New Zealand has placed itself on the right side of history in the battle against climate change, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said today, after members of parliament adopted a measure to cut carbon emissions to net zero by 2050.
Reuters Newsagency reports today’s framework enshrines in law the new 2050 greenhouse gas reduction target and makes it a legally binding objective to keep global warming below a rise of 1.5 degrees Celsius forecast by the United Nations sponsored Paris Agreement.
“Today, we have made a choice that I am proud of,” Ms Ardern told parliament.
“I hope it means the next generation will see that we were on the right side of history.”
The prime minister’s passion was evident in her address.
“New Zealand will not be a slow follower,” Ms Ardern boomed.
“We are here because the world is warming, undeniably it is warming.
“I’m proud of the fact we’re no longer having the debate over whether or not it is the case, we’re debating what to do about it.”
Reuters reports the bill, spearheaded by her centre-left Labour-led coalition government, was passed with cross party support from the main opposition National Party, despite changes promised by the latter if it wins the next election in 2020.
Such a consensus has proved elusive in Australian politics, frustrating environmentalists and industry alike over the last two decades.
The bill accords different treatment to methane emissions from animals versus other greenhouse gases, but still targets a cut of 10 per cent in biological methane by 2030, and up to 47 per cent by 2050.
“This is the centrepiece for meaningful climate change action in New Zealand,” said Minister for Climate Change James Shaw, the leader of the Green Party, which is in coalition with Ms Ardern’s Labour.
Ms Ardern delivered a remarkable off-the-cuff speech in parliament just prior to the bill’s passing, likening the occasion to anti-nuclear protests that defined the country’s politics in the 1980s.
“For this generation, this is our nuclear moment,” she said.
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We have to start working beyond targets. We have to start working beyond aspiration. We have to start moving beyond signs of hope and deliver signs of action. That is what this government is doing and proudly so.”
Politicians had received 11,000 submissions and heard from a cross-section of society, from students and scientists to farmers and activists, Mr Shaw added.
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WE’RE BUILDING A PLATFORM WITH A CLEAR FOCUS ON THE ENVIRONMENT, CULTURAL AND SOCIAL GOOD. CONTRIBUTE AND TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE AN IMPACT.
