Labour and National urged to support coal emission reduction plan
Greenpeace today welcomed the release of the Green Party’s six-point plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from coal, and urged Labour and National to support it.
The plan was contained in Green Party Co-Leader Jeanette Fitzsimons Earth Day address in Christchurch.
"No political party can seriously claim to be tackling climate change unless it addresses New Zealand's expanding coal industry,” said Greenpeace Climate Campaigner Simon Boxer.
“At the same time as our government is claiming to take the climate crisis seriously, New Zealand is mining, exporting and burning coal in gross quantities, with plans afoot to expand all three activities (1).”
The Green Party plan includes no consents for new mines unless they’re to fill a specialist non-energy niche in New Zealand, and for coal seam methane to be included in the government’s emissions trading scheme. Greenpeace made similar calls when it blocked a shipment of export coal in Lyttelton Harbour last month (2).
“New Zealand can hardly criticise other countries for rising greenhouse gas emissions when we're pulling climate-killing coal from the ground and selling it to them in ever-increasing quantities.”
Coal is the most climate-damaging fossil fuel. “It smacks of hypocrisy for New Zealand to claim any leadership role on tackling climate change while coal-mining continues to expand,” said Mr Boxer.
"Political parties need to commit to limiting coal exports and phasing out Genesis Energy's Huntly power station - New Zealand's largest point-source greenhouse gas polluter." Notes to Editor
(1) In 2007 a total of 4.80 million tonnes of coal was mined by state-owned enterprise Solid Energy, a growth of 130,000 tonnes compared to 2006. Out of this 4.80 million, almost half (2.19 million tonnes) was exported. (see 2007 Solid Energy Annual Report and Accounts – page 6). And as well as expansion of mining for export, Solid Energy is actively looking for opportunities to grow the market for coal both within New Zealand and internationally. (see 2007 Solid Energy Annual Report and Accounts – page 17-18) This could well lead to more industrial use of coal in New Zealand. It also demonstrates the weakness of the government’s emissions trading scheme as it currently stands. Solid Energy clearly does not view the scheme as a deterrent to coal use.
(2) http://www.greenpeace.org/new-zealand/press/releases/greenpeace-occupies-coal-ship