Academics: New Zealand Climate Change Policies "Watered Down Public Relations"

Many New Zealand government policies and actions to combat climate change are ineffective public relations exercises, according to a review by New Zealand academics published Friday.

Researchers from Victoria and Otago universities said government measures over the last three years fell well short of what was required to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, said a statement from Otago.

The review published in the New Zealand Medical Journal raised questions about New Zealand's commitment to international targets and agreements regarding climate change, and in adapting to the impacts on public health and society as a whole, it said.

"What we've seen in this analysis of the last three years is wasted opportunities to make critical progress to reduce CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions," said lead researcher Associate Professor Nick Wilson in the statement.

"Instead what has happened are public relations, watered-down policy, and media releases with aspirational goals, which are unlikely to result in a major reduction in New Zealand's climate- damaging emissions."

Wilson said the limited progress could reflect a lack of appreciation of the potentially catastrophic impacts of climate change on health and the environment.

Commercial vested interests appeared to have influenced policy, such as that for agriculture, and there seemed to be a focus on crisis management rather than planning and adapting to climate change impacts.

In particular, the review said, New Zealand's contribution to international efforts and cooperation to reduce GHGs was weak and limited, and the long-term goal of a 50-percent reduction in GHG emissions by 2050 was inconsistent with what was needed to prevent climate change.

It also criticized the weakening of the government's Emissions Trading Scheme, saying the carbon price of NZ$12.50 (US$9.92) a tonne was too low to have the necessary impact.

It praised government subsidies for insulating more than 130, 000 homes and funding for research into reducing agricultural emissions, but said research funding for renewable energy and energy efficiency was inadequate.

Funding of research into the health impacts of climate change was "negligible," said the statement.

While some support had gone to further developing renewable energy, a moratorium on new fossil-fuelled power stations had been axed and fuel economy standards on vehicles had been abandoned.

The review pointed out that the International Energy Agency had cited growth in New Zealand's private transport sector was "the biggest energy saving challenge" and government policies were " vague" and "unclear."

The researchers said a range of opportunities to reduce emissions had been missed over the last three years.

"Action on climate change needs to be considered as an urgently required form of catastrophe insurance, but we are clearly not seeing this with minimal government action in recent years," said Wilson.