[NZ_Ross]

I don't take any particular footprint reducing path on my farm. But my bull beef operation is a remarkably low input process anyway utilising a waste product (bobby calves and out of spec powder) that produces an in demand high quality protein.
I have always used sustainability as my driver which has guided me to retire a lot of my difficult hill country. I can claim I have retired a third of my property from production and have done this for no financial gain. The land retired into gorse which is not eligible for credits. Interestingly this is now regenerating into 2nd growth which probably is eligible for credits. But I have never farmed something I didn't believe in ( wool lamb bull beef) and it is going to be difficult to start now.

GUB, my observation is that many people who live in cities have vey little understanding that most farmers are naturally practicing conservation and sustainability, because it is a part of good farming practices and long term care of the land.

What I have learnt during this journey our team is making to zero carbon, is that every little effort counts and helps, and combined together lots of little changes start to add up to big changes. So, currently we are purchasing offsets each year to achieve zero carbon status. As we progress I would like to continue to reduce our carbon production, but also perhaps buy a few hectares of land and produce our own offsets.

Since you have retired land, and it is starting to regenerate into native bush, have you thought about giving that process a helping hand and planting some native trees on those blocks. Whether you claim credits or not, it all helps - and I am sure if you look, you may find government assistance for tree planting somewhere.

Also, have you considered creating a circular system on your farm in terms of energy - bio-reactors for waste, solar energy, use of your own bio-fuels for your transportation etc. There are plenty examples around of people doing this, and again every little effort counts. It also makes sense in the longer term. Once you walk down this path using PHEV's and BEV's makes a lot more sense, as you can power them from your own resources, become a lot more energy independent, and create a lot more circular and sustainable practices.

For us as a business, all of our government and local government clients in NZ are required to achieve zero carbon, so it just made sense for us as part of their supply chain to achieve the same, sooner rather than later. It took us nearly a year to get it all set up, but well worth the effort.

I think for farming, it is going to become a necessary part of doing business as we go forward, and also a marketing advantage if properly certified and promoted. Which may well lead to better and more sustainable returns.

My next steps will be continued reductions in carbon production at work, solar power and storage battery installation at home, so that I will be transport energy independent, and purchasing some land to plant trees for credits and offsets - somewhere close to Timaru, so the team can be involved in the planting and maintenance of the land/trees. I am putting a 5 year timeframe on all of that.

Cheers

Ross

[zkarj]

The past 12 months have been helped hugely by the covid pandemic - less travel, more video conferencing etc - so less carbon produced.

There are jobs that intrinsically require travel, and then there are most jobs.

I may be replacing my 14.5 year old car soon, as I think I have mentioned recently. While looking at current new car options I have been underwhelmed by the value proposition of electric. Full EV costs an arm and a leg if I want comfort and the various hybrids have modest reductions in fuel burn for, in most cases, significant extra money as well. I have seen some people mention that this high premium is not true in some other countries, which suggests the government need to do more.

But... I'm doing my bit by not being one of those people who insist on single-occupancy vehicle commutes to the office when there is probably the best run and carbon-cheapest public transport network in the country just down the road. I do run my car to and from the station (4 minutes each way) even though I could walk. If the aforementioned public transport system meets its stated goal in 2023 of increased frequency and capacity, then I will walk most days as the primary reason I drive is to get to a station further out on the line so I don't end up standing for 15 minutes due to getting on at the last stop before the city. I ain't no spring chicken.

If I did walk, my 'gas guzzler' would be in use, on average, less than 1 day a week. As it is, my average use is well less than 2 hours per week for most of the year. So I am not going to feel guilty about not buying electric if I end up buying in the next year or two. If I eke out this car to 20 years old, maybe the market will be better suited to switching then.

Whether you claim credits or not, it all helps

That's really the point. It's like exercise trackers for fitness... it's still exercise if you forget and leave your tracker at home.

