Forestry in the Emissions Trading Scheme
The Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) is the price-based mechanism established by Parliament to:
- Reduce net greenhouse gas emissions below business-as-usual levels
- Comply with our international obligations, including our Kyoto Protocol obligations.
The comprehensive scheme is a key part of overall climate change policy and involves all significant greenhouse gases and all sectors including forestry, agriculture, industry, energy, waste and liquid fossil fuels.
Forestry's involvement in the ETS
The forest estate is already a significant store of carbon and there is potential for this to grow further with farm and larger-scale plantings of both exotic and indigenous forest species. For this reason, it was the first sector to enter the ETS - effective 1 January 2008.
For forest land owners, the ETS offers significant opportunities for land development and economic growth.
Your Forest under the ETS
Forest owners will either automatically or voluntarily become participants in the ETS depending on:
- The date the forest was established
- The type of forest owned (or leased, or held under a forestry right)
- Whether any deforestation has occurred.
Forest land is defined as being at least 1 hectare (ha) with forest species that have (or are likely to have at maturity):
- a crown cover of more than 30% on each hectare
- a crown cover with an average width of at least 30 metres.
Forest species are trees capable of reaching five metres in height at maturity in the place they are growing. There are two forest classifications: post-1989 forest and pre-1990 forest.
Comprehensive and detailed information on forestry in the ETS is available through A Guide to Forestry in the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Apply online, or view our PDF Application Forms.
Contact for Enquiries
Emissions Trading Scheme
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
PO Box 1127
Wellington
Or call us on 0800 CLIMATE (254 628)
