Greenhouse gases still rising

[MotherBear]

NZ greenhouse gas emissions keep rising
By TRACY WATKINS and Reuters - The Dominion Post | Saturday, 5 May 2007

Efforts to curb New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions are failing, according to new figures.

They show that greenhouse gas emissions increased by 2.8 per cent between 2004 and 2005, the latest figures available, placing the Government under mounting pressure to unveil policies soon for tackling the problem.

But it appears the Budget may not propose immediate solutions, with Finance Minister Michael Cullen saying it will instead set aside money for a contingency fund to implement policies once they come on stream.

The new figures come as international scientists agree that combating climate change is affordable and possible with technology that is already available.

National labelled the New Zealand figures "awful" and said this country's emissions increased faster than Australia, the United States, Japan, Canada and the European Community between 2004 and 2005.

National Party environment spokesman Nick Smith said the likely bill for New Zealand's Kyoto liabilities was mounting.

"Labour came to office in 1999 promising to reduce emissions by 20 per cent by 2010. These figures show emissions actually increased by 12 per cent from 1999 to 2005," he said.

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