[Kiwizinho]

Currently in NZ for me the electric vehicle dogma is just more fake news. While we have only 80% renewable power and still have coal fired stations in the grid then any addition to grid load is coal fired. The fashionable adoption of Electric Vehicle technology is clearly and simply an addition load on the grid. So in New Zealand EVs are coal fired. I would have had some sympathy if rather than subsidise purchasers of EVs the Gov had contributed to a special fund to augment the current renewable power.

Regardless of the merits of EVs or otherwise at present, I think hybrids at least make quite a bit of sense currently. They require considerably smaller batteries than pure EVs, and make sure that when the engine is running it's not doing so pointlessly. It's either moving the vehicle or charging the battery, not just sitting idling.

I actually wonder whether CNG hybrids might be a way of the future. Methane gets a bad rap as a greenhouse gas, but it's quite a good fuel (Space X is literally using it as rocket fuel), although not as energy dense as liquid fuels, however still a lot more energy dense than batteries, and quicker to fill up on. It's also pretty easy to produce biologically via a number of pathways including from human and animal waste. NZ used to have lots of LPG vehicles, and while LPG is a fossil fuel, it has lower emissions than petrol, although it also has less energy density, and thus range, although combined with the additional efficiency a hybrid can offer with urban driving, range might be less of an issue.
I'd love to see a study of emissions per km for hybrid LPG and CNG vehicles vs standard petrol electric hybrids. Maybe the lower energy density of gas over petrol would result in not much difference, but it would be interesting to know for sure.

I remember when I was at uni, taking a field trip to the Bromley sewage works in Christchurch, where they ran a fleet of trucks on the gas produced from the sewage. Also, the Cooperites (now Gloriavale) used to live just down the road from where Mum and Dad live in North Canterbury, and they ran trucks on CNG from their own sewage too.

My feeling with regard to the rush to lithium powered vehicles is that maybe we're missing the big picture. Carbon is the energy storage and transfer element that the whole biosphere runs on including us, but the problem is we're still behaving as hunter-gatherers rather than farmers, which is why we're pumping more into the atmosphere than we're recycling. Carbon is far more plentiful than lithium, but I think battery technology is important, as it can enable us to use carbon a lot more efficiently to the point that it might be possible to live within our means with regard to sustainably sourcing carbon based energy.

[NZ_Ross]

If I did walk, my 'gas guzzler' would be in use, on average, less than 1 day a week. As it is, my average use is well less than 2 hours per week for most of the year. So I am not going to feel guilty about not buying electric if I end up buying in the next year or two. If I eke out this car to 20 years old, maybe the market will be better suited to switching then.

Thanks for these thoughts Zkarj. There is a theory that the most environmentally friendly car is the one you currently own, as buying a new one generates demand for all the materials and associated energy etc. required to produce them.

With regard to the cost of PHEV's and BEV's yes new they are expensive for what they are. We have been direct importing the Outlander PHEV's (2014 models) with relatively low km from Japan, for $27,000 to $30,000 which isn't too expensive when compared with newer SUV's. One of my staff just brought a 2013 Leaf with some battery degradation for $9,000 - for his wife who is doing 20-30km per day max. The Leaf still has 100km range fully charged, which is fine for around town running.

If you look on TM it is Leafs and Outlanders that are there in the most numbers, at a range of prices.

So, if you look, there are options which allow you not too much upfront cost, very low cost weekly running, and no emissions. Wellington has the advantage of a decent public transport system that most of the rest of us don't , so great to hear you are able to use it.

[Transit]

Have you used a camera with a touch screen on the back?
They're really good for pinch/zoom/drag to review images and check/confirm focus points etc.
Much better than scrolling the wheel and using the 4 way direction buttons to move around.

I know, another of my lame attempts at humour
I want to go the other way...give me an ME super with digital ff and 3 or 4 buttons

[Kiwizinho]

If I did walk, my 'gas guzzler' would be in use, on average, less than 1 day a week. As it is, my average use is well less than 2 hours per week for most of the year. So I am not going to feel guilty about not buying electric if I end up buying in the next year or two. If I eke out this car to 20 years old, maybe the market will be better suited to switching then.

