Full report: Progress towards agricultural emissions pricing (June 2022)

E whai mana ana ā mātou mahi i Aotearoa nei. Ka noho hei whenua tuatahi ki te hanga i tētahi utu whakaheke tukuwaro ki ngā mahi ahuwhenua, ā, ka kaikanohi mai te ao ki tōna āhua me ōna whakaritenga. Ko te utu tētahi wāhanga o te whakaheke tukuwaro a te ahuwhenua, engari he aho matua, ka mutu, me tika tōna ahunga.

Mā tatou tonu te ahunga tika o ngā mahi whakatika āhuarangi. Mā ngā kōwhiringa o nāianei e ora ai tā tatou noho hei whenua whakapau tika i ngā hua o te ahuwhenua ā ngā rā kei tua. Mā te utu tukuwaro a te ahuwhenua, ka takahi hoki i tētahi huarahi hou.

Inā rā ‘te toa tuatahi’ o te ao ki te hanga mai i tētahi tukanga utu tukuwaro ahuwhenua, ka noho hei tauira pakari, hei tauira whai take hoki ki ētahi atu whenua. Ā, ka ākina te whakapūmau i tā tātou rongonui mō te toa hangarau me te toa anga whakamua.

Inā te whakawhiti atu ki tētahi kaupapa whakaheke tukuwaro ā haere ake nei, me rerekē te āhua o
ngā rāngai katoa. Mō te ahuwhenua, ka tuku i a te Kāwanatanga tētahi rautaki utu tukuwaro e ākina ai te rāngai nei ki te whakawhiti atu ki tētahi kaupapa whakaheke tukuwaro mā ngā kaipāmu.

Tuia ki tētahi tākai tukanga whānui, me hāngai ngā utu ki te whakahekenga tukuwaro e tika ana ki te ahuwhenua, me te mea nei, me whakapau kaha ki te tutuki i ngā ahunga kua whakaritea mai e Aotearoa. Mā te aro ki ngā utu e tika ana ki te kaipāmu, ka tika hoki ngā mahi.

Ka nui hoki ko ngā wero mō te whai i tētahi kaupapa e whakarārangi nei i ngā ahua o te pāmu, e nui ai ngā kōwhiringa whakaheke tukuwaro mō te 1 o Hanuere 2025 – nā reira, kia kaua tātou e whakatōmuri noa.

Ahakoa rā te pai o te rārangi whakareanga pāmu o waho atu o te Kaupapa Hokohoko Tukunga (NZ ETS) ki te ahunga roa, me whakauru e te Kāwanatanga tētahi rārangi whakareanga pāmu māmā mō te wā nei – e taea nei te whakakaha ake i ngā mahi.

Kua tīmata kē te nunui o ngā kaipāmu ki te whakamahi i ētahi tikanga whakaheke tukuwaro ki ō rātou pāmu. Ko tā te rāngai nei he neke whakamua ki te arotake me te whai kōrero ki ngā tukuwaro ahuwhenua, arā hoki ko te whai a ngā pāmu i ētahi mahere hei whakahaere i ōna tukuwaro.

Mā te mōhio ki hea haere mai nei ngā tukuwaro, me te mahi a ngā kaipāmu ki te whakaheke i ngā tukuwaro - tētahi tino kaupapa e rite mai ai te Kāwanatanga me tōna mahere utu tukuwaro. Ko tā ngā kaipāmu hoki te hiahia ,kia māmā te aronga ki ngā tohutohu a te utu nei – e rongo ai te whakanui me ētahi painga ki o rātou whakapau kaha ki te whakaheke tukuwaro.

Inā te mārama, te pai hoki o tētahi mahere tukanga utu, ka mārama hoki ko ngā kaipāmu - he aha rā ētahi mahi hangareka, whai utu hoki e tika ana ki a rātou me ō rātou pāmu. Ko tā te tukanga a te Kāwanatanga mahi, he ngana ki te whai i ngā whakaheke tukuwaro e tika ana ki a Aotearoa, tuia ake, ko te iti o ngā whiunga kino ki ngā iwi, ki te taiao me te ōhanga.

Ahakoa nei anō te pai o ngā mahi kua tutuki nei e ngā kaipāmu, e te kaupapa He Waka Eke Noa, e te rāngai ahuwhenua whānui hoki – he nui tonu ngā mahi kei mua kei te aroaro. Ināianei, mā te Kāwanatanga anō te arotake i ngā kōrero taunaki me te whai whakaaro ki tētahi mahere utu e tika ana mō te 1 o Hanuere 2025.

