• Under the Paris Agreement (Article 4, paragraph 2) to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, 196 countries promised to set targets for reducing their own greenhouse gas emissions. The system was called Nationally Determine Contributions or NDCs, to keep the world well below 2°C; preferably no more than 1.5°C warming.

Then, we all set about comprehensively failing to implement event those measures. We’re currently on track to reach 5°C by the end of century.” – Dave Borlice 

• New Zealand is one of the worst-performing countries, ranking 44th out of 45 of the world’s Industrialised countries. We’re using more than six times our fair share of the emissions budget that would keep global temperature increases below 1.5°C (Fig. 1).
• New Zealand’s NDC target: by 2030 reduce emissions by 30% below 2005 levels. The target is to be managed using an emissions budget that New Zealand set itself, one of the least ambitious targets on Earth, and nowhere near enough to help keep temperatures under 1.5°C (Fig. 2).
• The targets are supposed to include all sectors and all  greenhouse gases. In reality, many sectors have been given exemptions; our farming sector is exempt until 2025, when it will be given a 95% discount. Yet biogenic methane, i.e. methane from livestock, is one of our largest greenhouse gas emissions by sector (Fig. 1).
• Scroll down to see the full wording of New Zealand’s 2020 report to the UN (it’s short: Fig. 3).
• See the Climate Change Commission for more details.