Afforestation Grant Scheme Guidelines
Introduction
The Afforestation Grant Scheme (AGS) is a new initiative first flagged in the Sustainable Land Management and Climate Change: Options for a Plan of Action discussion document released in December 2006.
Under the AGS, foresters can receive a government grant for planting new forests on Kyoto-compliant land (that is, land that was not forested as at 31 December 1989). Grant recipients will own the new forests and earn income from the timber, while the Crown will retain the carbon credits generated under the Kyoto Protocol, and take responsibility for meeting all Kyoto harvesting and deforestation liabilities.
The AGS offers an alternative to the proposed New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme (NZ ETS)1 as a way to encourage greater levels of greenhouse gas absorption by increasing the area of Kyoto-compliant new forest in New Zealand.
Another objective of the AGS is to establish this new Kyoto-compliant forest in areas where it will help reduce the likely impacts of climate change and generate other environmental benefits, for example, where it will reduce erosion, nutrient leaching and flood peaks.
1 NZ ETS as provided for in the Climate Change (Emissions Trading and Renewable Preference) Bill.
Contact for Enquiries
Sustainable Land Management and Climate Change
MAF
Pastoral House
25 The Terrace
PO Box 2526, Wellington
Tel: 0800 CLIMATE (254 628)
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