The New Zealand government is looking to tax farmers for their cows’ burps and farts as part of a plan to tackle climate change.
What Happened: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern confirmed on Tuesday that her government will introduce a proposal to make farmers pay for their livestock’s emissions in a bid to tackle climate change.
“This is an important step forward in New Zealand’s transition to a low emissions future and delivers on our promise to price agriculture emissions from 2025,” Ardern said.
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She added that the farmers should be able to recoup the cost by charging more for climate-friendly products.
“No other country in the world has yet developed a system for pricing and reducing agricultural emissions, so our farmers are set to benefit from being first movers,” Ardern said.
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owever, her plan drew flak from farmers who condemned the government’s decision to tax burps and farts.
Andrew Hoggard, president of the rural advocacy agency Federated Farmers, said this move will “rip the guts out of small-town New Zealand” and see farms replaced with trees.
He added that said farmers had been trying to work with the government for more than two years on an emissions reduction plan.
“Our plan was to keep farmers farming,” he said, adding that the new proposed plan would lead to selling of farms “so fast you won’t even hear the dogs barking on the back of the ute (pickup truck) as they drive off.”
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