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5. Te Hōtaka Tukuwaro-kore a te Kāwanatanga

Carbon Neutral Government Programme

 

Te Hōtaka Tukuwaro-kore a te Kāwanatanga

Carbon Neutral Government Programme

Carbon emissions reporting

In December 2020, the New Zealand Government declared a climate emergency, committing to urgent action to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and limit temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. In response, the Carbon Neutral Government Programme (CNGP) was launched to accelerate the reduction of public sector emissions and achieve carbon neutrality by 2025.

As part of the CNGP, Te Tari Taiwhenua is expected to:

• measure, verify and report GHG emissions annually
• set gross emissions reduction targets and longer-term reduction plans
• introduce a phased work programme to reduce the organisation’s emissions
• offset remaining emissions to achieve carbon neutrality by December 2025.

Te Tari Taiwhenua reports emissions from departmental and non-departmental activities. The departmental activities include the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, a departmental agency hosted by Te Tari Taiwhenua. The non-departmental activities mainly include travel by Members of the Executive and approved accompanying parties (that is, Ministerial travel) and the operation of Ministerial properties.

Change in base year to financial year 2022/23

We have changed our base year from 2020/21 to 2022/23. Operations in both 2020/21 and 2021/22 were significantly impacted by COVID-19 pandemic restrictions and the New Zealand border closure, so were not representative of our typical emissions profile for travel and freight (for example, the delivery of identity products such as passports), some of our largest emissions sources. Through further quality assurance work and improvement in data collection processes, we have identified new emissions sources that were not previously measured and reported. We believe 2022/23 is a good representation of emissions for Te Tari Taiwhenua.

Our total gross emissions for 2022/23, the new base year, were 8,328 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO₂e). Table 1 breaks down emissions by scope (GHG Protocol 2004) and between departmental and non-departmental activities. Emissions from non-departmental activities have been separately disclosed as we have a lower level of influence on our ability to reduce emissions from these activities.

Air travel is our largest emissions source, contributing to 47.6 percent (3,965 tCO₂e) of the total emissions, followed by stationary combustion at 10.8 percent (898 tCO₂e), staff commuting at 9.9 percent (826 tCO₂e) and freight at 9.5 percent (795 tCO₂e). Air travel, freight and stationary combustion, staff commuting and freight represent 78 percent of total emissions. Ministerial travel is 24.6 percent of the total emissions.

In 2022/23, Te Tari Taiwhenua purchased 1,678 carbon credits through Toitū Envirocare (Enviro-Mark Solutions Limited) to partially offset emissions from Ministerial travel. The emissions reported in Table 1 were assessed prior to these offsets.

Table 1: Summary of 2022/23 GHG gross emissions in tCO₂e

Emissions source	Departmental	Non-departmental	2023	% of Total
Scope 1: Direct emissions	977	188	1,165	14.0%
Stationary combustion [ 1 ]	852	46	898	10.8%
Transport fuels	114	142	256	3.1%
Refrigerant gases	11	-	11	0.1%
Scope 2: Indirect emissions from imported energy	733	5	738	8.9%
Electricity	733	5	738	8.9%
Scope 3: Other indirect emissions	4,291	2,134	6,425	77.1%
Business travel – air travel	1,916	2,049	3,965	47.6%
Staff commuting (non-mandatory)	826	-	826	9.9%
Freight	795	-	795	9.5%
Business travel – other	308	82	390	4.7%
Staff working from home	136	-	136	1.6%
Waste (to landfill)	109	-	109	1.3%
Wastewater	89	-	89	1.1%
Transmission and Distribution losses (electricity)	82	1	83	1.0%
Transmission and Distribution losses (natural gas)	30	2	32	0.4%
Total gross emissions (tCO2e)	6,001	2,327	8,328	100.0%

Note 1 – Stationary combustion includes natural gas, diesel and LPG. 

Emissions intensity by full-time equivalent (FTE) staff and expenditure

To help understand how changes in funding and staff may affect carbon emissions and monitor progress against reduction targets and trends, it is useful to calculate the emissions intensity (Table 2). Emissions intensity has been calculated only in relation to departmental activities as non-departmental emissions are not directly impacted by changes in departmental operating funding and number of staff.

Table 2: Emissions intensity by FTE staff and expenditure

				2023
Gross emissions (tCO2e) – Departmental				6,001
Key performance indicator
FTE staff [ 1 ]				2,644
Operating expenditure ($m)				661.908
Emissions intensity
Total emissions per FTE (tCO2e)				2.27
Total emissions per million dollars of expenditure (tCO2e)				9.07

Note 1 – FTE staff includes permanent, fixed-term and events-based employees (refer to Appendix B). 

Verification of our emissions measurement

Our GHG emissions measurement (emissions data and calculations) has been independently verified against ISO 14064-1:2018 by Toitū Envirocare (Enviro-Mark Solutions Limited), a wholly owned subsidiary of Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research, which is a Government-owned Crown Research Institute. However, it should be noted that quantifying GHG emissions is subject to uncertainty, as the methodologies to determine the emissions factors and processes to calculate or estimate quantities of GHG sources are still evolving.

Our emissions assumptions, calculations and reporting continue to be refined as part of our ongoing process improvements. Additional sources may be included in future emissions reporting as we identify and establish appropriate data collection processes.

Our emissions reduction targets

Following the change in base year, Te Tari Taiwhenua set revised gross emissions reduction targets that align to a 1.5 degree Celsius limit to global temperature rise. Emissions targets have been calculated against mandatory emissions only and exclude 826 tCO₂e from staff commuting. Under these targets, Te Tari Taiwhenua will need to meet reductions in mandatory emissions from the base year of 12 percent and 42 percent by 2025 and 2030, respectively. This will require an average reduction in carbon emissions of 450 tCO₂e per annum.

Figure 1: 2025 and 2030 targets compared to base year

 

Our emissions reduction plan

Te Tari Taiwhenua has an emissions reduction plan in place to progress toward these targets and ensure data capture continues to improve. We are currently in the process of updating this plan to include a more targeted, data-driven approach. It is important that we monitor our operational activities closely to ensure we meet the challenges of delivering our services while reducing overall carbon emissions.

The following emissions reduction initiatives were completed in 2022/23:

• Established a dedicated steering group to provide advice, recommendations and assurance to the Executive Leadership Team on the requirement for Te Tari Taiwhenua to reduce emissions and to drive the necessary policy and organisational changes. The steering group is supported by two working groups to first investigate and then monitor reduction initiatives, including possible changes to operating models and the supply chain.
• The Executive Leadership Team agreed to a 15 percent reduction in air travel budgets for 2023/24 (excluding Ministerial travel) with clear carbon emissions targets.
• Updated our travel policy to make business class air travel for international travel an exception requiring the Chief Executive’s approval.
• Progressed the optimisation and electrification of our corporate fleet (excluding vehicles managed by VIP Transport Services) with an additional 31 electric vehicles (EVs) purchased in 2022/23. As at 30 June 2023, 55 percent of our corporate fleet was electric (3 percent at 30 June 2022).
• Progressed the replacement of end-of-life equipment with energy efficient systems (chillers, circuit breakers, cool stores, air handling units and cooling towers) at Archives New Zealand and the National Library of New Zealand.
• Replaced gas water heating system at the Avalon Film Archive.
• Installed sub-metering to monitor energy consumption at the National Library of New Zealand in Wellington.
• Completed a staff commuting survey and improved data capture.
• Improved internal reporting and communication of emissions activities to increase awareness and ensure environmental sustainability becomes part of our mahi.

Case study

 

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