5 Jun 2009: Energy Efficiency and Climate Change

The first budget of a new government is always greeted with interest. Given the broader economic climate this is particularly so this year.

The budget announcement I was especially pleased to see was the decision to provide financial support to help increase the rate of home insulation, making homes warmer and more energy efficient. This is of particular interest to me, as thirty years ago while studying for my masters degree in California, I wrote my thesis on household energy efficiency.

Having our homes use energy more efficiently has environmental benefits. The generation and transmission of electricity has significant local and regional effects on the environment.  All new power plants and transmission lines attract opposition.  And thermal generation of electricity is accompanied by carbon dioxide emissions taking us into that most serious of all environmental problems -- global climate change.

Climate change is also the theme of this year’s World Environment Day “Your planet needs you – Unite to combat climate change”, a topic that has particular resonance for me. One of the most successful attempts at raising the profile of this huge environmental challenge was Al Gore’s film An Inconvenient Truth. A lasting memory for me from the film was the fact that the atmosphere that covers the earth is so very thin - a layer only 100 km thick. That’s less that the distance between Auckland and Hamilton. Such a fragile thing separating us from deep dark cold space.

In my office several of the projects we are currently working on are related directly to climate change. If you are interested in reading more about the work we have planned in the year ahead, we have just released our Statement of Intent 2009-2012.

I’d also like to quickly mention one outstanding regional visit I was able to enjoy recently to Taranaki. One highlight was the visit to a great restoration project at Lake Rotokare.  Getting away from the offices and corridors of power in Wellington is invaluable in learning about what is really happening across the country.

Finally on World Environment Day, while we have many challenges ahead, I would like to acknowledge the contribution so many New Zealanders make to the preservation of our very special environment.

The Commissioner discusses plans at Lake Rotokare Scenic Reserve (Photo courtesy of the Taranaki Regional Council)