NZIF Newsletter: 6th November 2024
VICE-PRESIDENT'S REPORT
Dear Members
Recently the government proposed setting the annual per hectare charge for forestry in the ETS at $14.90 - about half the price set by the previous government, but still a new cost imposed compared to what foresters have historically paid.
Forestry Minister Todd McClay announced the consultation on the annual charge for forest owners participating in the Forestry Emissions Trading Scheme Registry, which would come into effect for the 2024/2025 financial year.
“Following an independent review released last week we are proposing to lower the per-hectare annual charge to $14.90. This is a 50 percent reduction from Labour’s excessive charge announced just before the election of $30.25 per hectare per year."
“It’s now clear that the previous Labour government made a number of decisions that drove up the cost of this Registry and they expected the forestry sector to pay for their mistakes. Cabinet has agreed that the sector should not bear the brunt of Labour’s previous decisions,” Minister McClay says.
“The Ministry for Primary Industries has worked hard to find efficiencies and drive down costs over the last 10 months. We’ve also been focused on improving service delivery to ensure the Registry meets the expectations of forestry users. As a result, the annual charge has reduced significantly.
“Last week, we announced the formation of a Forestry Sector Reference Group to further improve outcomes for the ETS Registry and find greater cost savings over the next year. This is an opportunity for the forestry sector and government to partner to drive better outcomes for forestry.”
The new annual charge would begin in the 2024/25 financial year and stay in place until a full review is conducted after the current emissions reporting period.
“This proposal is part of the Government’s promise to rebuild confidence in the forestry sector and support its role in achieving New Zealand’s exporting and emissions targets.”
Consultation on the new annual charge started on the 23rd October 2024 and runs for three weeks. It covers the reduced annual charge and adjustments to the Climate Change (Forestry) Regulations 2022 for participants using the field measurement approach during the 2023–25 period.
We encourage members to have their say and provide feedback to the consultation which can be found on MPI’s website.
Likewise we encourage members to provide their feedback directly to NZIF as we formulate our response to the proposed fee.
Finally, a reminder that the next NZIF conference will be held in Napier on the 26th to the 28th of June 2025 and the conference organising committee has released the sponsorship opportunities available for this conference. Please contact James Treadwell if you would like to look at sponsorship options and receive the sponsorship pack.
Thanks
Adrian Loo
VP NZIF
KEEPING YOU IN THE LOOP
Better data to tell the story of wood processors and manufacturers – MPI’s short survey
The Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) is updating a directory of commercial wood processing and manufacturing entities through a short survey.
The contribution of the sector to New Zealand needs to be better understood by government and stakeholders. This survey is the first step to further engagement to collate sector information and share information.
If you are part of the wood processing and manufacturing sector, please fill in the survey: https://mpi.wsp-tools.app/wpd. It should take only 2-5 minutes to complete.
You could also scan this QR code to access the survey.
The survey has straight-forward questions about company details, processing locations and capacity.
If you have any questions, please contact kyle.wills@wsp.com (NZIF member)
Forestry ETS Alert
1. Consultation opens on resetting the Emissions Trading Scheme annual charge for post-1989 forestry participants
Consultation is now open on two proposals relation to cost recovery settings for Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) forestry participants. We anticipate that changes would be made by early 2025.
Proposal one - A reduced annual charge for post-1989 forestry ETS participants
If you have post-1989 forest land in the ETS, the per hectare annual charge is calculated for the financial year. It's based on the amount of land you have in the ETS on 1 July.
We are proposing to reduce the per hectare annual charge from $30.25 to $14.90, starting in the 2024/25 financial year. This reduced annual charge has been achieved in part due to operational efficiencies being realised and revisions to cost modelling. While the forestry ETS is in a transitional period, it is proposed that the Crown covers some additional costs.
Details on how the updated annual charge has been calculated, including a breakdown of costs, can be found in the Discussion Document.
Proposal two - Amending the Climate Change (Forestry) Regulations 2022 for the field measurement approach during the 2023–25 reporting period
Forestry participants with at least 100 hectares of post-1989 forest land in the ETS are required to use the field measurement approach (FMA) to calculate carbon stored in their forests for their emissions returns.
When the previous (2023) cost recovery regulations were enacted, they imposed a service fee. The fee resulted in additional costs for those who could rely on their existing FMA data or use default carbon tables to calculate carbon stock, during the shorter 2023–25 reporting period.
To address this issue, we are proposing to update the regulations. This means, that for any emissions return that covers all or part of the shorter 2023–2025 reporting period, people using the FMA can calculate carbon stock using:
- a) the default carbon tables (in regulations) if they do not have FMA participant specific tables; or
- b) existing participant specific tables if they are available to the participant.
