Further information on CNGP Tranche 1 reporting

Tranche 1 reporting covers the 2021/22 financial year (1 July 2021 - 30 June 2022) from 39 government departments, departmental agencies and the non-public service departments in the Executive branch.

Participating organisations are required to report:

• Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from their base year and current year
• 2025 and 2030 reduction targets
• Emissions reduction initiatives to achieve these targets.

The remaining Tranches 2 and 3 (all Crown agents, the tertiary sector (including the New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology) and state-owned enterprises) will report to the programme in December 2023 for the 22/23 financial year. Tertiary Institutions may report on a calendar year basis.

Organisations will report by 1 December each year going forward.

Agencies are required to obtain independent third-party assurance that their emissions inventory has been prepared in accordance with ISO 14064-1 and/or the GHG Protocol for their base year and current year of reporting. Acceptable assurance levels include reasonable and limited assurance.

All submitted inventories have been verified apart from the New Zealand Intelligence Service and the Government Security Bureau, who are in the process of providing independent assurers access.

Organisations select their own base year, no earlier than 2015/16 and no later than 2021/22 for Tranche 1 and 1 July 2021-30 June 2022 for Tranches 2 & 3. The ‘base year’ referred to at the programme level represents the cumulative total of emissions from each agency's base year.

In 2022, Tranche 1 agencies set targets which add up to a 22% gross emission reduction across their total reported emissions by 2025, and 42% by 2030.

Background on CNGP target-setting

CNGP organisations are required to set gross emissions reduction targets for 2025 and 2030 consistent with a 1.5 degree pathway, measured against a base year and based on the reduction potential within the organisation. These are called ‘organisation targets’.

For CNGP purposes, a 1.5 degree pathway means the IPCC scenario that gives at least a 50% probability of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius this century with low/no overshoot, which is the scenario used by the Science Based Targets initiative, an approach adopted by many organisations around the world as best practice. In practical terms, this equates to a minimum 42% reduction in gross emissions by 2030, based on a 2020 base year.

2025 target-setting guidance

• For organisations with a base year of 2019/20 or earlier:
  • Those with a base year of 2019/20 or earlier should set a minimum target of 21% for 2025. This is calculated from the launch of CNGP in 2020 and is half of the 2030 target, for half of the time period. It recognises the early action these organisations have taken to reduce their emissions.
• For organisations with a base year after 2019/20:
  • For organisations with a base year after 2019/2020, a 2025 minimum target is a pro-rated proportion of the 2030 target (the point on a linear graph between base year and a 42% reduction in 2030).

Further information on CNGP target-setting.

“Scopes” and emissions sources

The GHG Protocol places emission sources into scope 1, scope 2 and scope 3 activities.

• Scope 1
  Direct GHG emissions from sources owned or controlled by the company (i.e., within the organisational boundary). For example, emissions from the combustion of fuel in vehicles owned or controlled by the organisation.
• Scope 2
  Indirect GHG emissions from the generation of purchased energy (in the form of electricity, heat or steam) that the organisation uses.
• Scope 3
  Other indirect GHG emissions occurring because of the activities of the organisation but generated from sources it doesn’t own or control (e.g., air travel). The CNGP separate scope 3 emissions into two further groups:
  • Scope 3 (mandatory)
    emissions that an organisation can reasonably be expected to measure and have access to data. These include staff travel for work (e.g., domestic and international air travel, hotel stays, taxi, private car, public transport, rental vehicles), freight, staff working from home, transmission and distribution losses, water supply, wastewater services and waste to landfill.
  • Scope 3 (other material)
    includes all other significant scope 3 emissions sources. These tend to be value chain emissions, such as embodied emissions in construction, purchased goods and services and emissions from investments. These emissions sources are generally more difficult to measure and reduce

Reducing emissions in the government light vehicle fleet

All agencies (around 130) that must follow the Government Procurement Rules must now transition their light vehicle fleets to battery electric vehicles (BEV), or plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) if a BEV is not appropriate, unless there is an operational requirement that prevents them from doing so.

Light fleet vehicles are defined as those that weigh 3,500kg or less.

Reducing emissions in government office buildings

NABERSNZ (the National Australian Built Environment Rating System New Zealand) is a system for rating the energy efficiency of office buildings.

Since January 2021, agencies that are covered by the government property mandate have been required to get a NABERSNZ rating by December 2025, for all office buildings where they own or lease an area of 2000m2 or over.

A NABERSNZ assessment takes 12 months and when entering a new lease or renewing an existing lease, agencies should target a minimum rating of 4 stars for existing buildings and 5 stars for new buildings.

Two types of NABERSNZ ratings are being obtained by agencies, a base build rating for all buildings within scope of the NABERSNZ requirement, plus a tenancy rating where Government occupies ≥ 5,000 m2 in a building.