On the land

Sustainable farming practices make good business sense. Many New Zealand farmers are already noticing the effects of climate change and are endeavouring to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in their farm activities. For example, more efficient use of fertiliser ensures that excess does not leach into the environment and planting trees helps absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Transport - actions and activities »
Energy - actions and activities »
Waste - actions and activities »

Also:
Reduce agricultural greenhouse gas emissions
Plant trees on farms

For more information on how climate change is likely to affect agriculture and forestry in New Zealand visit the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry website.

Transport

Transport is our country's single largest energy consumer and it's the fastest growing - within New Zealand, transport accounts for over 43% of all consumer energy use and it produces 46% of the country's carbon dioxide emissions. There are small things you can do to cut fuel consumption on your farm.

• Choose vehicles that are fuel efficient and emit less carbon dioxide, e.g. use a 2- wheel motorbike rather than a 4-wheel model.
• Regularly service and tune all farm vehicles.
• If your car has a roof rack, remove it when you don't need it - the air drag from a roof rack means your can use 5% more fuel.
• Air-conditioning can add 10% to your fuel bill - try using the air vents instead.
• Go easy on the pedal to reduce fuel use - heavy braking and accelerating uses a lot of fuel.

For more ideas see tips for driving, maintaining and buying motor vehicles and being EnergyWise on the road.

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Energy

• Use electricity, petrol and diesel as efficiently as possible (for example, in cropping farms this may be achieved using minimum tillage techniques).
• Be energy efficient when irrigating (if possible, use a soil moisture tester).
• Use fertiliser as efficiently as possible and thus reduce energy costs associated with its production (nitrogen has a high energy cost associated with it).

For more ideas see the EnergyWise website.

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Waste

• Recycle glass and plastic items and tins.
• Compost organic material as much as you can.
• Don't burn plastic waste - look out for your regional pilot collection systems for unwanted chemical containers.

For more ideas see the Reduce Your Rubbish website.

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Actions focusing on reducing agricultural greenhouse gas emissions (methane and nitrous oxide)

Options for reducing nitrous oxide emissions:

Reduce N₂O emissions by:

• optimising the amount, timing and type of N fertilisers used to better match plant needs.
• altering soil conditions by liming, improving drainage and avoiding compaction can reduce nitrous oxide emissions.
• applying denitrification inhibitors that reduce the rate of conversion of urea and urine to nitrous oxide.

Options for reducing methane emissions:

• Feeding animals with concentrate feeds will reduce emissions per unit of production.
• Using grass cultivars selected for improved animal performance could decrease methane emissions per unit of animal production.

Options for reducing carbon dioxide emissions:

• Biofuels have the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions because they can be used instead of fossil fuels.
• Develop energy-efficient practices on-farm.

Plant trees on farms

Plant trees on farms as a profitable crop for the future, for erosion control, summer shade for grazing stock, or shelter from wind. Some are useful for feeding stock during drought, while specialty crops can be future investment, e.g. walnut and oak. Trees are also good for birdlife and are aesthetically pleasing and these factors can increase the value of your farm.

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