KEY POINTS:
New Zealand will pay a price for its small size and physical isolation in the new global carbon economy no matter what it does locally, says the United Nations environmental chief.
Achim Steiner, director of the UN's environment programme, told business leaders in Auckland yesterday that New Zealand was disadvantaged in the carbon economy because of its distance from markets such as Asia, Europe and North America.
New Zealand was also at the margins of the global marketplace because of its small population and its exports had to compete with those of other countries, he said.
"You are not the monopoly supplier of anything, anywhere."
Even with tourism where people travelled to New Zealand because of its image as a nation that invested in conservation and as a country of extraordinary natural beauty, there would be challenges because of the carbon taxes on flights.
"Will they still want to come if they have to pay large carbon taxes ... you have one of the most disadvantaged tourism industries in the carbon economy."
Mr Steiner said shipping would be a problem for exports to far-off markets.
The shipping industry contributed more than the airline industry as "filthy transport"; the fuel it burned accounted for up to 3 per cent of all global warming pollution.
That would present a problem at the consumer level even if the exports were produced in New Zealand with a low carbon footprint. "The consumer activist will be a factor at the supermarket shelf."
As life cycle product assessments developed, it would become evident whether goods had a heavy carbon footprint.
The analyses would provide information that was incontrovertible.
"Every gram of carbon dioxide emitted will be counted."
He noted that New Zealand had one of the highest carbon footprints per head in the world, and was critical of its limited public transport.
"Why does a country of just four million people have traffic jams ... your economy did not capture the signals of environmental change in the right way."
He urged those in business to demand from any political party a clear commitment on how they would address bringing NZ to a low carbon economy to retain a competitive edge in the global economy.
It was business people who had responsibilities and opportunities and would lead the way, he said.
"You should not be part of the problem but part of the solution."
Globally there had been too much complacency which had held things back.
For example, patents on environmentally friendly technology had been lying around in drawers for 30 to 40 years.
"Technology and and price is not the problem ... old technology proves more expensive over time."
Mr Steiner said the UN could not be criticised on climate change as it had for 25 years been trying to open the eyes of society to the problems. "It's never too late to act but it's getting damned expensive."
The goal was for a more efficient and intelligent global economy which would be less wasteful and offer consumers a better solution.
Mr Steiner said countries had to re-invent their economies and there was an opportunity to make money out of it.
He said it would cost less than 0.1 per cent of global GDP over the next 30 years to make the transformation to a lower carbon society. "It is the most serious problem we have ever faced that we are able to do something about."
Mr Steiner said climate change was coming faster and with greater effects than the UN had reported earlier this year.
"We really are seriously in trouble."
