New Zealand Farmers Likely to Pay for Greenhouse Emissions under New Proposal — Transcontinental Times
Transcontinental TimesOct 11, 2022
On Tuesday, New Zealand's government proposed taxing greenhouse gases that farm animals make from bodily functions, including belching, in what would be a world first in tackling climate change.
The government's proposed plan for agricultural emissions pricing is set to be introduced in 2025. New Zealand has approximately 10M cattle and 26M sheep, with agriculture producing nearly half of the country's total greenhouse gas emissions.
The decision is a revolutionary move. Something has to be done to reduce harmful emissions in New Zealand, as methane is a dangerous greenhouse gas. As the global trendsetter, this decision could potentially give the country a competitive edge globally while also meeting greenhouse targets.
The government's greenhouse gas reduction plan will rip the guts out of small-town New Zealand. Despite farmers' best efforts, this will inevitably lead to closures that will reduce small-town businesses supported by agriculture in a manner that will only be detrimental to the country. This is not a good move for the agricultural sector or the working class.
There is a 5% chance that if a global catastrophe occurs it will be due to either human-made climate change or geoengineering, according to the Metaculus prediction community.