I'm fortunate in that I work from home, and only need to visit clients occasionally. Being in Blenheim, most places are within a 15 minute cycle ride on fairly flat ground, and I only need to carry a laptop, so I can visit clients by bike. We do use a car though as my daughter's school is too far away for her to walk and there are some busy roads so I'm not confident in her cycling on her own. My wife works at another school, so she'll drop my daughter off on the way to work and pick her up afterwards, or if she has an after school meeting, I'll drop them both off and pick them up, as we've worked out it's more economical to use one car to do two round trips than two cars to do two very short trips.
We're actually looking at selling my wife's car as it's had so little use in the last year the battery died from lack of use.
We can make a 50 litre tank of fuel last a month, during school term time, but I've noticed there's an increasing amount of time spent idling in congested traffic, so I'm looking at upgrading to a hybrid when I can afford it. We made the choice to buy a 7 seater stationwagon/ light people mover, as with school runs, it's often handy to be able to take another family, and we found 5 seats wasn't always enough. This potentially takes another car off the road every time we do this.
Toyota do a 7 seat Prius, although they don't sell them new here, but imports aren't too badly priced, so that's probably what I'll look at when we upgrade.

[MarkJerling]

Toyota do a 7 seat Prius, although they don't sell them new here, but imports aren't too badly priced, so that's probably what I'll look at when we upgrade.

Pity the thing is so incredibly ugly. I'd like a Tesla but it's well outside my price range for now. A mate's son has bought a Tesla model 3. Really nice car.
Full electrics will come down in price, it's only a matter of time.

[NZ_Ross]

Full electrics will come down in price, it's only a matter of time.

That much is true

[Kiwizinho]

Pity the thing is so incredibly ugly. I'd like a Tesla but it's well outside my price range for now. A mate's son has bought a Tesla model 3. Really nice car.
Full electrics will come down in price, it's only a matter of time.

If anyone eventually manages to crack the technology for aluminium batteries it could make electric vehicles cheap as. It's more abundant even than carbon in the earth's crust, and although it's a bigger atom than lithium, theoretically it can supply three electrons vs lithium's single one, so can have a higher energy density per volume.

NZ is leading research in this area, but as far as I'm aware no batteries have reached the point of mass production yet, and there are still significant technical hurdles to overcome.

Here's a useful fact sheet from Victoria University.

https://www.victoria.ac.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/1454755/aluminium-batteries-resource.pdf

[Clarkey]

@Ross, @ GUB
A quick counterpoint (and way OT) since I have in the past been on town supply dairy and dry stock farms in the north island. I've been following with interest the potential for carbon tax over here in Canada which had a quiet but massive court victory here a few weeks ago. Collectively (and given COVID nationalisation impacts) a good look at the fresh food supply system is been taken, given there aren't any (!) winter crops here and much of the fresh food comes from either California or Mexico during that season. I had a great conversation here with a gent from Alberta last year. Carbon taxes will likely hit farming disproportionately here and he was betting on bills of at least $100,000 per year for his heated drystock setup over here. That's meat (another conversation), but grain farmers are also facing big numbers. NZ hasn't had farming subsidies since the 1980's, however they are still a big part of the thinking here. There is a lot of pessimism that federal government will be doing the taxing, but not the supporting. I'd love to see further support for alternative energy measures there (especially onsite secondary and tertiary biomass processing, and cogen - been involved in that in the past), but certain provincial governments (Alberta, heavy ties to the oil industry) don't want to shift directly from fossil.

I bought a Toyota Hybrid BTW. Yes, the in traffic quiet and no idling is fantastic. Nearly everyone is now shifting, PHEV's and hybrids are back-ordered here for up 3 months. Yes, I paid a premimum. Around $5K.

@Ross. Yes, PHEV's are pretty good options, but people have to actually use them. Infrastructure and inappropriate policy is still a problem here, but mainly it is just making the systems easier to use than not so that everyone will follow them.

