Seasonally adjusted greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions increased 1.7 percent (320 kilotonnes) in the March 2022 quarter from the December 2021 quarter, Stats NZ said today.
By comparison, in the same period gross domestic product (GDP) decreased 0.2 percent.
| Quarter | Emissions | GDP |
| Jun-14 | 0.8 | 0.5 |
| Sep-14 | 0.8 | 1.3 |
| Dec-14 | 0.6 | 1.6 |
| Mar-15 | -0.2 | 0.3 |
| Jun-15 | -1.1 | 0.7 |
| Sep-15 | 0.1 | 1.1 |
| Dec-15 | -0.2 | 1 |
| Mar-16 | -1.2 | 1.2 |
| Jun-16 | -0.6 | 1 |
| Sep-16 | 0.8 | 0.9 |
| Dec-16 | -2.5 | 0.4 |
| Mar-17 | 1.2 | 1 |
| Jun-17 | 2.7 | 1.1 |
| Sep-17 | 0.5 | 0.9 |
| Dec-17 | 0.4 | 0.8 |
| Mar-18 | -2.1 | 0.8 |
| Jun-18 | 0.7 | 1.1 |
| Sep-18 | 1.1 | 0.3 |
| Dec-18 | 1.4 | 1.3 |
| Mar-19 | 1.3 | 0.6 |
| Jun-19 | -0.8 | 0.5 |
| Sep-19 | -1 | 0.8 |
| Dec-19 | -0.3 | 0.3 |
| Mar-20 | -1.5 | -1.1 |
| Jun-20 | -8.8 | -10.4 |
| Sep-20 | 8 | 13.7 |
| Dec-20 | -0.9 | -0.4 |
| Mar-21 | 0.5 | 1.7 |
| Jun-21 | 4 | 2.3 |
| Sep-21 | -10.2 | -3.9 |
| Dec-21 | 1.6 | 3 |
| Mar-22 | 1.7 | -0.2 |
Electricity generation main driver of movement in emissions in March 2022 quarter
The largest increases in emissions came from electricity, gas, water, and waste services, up 37 percent (509 kilotonnes); manufacturing, up 2.8 percent (72 kilotonnes); and services excluding transport, postal, and warehousing, up 9.5 percent (62 kilotonnes).
This increase in emissions from electricity, gas, water, and waste services was driven by an increase in the use of coal and natural gas in the March 2022 quarter (as reported in the Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment’s New Zealand Energy Quarterly). Electricity generation from renewable sources (such as hydro and wind) dropped from 90.7 percent in the December 2021 quarter to 82.8 percent in the March 2022 quarter.
“One of the main sources of fluctuation in New Zealand’s total emissions is the variation in the energy sources used for electricity generation. The increase and then decrease in renewable share of electricity generation over the last two quarters has continued to create volatility in New Zealand’s overall production of emissions,” environmental-economic accounts manager Stephen Oakley said.
The largest decrease in emissions came from agriculture, forestry, and fishing, down 0.8 percent (84 kilotonnes). The second and third largest decreases this quarter were in construction, down 3.3 percent (13 kilotonnes), and mining, down 2.7 percent (9 kilotonnes), respectively.
| Industry | Emissions |
| “Electricity | 509 |
| gas | 72 |
| water | 62 |
| and waste services” | 29 |
| Manufacturing | 0 |
| “Services excluding transport | -9 |
| postal | -13 |
| and warehousing” | -84 |
| Households | |
| “Transport | |
| postal | |
| and warehousi” | |
| Mining | |
| Construction | |
| “Agriculture | |
| forestry | |
| and fishing” |
Household emissions increase in the March 2022 quarter
Total household emissions increased by 1.5 percent (29 kilotonnes, seasonally adjusted) in the March 2022 quarter, mostly due to an increase in household transport emissions, up 2.0 percent (35 kilotonnes). Household transport emissions still increased from the previous quarter, despite the country entering the COVID-19 Red traffic light setting on 23 January as the first Omicron community cases were confirmed in the New Zealand population.
