‘Hot air’ accounting could meet NZ’s Paris climate target

Posted: 26 Sep 2024

Special report: New Zealand could use creative accounting to claim it has sequestered millions of tonnes of additional carbon dioxide above expectations through better management of existing forests, rather than reducing emissions or planting new trees.

Forestry Minister Todd McClay sought advice from officials earlier this year about how management of pre-1990 forestry – which includes 1.4 million hectares of planted trees and 7.8 million hectares of natural forest – could contribute to meeting New Zealand’s climate obligations under the Paris Agreement.

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