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Climate Change (Forestry Sector) Regulations 2022

UPDATE – 30 SEPTEMBER 2022

This consultation closed on 5 August 2022. The regulations were made on 27 September 2022 and come into effect on 1 January 2023.

Climate Change (Forestry Sector) Regulations 2022 – NZ Legislation

A summary of submissions will be available soon.

Consultation background

We asked for your feedback on the draft Climate Change (Forestry Sector) Regulations 2022 in the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). This draft will replace the current Climate Change (Forestry Sector) Regulations 2008. The draft contains amendments that would enable a range of improvements for forestry in the ETS.

We are committed to meeting our Treaty of Waitangi responsibilities and invite submissions from our Treaty partners regarding any impacts to their specific interests.

Draft Climate Change (Forestry Sector) Regulations 2022 [PDF, 535 KB]

Explanation of the draft Climate Change (Forestry Sector) Regulations 2022 [PDF, 875 KB]

What was proposed

The Climate Change (Emissions Trading Reform) Amendment Act 2020 (Amendment Act) introduced forestry reforms. To implement and support these changes, the forestry regulations need to be updated. This will ensure the New Zealand ETS for forestry can continue to operate from 2023.

The Amendment Act introduced forestry reforms that aim to improve the ETS. The reforms aim to:

  • encourage forest establishment
  • reduce complexity
  • encourage compliance.

The forestry regulations are needed to implement these changes. They will provide details for:

  • how the new averaging accounting approach will work in practice for newly registered post-1989 forests
  • how the new permanent post-1989 forest activity will be accounted for, and the penalties that will apply if those forests are clear-felled prematurely (within 50 years)
  • implementing a range of operational and technical improvements for forestry.

The regulations will also detail new forest management options, including:

  • enabling "offsetting" under averaging accounting
  • allowing an exemption from having to pay carbon liabilities following a natural event that damages forest.

Submissions are public information

Note that all, part, or a summary of your submission may be published on this website. Most often this happens when we issue a document that reviews the submissions received.

People can also ask for copies of submissions under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA). The OIA says we must make the content of submissions available unless we have good reason for withholding it. Those reasons are detailed in sections 6 and 9 of the OIA.

If you think there are grounds to withhold specific information from publication, make this clear in your submission or contact us. Reasons may include that it discloses commercially sensitive or personal information. However, any decision MPI makes to withhold details can be reviewed by the Ombudsman, who may direct us to release it.

Official Information Act 1982 – NZ Legislation 

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