New Zealand must reduce agriculture greenhouse gases says the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, Dr Jan Wright. While we have signed up to the Emissions Trading Scheme, our greenhouse gas emissions do not include agriculture. Dr Wright says we must include agriculture.
The problem is that we do not know how to do this. At the moment, agriculture contributes about half of our greenhouse gas emissions. Carbon dioxide (CO2) contributes 45%, methane (CH4) also 45% and nitrous oxide (N2O) 10% of New Zealand’s emissions. Methane comes from sheep and cows burping while nitrous oxide results from urine mixing with microbes in the soil.
Dr Wright wants more research into reducing methane from farm animals. A vaccine may be possible but it could be many years before this is available. Meanwhile farmers could change the feed they give to animals, change their use of fertilisers, reduce the number of animals or have a different mix of animals. All these could help but she says there is no silver bullet.
However, planting more trees would help a great deal. She says we need 1 million hectares of forests. These would also be useful to stop soil erosion and to improve water quality. Some land which is not good for agriculture could be used for forests.
Vocabulary
• emissions – gas which goes into the atmosphere
• Emissions Trading Scheme – industries which make emissions can pay those industries which make oxygen e.g. forestry
• burp – gas from the stomach
• urine – liquid waste from animals
• microbes – single cell organism eg bacteria
• fertilisers – chemicals which help plants to grow
• no silver bullet – no magic solution (It was believed that a silver bullet could kill a werewolf – a half man, half wolf creature)
• soil erosion – on steep hills, soil can fall down the hill; tree roots help to stop this