Consultation closes at 5pm on 13 November 2024
See further details and information on the consultation page: Resetting the Emissions Trading Scheme annual charge for post-1989 forestry participants | NZ Government
2. Invitation to webinars on resetting the Emissions Trading Scheme annual charge for post-1989 forestry participants
To support our consultation, we are running two webinars and an online hui. These sessions will provide an opportunity for you to ask questions and discuss the proposals.
We encourage you to view the discussion document on the MPI website through the link above before you come along to these events.
Next session: Webinar two: 12pm Thursday, 7 November 2024
How to contact us
If you have any questions about this consultation, please email: etsforestrychanges@mpi.govt.nz
For enquiries not related to the above consultation, you can: email forestryets@mpi.govt.nz; or call 0800 254 628.
WEBINAR UPDATE
Past Webinar: The NZ Tree Improvement Story - Part 1
Speaker: Mike Carson
This webinar was really appreciated by the audience with some great Q&A at the end.
If you missed this webinar but would like to view it, then it will become available on the NZIF Shopfor purchase within the next few days.
Don't miss The NZ Tree Improvement Story - Part 2, information below.
Webinar: The NZ Tree Improvement Story - Part 2
Story of Tree Breeding in NZ
Following on from Mike Carson's very interesting and well presented webinar on 5th November traversing 50 years of tree improvement work in NZ from the time Ib Thulin arrived in New Zealand from Denmark in 1951, Heidi Dungey will pick up the story and describe developments in New Zealand’s tree improvement program over the last 20 years. Heidi will cover later developments in the Radiata breeding program as well as breeding work to improve other exotic species and opportunities with indigenous species. She will also cover the use of new genetic technologies to improve the accuracy of tree improvement work. Importantly for forest owners she will cover how these technologies, along with new propagation technologies, can speed up the delivery of genetic gain and therefore value to forest owners.
Heidi has nearly 30 years’ experience in tree breeding and genetics. Heidi completed her PhD in Tasmania, after which she spent 2 years in Chile working with a breeding cooperative out of Valdivia, then 3 years at the Queensland Forestry Research Institute before moving to New Zealand and commencing at the NZFRI, now Scion, in 2000.
Read more ....
Date: Tuesday, 19th November 2024
Time: 7:30pm (NZDT)
Utilising AI to enhance productivity, at every level, for forestry professionals
This practical training will equip you for enhanced decision-making and operational efficiency, with AI, particularly if you are a
- Senior company executive
- Forest manager
- Operations / District Manager
Regardless of your current level of AI literacy or AI platform—be it Co-Pilot, OpenAI's GPT, or Gemini—you’ll gain the essential skills necessary to elevate your effectiveness in every one of your role deliverables.
Date: Wednesday, 27th November 2024
Time: 2:30pm in the afternoon
Details for the NZ Tree Improvement Story will be released later this week.
AUSTRALIAN WEBINAR | Rapid detection of fire in Australia’s forests
Date: Wednesday 20 November 2024
Time: 12.30 to 1.45pm (AEDT)
Cost: $10 AUD for NZIF members
For NZIF Members to register, please click HERE.
About the webinar:
Join us for an interesting webinar that dives into recent innovations and emerging technologies, their critical role in fire detection to safeguard our forests and plantations, and the many values they provide to the community. Rapid fire detection and response play an important role in fire management, and this session will explore cutting-edge technologies used for forest fire detection.
Hear from forest fire managers about the latest advancements they are using, and the important contribution they are making. Attendees will gain insight into how these innovations have already transformed response strategies, as presenters share their learnings from the rollout of technologies, and provide context for their use and practical limitations. We’ll also discuss what the future holds—potential developments and improvements that could further enhance our ability to protect forests and plantations from unplanned fires.
Swift action can reduce losses from unplanned fires. Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with experts to understand the potential for rapid fire detection to play a greater role in fire management in forests and plantations.
Please note:
You can listen live or listen later – everyone who registers will receive a copy of the webinar recording and slides.
The link, with joining instructions, will be sent to all registered attendees 24 hours before the webinar commences.
For more information on the event, please visit our website HERE.
2024 NELSON CONFERENCE VIDEOS AND CPD NOW AVAILABLE TO PURCHASE
All those who attended the conference will receive an email with a link to the Videos and presentations that were recorded.
For those who missed the event but would like to view any one of the three sessions, they are now available in the NZIF Shop, NZIF Conferences along with a copy of the presentation:
Session 2: Alternative Species, Values and Uses
Session 3: Residue Management, End use Products
To view the contents of each session and speakers please select here: NZIF 2024 Conference
This folder can be found on the website under resources and publications/conference presentations.
NZIF 2024 Conference CPD Sessions:
All those who attended the CPD session will receive an email with a link to the three CPD Videos and presentations that were recorded.
For those who missed the event but would like to view any one of the three sessions, they are now available in the NZIF Shop, NZIF Members only shop:
CPD 01: Using Remote Sensing to Evaluate woody debris / slash for compliance