Hei te 2025 me whai tētahi mahere utu tukuwaro mā te ahuwhenua. Me kaua rā e tatari noa – mā te tatari ka tōmuri iho tā tātou ahunga ki te tutuki i ngā whāinga mō te 2030 me te 2050.

Ā te Tīhema ka aro te katoa ki ngā whakataunga a te Kāwanatanga. Heoi anō, mō ināianei tonu nei te mahi nui.

Dr Rod Carr
Chair

Our actions here in Aotearoa New Zealand matter. We will be the first country to design agricultural emissions pricing, and globally all eyes will be on what that looks like and how it works. Pricing is one part of the puzzle for reducing agricultural emissions, but it is a crucial part to get right.

Effective action on climate change is in our best interests. The choices we make now will preserve our status as an efficient producer of agricultural products in the future. By pricing emissions from agriculture, we are charting a new path.

Being a ‘first mover’ globally, with a well-designed agricultural pricing policy, will provide a strong, credible example to other countries and help maintain our reputation for innovation and progress.

To transition to a low emissions future, we need change across all sectors. For agriculture, the Government will be implementing an emissions pricing system to help the sector to transition to low emissions farming.

Alongside a broader policy package, pricing must deliver the emissions reductions needed for agriculture to contribute to meeting the emissions reduction targets set for our country. A farmer-focused and cost-effective pricing system is the best way to deliver that.

It will be challenging to get a detailed farm-level system that gives farmers more options to reduce their emissions in place by 1 January 2025 – but there is no time to delay.

While a detailed farm-level system outside the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme would be the best approach in the long term, the Government will need to implement a basic farm-level system in the time it has – which can be rapidly scaled up.

Many farmers have already started moving to lower emissions practices on farm. The sector has made progress towards measuring and reporting on-farm agricultural emissions, and making sure farms have plans in place to manage their emissions.

Knowing where emissions are coming from, and what actions farmers can take to reduce them, is a key part of getting ready to participate in the emissions pricing system the Government puts in place. Farmers also want to ensure that the price signal is one they can respond to – where they can be recognised and rewarded for their efforts to reduce emissions.

A smart, well-designed pricing policy should provide certainty for farmers, so they can be innovative and find solutions that work for them and their farms. The Government’s policy should drive the emissions reductions our country needs, while limiting negative knock-on impacts to our people, environment, and economy.

And while good progress has been made – by farmers, the He Waka Eke Noa Partnership, and by the agriculture sector more broadly – there is still work to be done. Now it is over to the Government to review the evidence and step up to make sure a pricing system that delivers what is needed will be ready by 1 January 2025.

A pricing system for agriculture must be in place by 2025. We cannot afford to wait – any delay will only set us back further from getting to where we need to be in 2030 and 2050.

All eyes will be on the decisions the Government makes in December. The time for action is now.

Dr Rod Carr
Chair

He herenga nui te ahuwhenua ki tō tātou ōhanga me tō tātou taiao, nā whai anō te haepapa nui kia hangaia tētahi ao pakari, tētahi ao āhuarangi māia me tētahi ao whakaiti tukuwaro mā Aotearoa.

I a tātou e ahu atu ana hei whenua tuatahi i te ao kia hanga i tētahi utu tukuwaro mā te ahuwhenua me te urunga mai o tētahi whakatakotoranga utu pai – ka noho tēnei hei tauira mā ētahi atu whenua ki te ako, ka mutu, ka whakaatu hoki ki o mātou hoa hokohoko he tino kaupapa te āhuarangi ki a mātou.

Rawa atu ki tēnei ko te tākai tukanga utu – anō o te utu ki ngā rangahau me ngā whanaketanga e noho tonu ai hei toa auaha – ko tā ngā utu tukuwaro he whakapau kaha ki te whakaheke tukuwaro i te rāngai ahuwhenua.

Te Utu Tukuwaro a Te Ahuwhenua – he ahunga nui te whakatenatena i te rāngai nei kia whakahekea ai ngā tukuwaro kei ngā pāmu

Kei raro mai i te Ture Whakautu Hurirangi tētahi pūnaha mō te utu tukuwaro ki te rāngai ahuwhenua, ā, me rite mai mō te 1 o Hanuere.

