Four million careful owners

The Four"> campaign being run this summer is designed to get Kiwis reflecting on the great Kiwi lifestyle – the great outdoors, holidays at the lake and the beach – and how this could be changed forever through unchecked climate change.

The campaign features New Zealanders who are making a difference in their homes, businesses and personal lives by reducing the greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. It aims to improve New Zealanders' understanding of climate change and encourage changes in behaviour.

The campaign was launched in response to research undertaken by the New Zealand Climate Change Office, which found that New Zealanders are passionate about our natural environment and want practical advice on how to protect it for future generations.

Unfortunately climate change is already happening on a global scale. The 20th century was warmer than any other in the last 10,000 years. Levels of carbon dioxide and methane in our atmosphere are higher than at any other time over the last 420,000 years.

There have been and always will be natural climate variations. But there is clear scientific evidence that the changes over the last century have largely been caused by increases in greenhouse gas emissions as a direct result of human activity.

New Zealand is a climate-dependent economy, with our agricultural production relying on a stable and predictable climate. The effects of a changing climate on our agricultural sector and on our national economy are significant.

While our outdoor lifestyle goes a long way towards defining us as both a nation and a people, climate change also poses a real threat to some of our native species. Scientists believe that even small changes in our climate could render some of our native plants and animals extinct.

We are not helpless in the face of climate change. People and organisations across the country are already doing their bit to show what can be done to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In many cases taking action not only benefits the environment, it also directly benefits the financial bottom line.

New Zealand’s fastest growing greenhouse gas emissions are carbon dioxide (CO2), primarily from the energy sector. Energy CO2 emissions have grown by almost 30 per cent since 1990, mostly from transport and electricity generation.

This means saving energy is a very useful way to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions – as well as save money. Simple measures like switching off lights, turning off appliances at the wall and taking opportunities to use our cars less can all make a difference, especially if enough people adopt them.

For example, turning off home appliances at the wall (rather than using ‘standby’) can save as much as 10 per cent in the average electricity bill. And if the energy efficiency rating of every household was increased by just half an energy rating star, it would be the same as taking 12,000 cars off the road in terms of reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

The opportunities for businesses in reducing emissions are huge. There is large scope for energy efficiency improvements in many firms, while others are taking advantage of the developing market for clean energy products and services.

A perfect example of this type of innovation is the proposed hydro electricity plant and wind farm on the privately owned Toronui Station in Hawkes Bay. Currently all electricity used in Hawkes Bay comes from outside the region.

The owners of the scheme estimate that the wind farm could power around 15,000 homes per year and the hydro scheme enough power to run one or two industrial plants. By replacing electricity generated from fossil fuels, the two projects combined will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by over 100,000 tonnes per annum.

Not only will these projects directly benefit the New Zealand environment by reducing emissions, but they will also help to make New Zealand’s electricity supply more secure and sustainable. That’s a win for these businesses, the energy sector and New Zealand as a whole.

The ‘four million careful owners’ campaign has been timed deliberately for the summer, when New Zealanders are reflecting on what makes life good in this country. It does not seek to spread gloom and alarm, but to remind us of what we can do to help preserve the great Kiwi lifestyle for generations into the future. We can all take action and make a difference.

For further information, see: www.4million.org.nz