Case study: Country inventory (New Zealand)

Grassland-based animal husbandry makes major contributions to New Zealand’s economy, and production practices and productivity have changed considerably in recent decades. Key categories in the latest inventory include enteric fermentation emissions from dairy cattle, non-dairy cattle, sheep and deer; manure management methane emissions from dairy cattle, and direct N₂O emissions from urine and dung deposited by grazing animals (NZ NIR 2017). New Zealand currently reports emissions from dairy and non-dairy cattle, sheep and deer using Tier 2 approaches . A country-specific Tier 1 emission factor is used for goats and the IPCC default is used for pigs, as these emission sources are not significant. New Zealand began using a country-specific Tier 2 approach for livestock enteric fermentation in the early 1990s. Initially, static emission factors were used that did not change along with changes in production practices or animal performance. Since 2003, a full Tier 2 approach has been adopted in which enteric fermentation emissions per head per year vary according to changes in production practice and animal performance.

This case study describes the countries approach for cattle, sheep, goats, swine, and deer.