Why Start Only To Stop?

ACT New Zealand Climate Change Spokesman John Boscawen today welcomed the Government’s announcement that it is prepared to reverse the ETS if there is a lack of international progress on climate change measures.

"However, given that Australia has recently dumped their plans for an ETS, and that the rest of the world is in no rush to either extend, or implement, an Emissions Trading Scheme, ACT asks why we are proceeding with one in the first place," Mr Boscawen said.

"This is particularly important as the Government has announced that it intends to allocate $1.6 billion worth of emissions credits for the period Jan 1 2008 – Dec 31 2012.  A large proportion of these will be allocated to those who planted forests in the 1990s without any expectation of emissions credits or subsidies from their fellow taxpayers. 

"Worse still, this $1.6 billion is based on a Budget 2010 (pg 84) assumption that 67 percent of eligible post-1989 foresters will take up their entitlement.  However, government officials have advised me that this may be an underestimate and recent projections since the Budget was finalised show that some 87 percent of foresters may now be planning to take up their entitlement.  Should this happen, the $1.6 billion will blow out to over $2 billion.

"If the ETS proceeds as planned, only to be scrapped in a few years time, these subsidies will have been paid out and may not be recovered. 

"Finally, despite Government claims that these subsidies are to plant trees, the reality is that the vast bulk will be paid for trees already planted.  Whilst some may choose to use it to plant more trees, equally others may not.  Worse still, a number of these forests are owned by foreign interests and ACT asks why all New Zealanders should be required to pay for these through increased petrol and electricity charges, particularly when it will have no effect on the environment?" Mr Boscawen said.