Supporting households to contribute to emissions reductions
For many New Zealanders climate change is a source of considerable uncertainty, in terms of both our ability to mitigate its effects and what these measures will mean for the way we live our lives over the coming decades.
Alongside key initiatives where some of the heavy lifting is done by Government and large businesses, investments in Budget 2022 also focus on improving accessibility of low-emissions options to a wider range of New Zealand households. As emissions-intensive products begin to be priced higher, we can protect households from increasing costs by ensuring that sustainably produced alternatives are available and affordable. Providing incentives to switch to greener options sooner rather than later can help stimulate the development of new markets and hasten the transition to a lower carbon economy.
Budget 2022 provides $569 million to pilot and roll-out a vehicle scrappage scheme to support lower-income households to replace their family vehicle with a lower-emissions alternative if they choose to. This programme will build on the success of the Clean Car Discount and make the switch to low-emissions vehicles a viable option for a much wider range of households. This is another example of climate action leading to lower costs for households as they reduce reliance on volatile global energy markets.
We will partner with local government and the private sector to improve the options available to households to reduce emissions from food and garden waste through a $103 million investment in waste infrastructure. This initiative will include measures to improve kerbside collection of organic waste and measures to support households in reducing their methane emissions. It's all part of supporting households to participate to the extent that they are able in our national climate action.