He nui tonu ngā ara e taea ai e te Kāwanatanga te whakarite i ōna utu whakaheke tukuwaro ki te ahuwhenua.

Hei whakatauira ake, ka āhei te Kāwanatanga ki te whakauru i te rāngai ahuwhenua ki ngā pūnaha utu matua kua whakaritea kētia e Kaupapa Hokohoko Tukunga o Aotearoa (NZ ETS). Māna, ka āhei te Kāwanatanga ki te whakarite i tētahi rāngai utu anō mā te whakaheke tukuwaro a te ahuwhenua. Kia tae mai te mutunga o te 2022, me whai waahi atu te Kāwanatanga ki te aromatawaia tētahi pūnaha anō, me te aha, ka pēhea nei te āhua o tētahi utu tukuwaro o waho atu i a NZ ETS.

I te marama o Mei 2022 ka tukuna mai a He Waka Eke Noa i tōna tono kia motuhake tētahi utu tukuwaro ahuwhenua, ā, kia noho ngā utu nei ki waho atu o te Kaupapa Hokohoko Tukunga o Aotearoa (NZ ETS).

I konei ka tukuna hoki e mātou ngā kupu akiaki mō te taha hāpai, ā, he aha rā ngā pūtea tautoko e āhei ai e ngā kaipāmu ki tētahi mahere utu tukuwaro rerekē.

Ko tā te Komihana mahi he hoatu i ētahi kupu akiaki me te mea nei he motuhake, ā, he kōrero taunaki whai mana mō te āheinga o ngā utu tukuwaro ki ngā kaipāmu me tēnei rāngai. Ā, he aha rā ētahi kupu akiaki ki ngā mahi hei whakaoti.

Me whai waahi tonu te Kāwanatanga ki te whakarite i tēnei rīpoata me ngā kōrero taunaki kua tae atu ki a rātou, e puta ai ōna whakatau ki te āhua o ngā utu tukuwaro ki te rāngai ahuwhenua.

He pēhea nei te rite a ngā kaipāmu ki te rāngai whānui mō te utu tukuwaro ki te ahuwhenua?

Kua roa nei te whakaheke tōtā – a ngā kaipāmu, a He Waka Eke Noa, ka mutu, ko te rāngai whānui – e neke ai ki rāngai nei ki te tutuki i ōna ahunga whakatika āhuarangi.

Ahakoa kāhore anō ngā ahumahi kia tutuki i ōna whāinga whakatika āhuarangi, ā, kāhore hoki ngā mahi kua tutuki kia whai take ki ngā te ahunga matua, anō o te whakatūria i tētahi mahere utu pāmu mō te tau 2025.

He tokomaha ngā kaipāmu kua tīmata ki te ine me te arotake i ngā tukuwaro ahuwhenua ki ngā pāmu, ā, kua whai rautaki whakahaere i ēnei tukuwaro. Ko tā mātou arotake he whakaatu atu i ngā mahi a ngā kaipāmu me tōna rite ki ngā utu pāmu. Heoi anō, he nui tonu ngā mahi.

Kua kitea e mātou kua rite ki ngā utu tukuwaro e toru a te ahuwhenua – ko te utu pāmu a He Waka Eke Noa, ko te utu pāmu a NZ ETS, me te mea nei, ko ngā pūnaha utu kei raro iho i a NZ ETS. E ārahi ake i a mātou aromatawai, kua whakarite i ngā pātai e toru:

• He pēhea te rite a te pūnaha nei?

• He pēhea te rite a te pūnaha nei?

• He pēhea nei te rite a ngā kaipāmu me te urunga mai o te rāngai?

• Kua rite ngā kaipāmu ki te whai i ngā tūtohu whakaheke tukuwaro me tōna noho ki te pūnaha?

I kōrerotia tā mātou aromatawai – mā te whakaheke werawera pau te kaha – arā te urunga o tētahi pūnaha tiketike kei ngā tono a He Waka Eke Noa ka āhei tōna urunga mō te 2025.

Kua kitea ētahi tino wāhanga – ko te āhua o ngā kōtukutuku me te hanganga o tētahi pūnaha rorohiko, e tū ai ētahi whakahaerenga, tūtohinga me ētahi mana tūtohu, me te whakatū tika i ētahi tūtohinga.

