“Currently the only effective control mechanism is to use less fertiliser.
“This means less production so is not especially desirable so guidance on how to efficiently use fertiliser is key to meeting our targets.”
Chapman maintains some reduction can be achieved with better management.
“But the real key to lowering emissions is a focused increase in research to develop solutions, such as the development of lower-emissions fertilisers.”
Better management of nitrous oxide, one of the long-lived gases, requires a programme to better manage fertilisers.
The long-held concerns Horticulture NZ has over the loss of high-value soils also links to management of the sector’s gas emissions, Chapman said.
“If high-quality soils are used for growing our fruit and vegetables there is a reduced need for fertiliser so regional and central government planning needs to enable growing on these soils, not just for produce, but also to meet climate targets.”
Chapman said there are also broader issues relating to food security that must be included in any analysis of how the sector responds to greenhouse gas limits.
That includes transport infrastructure’s impact on gas emissions and trying to grow as much as possible in areas nearer populations to reduce distance from seed to plate. That will, in turn, require water storage and more glasshouses.
