New Zealand's target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions will be a cut of between 10 per cent and 20 per cent by 2020, Prime Minister John Key has announced.
He said the cost per person of meeting this reduction would be $1400 per person, or $30 per week.
Government has to take this target figure to a UN meeting in Bonn this week.
This is where countries have to commit to reduction targets based on 1990 levels and many were expecting the National lead Government would settle for around 15 per cent.
Climate Change Minister Nick Smith said the target balanced economic opportunities with environmental responsibilities.
"This target is internationally credible and both environmentally and economically responsible," he said in a statement.
"It is an ambitious but achievable goal."
Smith said the target was going to be "a big ask" for New Zealand because gross emissions were already 24 per cent above 1990 levels.
"On top of this, half our emissions come from agriculture, which is unique amongst developed countries, and we already have one of the highest proportions of renewable electricity," he said.
"This target carefully balances our environmental responsibilities with a realistic assessment of the economic costs. Achieving these emissions reductions will mean higher costs for consumers and businesses for petrol and electricity. However, a less ambitious target would undermine New Zealand's clean, green environmental reputation.
"The 2020 target is also consistent with National's campaign pledges of a long-term target of -50 by 2050, doing our fair share globally and aligning our climate change policies much more closely with Australia, The target range of 10-20 per cent reduction from 1990 levels is comparable to Australia's taking into account conditionality, different base years, our lower GDP, and our higher costs of abatement."
Smith said New Zealand would meet its 2020 target through a mixture of domestic emission reductions, the storage of carbon in forests, and the purchase of emission reductions from other countries.
The Wellington Regional Chamber of Commerce was the first business lobby group to step in and congratulate the Government, saying it had "shown strong leadership and been bold" in setting the 10-20 per cent reduction target.
"It is pleasing that the government has resisted pressure from certain groups to impose a totally unrealistic target for New Zealand but the 10-20 per cent target by 2020 is still an ambitious one which will impose significant costs on businesses and households," said chamber chief executive Charles Finney.
"Even though the target will impose substantial costs upon the economy, the Chamber supports action to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. New Zealand must play its part in resolving this global problem," he said.
"While it is important that New Zealand does its bit to reduce emissions, it is essential that we do not jeopardise the economy by moving ahead of our major trading partners."
Fellow climate change minister Tim Groser said the 2020 target signalled "New Zealand's commitment to securing a post-2012 global agreement to reduce emissions."
"New Zealand's target is about New Zealand doing its fair share as a developed country in addressing climate change," he said.
"The target range of -10 per cent to -20 per cent reflects that New Zealand is prepared to do more if other countries do likewise.
"Reaching a global agreement on emissions reductions post-2012 in Copenhagen is a huge challenge. This target, alongside other important initiatives like those on agricultural emissions research, is about New Zealand playing a constructive role in securing an international agreement."
Scientific opinion is that a reduction of 40 per cent is needed to prevent serious global warming but few countries are expected set that as a target.
Prime Minister Key said last week that setting a 40 per cent reduction target would effectively mean they would have to fall by 64 per cent.
"That would have a catastrophic effect on the New Zealand economy," he said.
During last year's election campaign National set a target of a 50 per cent reduction by 2050, which equates to about 15 per cent by 2020.
Labour's climate change spokesman, Charles Chauvel, yesterday called on the Government to set a bold target.
"We need to show other countries that New Zealand is serious about climate change," he said.
"If the Government sets a low target - in the 5 per cent to 15 per cent range - this will tell the rest of the world that New Zealand does not have leadership that is serious about taking action on climate change."
NZ HERALD STAFF/NZPA
See the Government's Question and Answer page on the emissions target here.