Me whai waahi hoki ētahi atu mahi hei ārahi i ngā kaipāmu ki te whakautu tika mai i ngā tūtohu utu, te ārai i ngā wero, te kaupare i ngā taimahatanga, me te whai mana taurite – te whai utu ki ngā whiunga kino ki ngā whenua Māori, ka mutu, ngā whenua whai taitara maha.

Te āhua o ngā pūnaha pāmu – te whakanui i ngā kōwhiringa a ngā kaipāmu e whakahekea ana te tukuwaro.

Ko tā te āhua o tētahi pūnaha utu pāmu o waho atu o NZ ETS te rautaki roa pai mā te utu tukuwaro ki te ahuwhenua.

Kei o mātou aromatawai ētahi kōwhiringa utu maha e taea ai te kite i te pūnaha me ōna taipitopito, me te aha, he mea whakanui tēnei i ngā kaipāmu me ōna kōwhiringa whakaheke tukuwaro.

Ko te tikanga o tētahi pūnaha pāmu he whakamana me te utu tika i ngā kaipāmu ki te whakaheke i ōna tukuwaro.

Ko te pūnaha utu pāmu o waho atu i a NZ ETS te rautaki roa pai hei utu i ngā tukuwaro ahuwhenua.

Ko tā o mātou aromatawai ki ngā utu maha he whakaatu atu i te pai o ngā pūnaha me te kite ake i ngā hua ka taea e ngā kaipāmu i a rātou mahi whakaheke tukuwaro. Ko tā te pūnaha pāmu he whakamana, he whakanui hoki i te whānuitanga o ngā mahi kaupare, me te whakawhānui ake i ngā kōwhiringa pai; he pēhea nei te utu I ngā tūtohu, e whai māramatanga ki ō rātou pakihi.

Heoi anō, he tino take kia kaua e takaroa mai te utu tukuwaro ki te ahuwhenua – ki te tōmuri, ka uaua ake mā Aotearoa ki te tutuki i ōna whāinga āhuarangi.

Mō te wā nei, mā tētahi pūnaha pāmu māmā me te whai i ngā tūtohu a He Waka Eke Noa ka taea tētahi huarahi ki tētahi pūnaha pakari, utu tika, whai mana hoki.

Kei ā mātou aromatawai hoki, kua āhei te nuinga o ngā kaipāmu kia uru ki tētahi pūnaha pāmu māmā ā te 1 o Hanuere 2025. Kei roto hoki ko te whai waahi ki ngā nama a te pūnaha pāmu me ngā pūnaha tautoko a ngā ratonga tohutohu.

Ko tā te pūnaha pāmu māmā he hoatu kōrero akiaki ki ngā reanga whakaheke tukuwaro a ngā pāmu; te whakaiti hua, te whakarerekē ahuwhenua me ētahi mahi kaupare – inā rā te pai o tētahi pūnaha taipitopito maha he whakanui, he whakamana hoki i ngā mahi whakatupu hua, he whakaheke tukuwaro hoki.

E āwangawanga ana ki ētahi o ngā wāhanga kua homai e He Waka Eke Noa

I whakatauria e mātou kia whai a He Waka Eke Noa i ētahi tino whakarerekētanga, ki te aro mai te Kāwanatanga ki te whai i ā rātou kōrero.

Ko ētahi wāhanga – te tango waro i ngā huawhenua – he mea whāia e Kaupapa Hokohoko Tukunga (NZ ETS). He whakamana tētahi i ngā wāhi kāore i a NZ ETS, mā roto tonu i ngā mahinga a te pāmu, i kīa mai nei e He Waka Eke Noa. Arā, kia wāwāhi mai ki tētahi kaupapa anō, i konā te āheinga kia whakamana anō i te whānuitanga o ngā hua, pēnei i te ao rauropi me te mana o te wai.

Mā te mau mai i ngā mahinga pāmu ki ngā pūnaha utu pāmu ka kōraruraru, ā, ka kitea te weherua o ngā kaipāmu ki ētahi atu rāngai, ā, kua kore hoki e kitea ētahi tino hua.

Me whai te utu ki te Haumako Rehuota ki ngā utu a ngā hunga waihanga me ngā tangata hokohoko e ai tā te NZ ETS, ā, mō ināianei tonu nei. I konā ka kite te whānuitanga me te taurite hoki o ngā tukuwaro a ngā Haumako Rehuota huri i a Aotearoa.

