NEW ZEALAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Josh Williams, Anderson Lloyd
2.5.2 Article 6.4 – The Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism The Ministry for the Environment is New Zealand’s designated national authority to deal with the Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism (PACM). New Zea - land has been actively involved in the development of PACM, and has made submissions on its rules, modalities and procedures. While New Zealand has been actively involved in the development of PACM, it has not yet announced its intentions regarding its involvement in the mechanism once launched, nor whether it will replace, or, other - wise, how it will interact with, the ETS. 2.5.3 Article 6.8 – Non-Market Approaches Non-Market Mechanisms New Zealand has been involved in the work pro - gramme being implemented by the Glasgow Commit - tee on Non-Market Approaches. However, it has not been advocating for any specific forms of non-market mechanisms. 2.6 Climate Litigation Climate change-related litigation is an emerging fea - ture of New Zealand’s legal landscape. However, liti - gation in this particular area is still considered novel in New Zealand, and there are currently very few clear legal pathways litigants can pursue for climate change recourse. Climate-related litigation has so far tended to be between climate activists and organisations whose actions are seen to be contributing to climate change, in an attempt to enforce accountability – activism through litigation. The extent to which climate issues can be litigated varies depending on the nature of the claim and the persons involved. Generally, New Zealand’s climate change litigation can be split into two strands. The first is litigation between the public and the government. The second is between private individuals. Climate Litigation Between the Public and the Government The major aim of climate litigation between the pub - lic and the government in New Zealand has so far been to compel government organisations to uphold their commitments to better climate outcomes and
or a consent, considered by the Environment Court at first instance, rather than a council. Regional and district councils’ knowledge and capac - ity to manage climate change mitigation and climate change impacts varies widely, particularly as the man - datory requirements to have regard to the ERP and the NAP have only been in force since 30 November 2022, and many councils are still building knowledge and resources. 2.5 Bilateral/Multilateral Co-Operation Under the Paris Agreement 2.5.1 Article 6.2 – Internationally Transferred While New Zealand has not entered into any formal agreements pursuant to Article 6.2 of the Paris Agree - ment, it has entered into agreements that contemplate climate change matters with Paris Agreement part - ners, including the following: • The EU–NZ Free Trade Agreement, which conclud - ed in June 2022, and which contained key provi - sions relating to labour standards, gender equality, climate change, emissions trading, environmental goods and services, forests, fisheries subsidies, and fossil fuel subsidy reform. Such an agreement is significant, as it represents the first time that the EU has made commitments in a trade agreement to refrain from granting or maintaining harmful fish - eries subsidies. It also contains the EU’s first trade agreement article on fossil fuel subsidy reform. • The UK–NZ Free Trade Agreement, which under - scored the importance of other multilateral ave - nues for advancing climate goals. The agreement explicitly recognises the commitments of the Paris Agreement to achieve net-zero emissions and the commitments of the 26th UN Climate Change Con - ference of Parties (COP26) to phase out “inefficient Mitigation Outcomes Bilateral Agreements subsidies” for all fossil fuels. New Zealand also included in the agreement the importance of creat - ing a platform to co-operate on issues of relevance to Māori, reinforcing the broader COP26 theme of protecting indigenous rights.
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