Seasonally adjusted greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for industry and household increased 3.0 percent in the September 2023 quarter, according to figures released by Stats NZ today.
The increase of 563 kilotonnes during the September 2023 quarter was due to an increase in industry emissions. Over this quarter, industry emissions, excluding households, increased 4.7 percent (765 kilotonnes). By comparison, gross domestic product (GDP – which accounts for industry production) decreased 0.3 percent in the same period.
| Quarter | Industry emissions | GDP |
| Mar-10 | 1000 | 1000 |
| Jun-10 | 1000 | 1006 |
| Sep-10 | 1001 | 1004 |
| Dec-10 | 1007 | 998 |
| Mar-11 | 998 | 1009 |
| Jun-11 | 970 | 1014 |
| Sep-11 | 1014 | 1025 |
| Dec-11 | 1007 | 1031 |
| Mar-12 | 1019 | 1037 |
| Jun-12 | 1049 | 1042 |
| Sep-12 | 1027 | 1044 |
| Dec-12 | 1016 | 1059 |
| Mar-13 | 1013 | 1056 |
| Jun-13 | 1042 | 1069 |
| Sep-13 | 1015 | 1075 |
| Dec-13 | 1004 | 1079 |
| Mar-14 | 1019 | 1095 |
| Jun-14 | 1009 | 1099 |
| Sep-14 | 1029 | 1114 |
| Dec-14 | 1047 | 1131 |
| Mar-15 | 1033 | 1135 |
| Jun-15 | 1005 | 1144 |
| Sep-15 | 1016 | 1155 |
| Dec-15 | 1024 | 1167 |
| Mar-16 | 1002 | 1181 |
| Jun-16 | 993 | 1192 |
| Sep-16 | 996 | 1203 |
| Dec-16 | 974 | 1207 |
| Mar-17 | 984 | 1219 |
| Jun-17 | 1012 | 1231 |
| Sep-17 | 1019 | 1240 |
| Dec-17 | 1027 | 1252 |
| Mar-18 | 1007 | 1262 |
| Jun-18 | 1002 | 1277 |
| Sep-18 | 1022 | 1279 |
| Dec-18 | 1039 | 1297 |
| Mar-19 | 1053 | 1307 |
| Jun-19 | 1029 | 1311 |
| Sep-19 | 1028 | 1323 |
| Dec-19 | 1029 | 1332 |
| Mar-20 | 1017 | 1316 |
| Jun-20 | 936 | 1183 |
| Sep-20 | 990 | 1350 |
| Dec-20 | 986 | 1350 |
| Mar-21 | 981 | 1375 |
| Jun-21 | 1006 | 1392 |
| Sep-21 | 940 | 1338 |
| Dec-21 | 942 | 1384 |
| Mar-22 | 950 | 1384 |
| Jun-22 | 945 | 1399 |
| Sep-22 | 922 | 1424 |
| Dec-22 | 917 | 1416 |
| Mar-23 | 917 | 1412 |
| Jun-23 | 915 | 1419 |
| Sep-23 | 958 | 1416 |
By contrast, emissions attributed to households fell 5.2 percent (113 kilotonnes) in the September 2023 quarter.
Electricity generation the main driver of movement in emissions
In the September 2023 quarter, the largest increase in emissions came from electricity, gas, water, and waste services, up 39.9 percent (549 kilotonnes). Emissions from transport, postal, and warehousing were also up 3.7 percent (60 kilotonnes), and services excluding transport, postal, and warehousing increased 2.2 percent (14 kilotonnes).
| Industry | Emissions |
| “Electricity | 549 |
| gas | 60 |
| water | 14 |
| and waste services” | 3 |
| “Transport | -16 |
| postal | -18 |
| and warehousing” | -37 |
| “Services excluding transport | -113 |
| postal | |
| and warehousing” | |
| Construction | |
| Manufacturing | |
| Mining | |
| “Agriculture | |
| forestry | |
| and fishing” | |
| Households |
This increase in emissions from electricity, gas, water, and waste services was driven by an increase in the use of coal and natural gas for electricity generation in the September 2023 quarter.
The New Zealand Energy Quarterly, published by the Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment, reports that coal and gas-based generation went up 90 and 47 percent respectively in the September 2023 quarter when compared with the September 2022 quarter.
“One main source of fluctuation in New Zealand’s total quarterly emissions is the variation in energy sources used for electricity generation,” environmental-economic accounts manager Stephen Oakley said.
“In this quarter, the increase in emissions, due to greater use of fossil fuels for electricity generation, is over nine times greater than the next biggest increase, which was in the transport, postal, and warehousing industry.”
The largest decrease in emissions came from households, down 5.2 percent, primarily due to decreases in household transport, down 5.8 percent (113 kilotonnes). The next-largest decreases in the September 2023 quarter were in agriculture, forestry, and fishing, down 0.4 percent (37 kilotonnes), and mining, down 5.8 percent (18 kilotonnes), respectively.
Annual emissions fall
In the year ended September 2023, New Zealand industries and households emitted 74,690 kilotonnes of GHGs. This is the lowest September annual amount in our time series, which begins in March 2010, and it is 1.1 percent lower than the 75,546 kilotonnes of the previous September year.
The most significant contributors to this fall were goods-producing industries, down 8.8 percent (1,627 kilotonnes). This was mainly due to decreases in emissions from manufacturing, down 9.6 percent (936 kilotonnes), and electricity, gas, water, and waste services, down 9.9 percent (667 kilotonnes).
Household emissions increased 1.9 percent (158 kilotonnes) in the year ended September 2023, driven by an increase in household transport, up 2.0 percent (149 kilotonnes).