Te Utu Tukuwaro a Te Ahuwhenua – He tino rauemi mō te whakaheke tukuwaro

Kei ā mātou kōrero akiaki mō te mahere utu pāmu, me tika te hāpai a ngā kōtukutuku, me tika hoki te tūkanga, ā, ka noho ki te ahunga whakaheke tukuwaro me te noho hoki ki ngā tahua pūtea, ahunga hoki mā Aotearoa.

Me anga a Aotearoa ki te whakawhiti i ōna rāngai katoa hei rāngai whakaheke tukuwaro, ā, mā te utu tukuwaro ka taea e te rāngai ahuwhenua ki te mahi i āna mahi. Nā te tukanga utu a te Kāwanatanga kua taea te utu tika ki te hāpai i ngā tahua pūtea, ngā ahunga me ngā takohanga ki te ao. Mā tētahi tukanga utu whai tikanga ka āhei te anga whakamua o Aotearoa ki te noho tika ki ngā mākete whai mana, inā rā te whakaheke tonu i ana tukuwaro ki te ahuwhenua. E tūmanako nei ka whai ā mātou mākete i ngā hua pai, me te mea nei, he whakaheke tukuwaro. Mā konei anō ka kaupare i ngā whiunga kino ka pāngia e Aotearoa, ā, e neke whakamua ai a Aotearoa te pupuri i mana auaha me tōna mana ki te ahuwhenua.

I mārama katoa ā mātou kōrero ki Ināia tonu nei, me tautika te whakawhitianga o Aotearoa. Me tautika te utu ki te rāngai whānui – ā, mō te taha ki ngā whenua Māori taitara maha, o roto hoki i te rāngai ahuwhenua, mā roto hoki i te ahuwhenua me ērā atu rāngai, o te ao, o ngā whakareanga, o te arawhiti tāngata, o te taiao, o te ōhanga hoki. Me anga ngā ahunga āhuarangi ki te whakaheke tukuwaro, engari mā ngā kauneke tata ka rangona ngā painga.

Ko tā ngā whakatau a te Kāwanatanga ā te Tīhema, me whai māramatanga ki te wā me te āhua o te utu ki ngā tukuwaro a te ahuwhenua, ā, he aha hoki ngā kaupapa hei tautoko i a rātou. Mā konā, ka kitea te rarata mai o ngā kaipāmu ki whakarite i ōna rautaki whakaheke tukuwaro.

Agriculture is a major part of our economy and landscape, which means it has a key role in creating a thriving, climate-resilient and low emissions future for Aotearoa New Zealand.

As the first country in the world to price agricultural emissions, implementing a well-designed pricing system will provide an example that other countries can learn from and show our trading partners that we are taking climate action seriously.

Alongside a broader policy package – including investment in research and development to keep our position at the forefront of innovation – emissions pricing will contribute towards reducing emissions from agriculture.

Agricultural emissions pricing is an important part of enabling the sector to transition to low emissions farming.

Under the Climate Change Response Act, a system for pricing agricultural emissions needs to be in place by 1 January 2025.

There are many ways the Government could price agricultural emissions. For example, the Government could bring the agriculture sector into the already established pricing system – the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme (NZ ETS), or the Government could establish an alternative pricing system for agricultural emissions. By the end of 2022, the Government will need to report on what an alternative system for pricing emissions outside the NZ ETS looks like.

The He Waka Eke Noa Partnership delivered its proposals for an alternative agricultural emissions pricing system outside the NZ ETS in May 2022. At the same time, we delivered advice on whether and how financial assistance could be provided to farmers in an alternate emissions pricing system.

The Commission has also been tasked with providing this independent and evidence-based report on how ready farmers and the sector are for emissions pricing, and advice on what work still needs to be done. The Government will need to consider this report along with all the other evidence it has received to make its decisions on what emissions pricing will look like for the agriculture sector.

How ready are farmers and the wider sector for agricultural emissions pricing?

A lot of hard work has been put in – by farmers, He Waka Eke Noa, and the broader sector – to progress towards meeting the primary sector climate change commitments.

While not all the primary sector climate change commitments have been met, the steps that have been taken are enough to keep the sector on track for a basic farm-level pricing system by 2025.

