NZ climate action embarrassing compared to EU announcement

New Zealand’s continuing failure to do our share on climate change puts our clean green image at risk, the Green Party said today.

The European Union (EU) today released a target for member states of a 40 percent reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 levels by 2030.

In comparison, the most recent projections for New Zealand’s emissions over the same period are for a 50 percent increase.

“Instead of reducing emissions as the Europeans are doing, we are fast accelerating our emissions in the wrong direction,” said Green Party climate change spokesperson Dr Kennedy Graham.

“Our economy depends on a stable climate; we can’t expect others to do all the work while we freeload.

“Delaying action on climate change will only cost us more in the long term.

“We know that climate change will bring more extreme weather events like last year’s drought which is estimated to have cost $1.5 billion. Our economy can’t afford to pick up the cheque for increased numbers of extreme weather events.

“We have to turn this monumental policy failure around. We must stop freeloading. We depend on the major emitters to reduce their emission; if we don’t do our share how can we expect them to act?

“We can do our fair share and achieve an ambitious target if we start now,” said Dr Graham.

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