing livestock with horticulture, Johnston said….

Oxfam’s Johnston wouldn’t be comfortable with industry co-governance, though the idea wasn’t a surprise, he said.

… The partnership recommended that farming bodies would “work jointly” with government ministers to select members for a governance board, which would decide how the cash for research and development would be spent.

The sector is also proposing to give this board other powers. It would – with a Māori equivalent – provide advice to ministers on the size of the levies for methane as well as long-lived greenhouse gases.

The proposed board would also oversee the agency that would process payments and audit farms for compliance.

This would be different from the ETS. Industries have little input into the pricing advice and board appointments of the Environmental Protection Authority, which operates the ETS.