[NZ_Ross]

@Ross. Yes, PHEV's are pretty good options, but people have to actually use them. Infrastructure and inappropriate policy is still a problem here, but mainly it is just making the systems easier to use than not so that everyone will follow them.

Thanks Clarkey. Yes with PHEV's you do have to use them. I charge my one overnight every night it is at home, which is easy and makes sense given the cost and eco contributions of less pollution. We are also just getting used to the disciplines of running electric vehicles in preparation for the transition to fully electric.

Over here the NZ Govt. seems reasonably committed to meeting its zero carbon commitments, so policy and incentives to transition should follow soon enough.

[zkarj]

The one exception I found to expensive EV options (amongst the class of car I am looking at) was the Toyota Corolla ZR Hybrid Hatch which has only a $1300 price premium over its pure petrol sibling. But the resulting "climate numbers" aren't that compelling:

Petrol 2.0:
Combined fuel consumption 6.0 L/100km
CO2 Emissions Combined 139 g/km

Hybrid 1.8:
Combined fuel consumption 4.2 L/100km
CO2 Emissions Combined 97 g/km

A 30% reduction in fuel consumption and emissions is probably not bad for a 3.36% increase in sticker price I suppose, but I'd rather go full electric if that were economic. Also... that interior.

[Kiwizinho]

The one exception I found to expensive EV options (amongst the class of car I am looking at) was the Toyota Corolla ZR Hybrid Hatch which has only a $1300 price premium over its pure petrol sibling. But the resulting "climate numbers" aren't that compelling:

Petrol 2.0:
Combined fuel consumption 6.0 L/100km
CO2 Emissions Combined 139 g/km

Hybrid 1.8:
Combined fuel consumption 4.2 L/100km
CO2 Emissions Combined 97 g/km

A 30% reduction in fuel consumption and emissions is probably not bad for a 3.36% increase in sticker price I suppose, but I'd rather go full electric if that were economic. Also... that interior.

Don't get me started on cost, and it's not just EV cars. There are plenty of e-bikes that cost more than my car, although the battery in them is small compared to even a hybrid. My problem is that my human powered range is about 60km at my current level of fitness, and most cheaper e-bikes max out at about 50km, and then I'd have a heavier bike to move with no assistance right when I'd probably most want it.
Currently I have a Toyota Wish that like any ICE vehicle isn't that economical around town, but I can work to reduce the amount of urban use during the week. (An e-bike for my wife could be part of that plan). The Prius 7 seater is supposed to be capable of 3.8L/100Km combined fuel consumption, but it's about double the price of the Wish. On longer trips, fuel economy is actually meant to go down with the Prius to I think I saw 4.8L/100Km somewhere whereas if I try to keep the Wish for longer runs, I can manage 6.25L/100Km. 4.8 vs 6.25 is definitely an improvement, but for double the price of the vehicle it's quite a high cost. For town driving the difference is more significant, and for double the cost of the vehicle, halving the fuel consumption is a possibility.
In terms of cost vs benefit, if I can find reasonably priced e-bikes for my wife and daughter, it might provide more benefit to emissions than upgrading the car.
I bought a bike trailer a couple of years ago, and in terms of ROI for emissions reduction that's got to be one of the best things, as long as I remember to use it. It's actually intended to carry a couple of toddlers, but it will easily fit a couple of 10L buckets of paint, and if I've used to to carry camera gear as well. I could do the weekly grocery shop with it, although my wife needs a decent bike first as she generally wants to have a say in purchases, and she doesn't have a great deal of stamina.

[MarkJerling]

I drove a Tesla model X yesterday. I'm still grinning from ear to ear and it was 24 hours ago. In a word: Wow!

Not mine. A client of mine offered me the opportunity to drive his.

[Transit]

Just got an email from CR Kennedys kindly telling me I could pre-order the k-3ll only 2800 shiny Australian dollars
Have they just got 3 models now ? K70, K3, K1 is it.
Pity about the KP
My $nz2280 K-1 seems like a better buy as time passes