Many farmers have taken steps to measure and report on-farm agricultural emissions, and put plans in place to manage emissions. Our assessment shows that good progress has been made towards farmers being ready for farm-level pricing, but there is still work to be done.

We have assessed readiness for three agricultural emissions pricing options – a simplified farm-level levy as proposed by He Waka Eke Noa, farm-level pricing within the NZ ETS, and processor-level pricing within the NZ ETS. To guide our assessment, we used three questions:

• How ready is the system to be implemented?

• How ready are farmers and the sector to participate?

• Will farmers be able to identify emissions reduction actions in response to the system? 

Our assessment has told us that – with significant effort – implementing a streamlined version of the He Waka Eke Noa proposals would be possible by 2025. We have identified key factors that are critical to this being possible – including designing and building the necessary IT systems, establishing administrative, compliance and enforcement functions, and putting regulations in place.

Other efforts will also be needed to enable farmers to respond effectively to price signals, overcome barriers, avoid negative knock-on impacts, and minimise inequities – including addressing impacts for Iwi/Māori and Māori collectively-owned land.

A detailed farm-level system would recognise and reward the choices farmers make to reduce emissions

A detailed farm-level pricing system outside the NZ ETS is the best approach to pricing agricultural emissions in the long term.

Our analysis of the different pricing options shows that a detailed system would incentivise the full range of options for farmers to reduce emissions. A detailed farm-level system would recognise and reward the widest range of mitigation actions, and give farmers greater choice about how to respond to price signals in the way that makes the most sense for their business.

However, the sector would not be ready for a detailed system by 2025, and it is important that pricing agricultural emissions is not delayed. Any delay will make it less likely that Aotearoa New Zealand will meet its climate targets.

In the interim, a basic farm-level system using elements of the He Waka Eke Noa proposal as a stepping stone will provide a path to progress towards a more mature, responsive and effective system.

Our analysis shows that almost all eligible farmers can be ready to effectively participate in a basic farm-level system by 1 January 2025. This includes having access to the necessary farm-level data and support from advisory services.

A basic farm-level system could provide incentives for farm-level emissions reductions through reducing production, changing land use, or some on-farm mitigation actions – while a more detailed system would recognise and reward maintaining production while reducing emissions.

We are concerned about some of the elements in the proposal He Waka Eke Noa has put forward

We have recommended several substantive changes be made to the He Waka Eke Noa proposal should the Government consider adopting elements of it.

Some sequestration – carbon removal through vegetation – is already recognised through the NZ ETS. Recognising non-NZ ETS sequestration through on-farm vegetation as suggested by the He Waka Eke Noa proposal should be progressed in a separate system, which could recognise and reward a wide range of benefits, such as biodiversity and water quality.

Bringing this on-farm vegetation into a farm-level emissions pricing system adds complexity, creates inequity between farmers and other sectors, and would not significantly improve emissions outcomes.

Synthetic nitrogen fertiliser should be priced at the manufacturer and importer level in the NZ ETS as soon as practicable. This would achieve a more broad and equitable coverage for emissions from synthetic nitrogen fertiliser across the country.

Agricultural emissions pricing is an important tool to deliver emissions reductions

Our advice is that a farm-level pricing system, supported by well-designed, well-thought-through policy, will be key to achieving emissions reductions in line with the budgets and targets for Aotearoa.

Aotearoa needs to transition all sectors to a low emissions future, and emissions pricing is key for enabling agriculture to play its part. The pricing policy the Government puts in place will determine how effective pricing is at helping us reach our budgets, targets, and international commitments.

A smart, well-designed pricing policy will help Aotearoa maintain access to high value markets while reducing emissions from agriculture. Our markets are increasingly expecting low emissions goods. It will also minimise negative knock-on effects for Aotearoa, and enable us to maintain our status as innovative and progressive in agriculture.

We were clear in Ināia tonu nei that the transition has to be an equitable one. Pricing needs to be equitable across the board – with regards to Māori collectively-owned land, within the agriculture sector, between agriculture and other sectors, internationally, intergenerationally, socially, environmentally, and economically. Climate action needs to drive emissions reductions – but steps are needed to make that change and address impacts.

The Government’s decisions in December should provide certainty about when and how emissions from agriculture will be priced, and what assistance could be provided. This will give farmers the confidence they need to plan for lower emissions practices.