Greenhouse gas emissions (consumption-based): Year ended 2021 (provisional)

Consumption-based greenhouse gas emissions statistics associate emissions from production processes, foreign or domestic, throughout the entire supply chain, with the final consumer. Emissions are reported by the domestic final consumption groups of: households, government, non-profit institutions serving households, and investment in physical assets. Consumption-based emissions are often referred to as a nation’s carbon footprint.

Key facts

Year ended December 2021:

• Total consumption-based emissions were 57,683 kilotonnes, down 0.4 percent since 2020. This was 4.5 percent lower (2,710 kilotonnes) than the 2019 pre-COVID-19 level.
• Household consumption was the largest contributor and accounted for 67 percent (38,408 kilotonnes) of total emissions.
• The carbon footprint of households decreased the most (1,519 kilotonnes, 3.8 percent), driven by decreases in the emissions embodied in food and non-alcoholic beverages (down 968 kilotonnes, 8.8 percent) consumed by households.
• With border restrictions in place for all of 2021, total emissions embodied in international tourism consumption decreased 19 percent (100 kilotonnes) from 2020 lows.
• Emissions embodied in imports decreased 1.2 percent (334 kilotonnes).
• Emissions embodied in exports decreased 2.0 percent (982 kilotonnes).
• Emissions embodied in exports were 73 percent greater than emissions embodied in imports, resulting in New Zealand being a net exporter of greenhouse gas emissions in 2021.
• Emissions embodied in gross fixed capital formation increased by 2.3 percent in 2021, predominantly driven by increases in transport equipment (up 28 percent, 242 kilotonnes).

Consumption-based emissions by New Zealand residents adjust production-based emissions for emissions associated with imports and exports and allocates them to final use categories. On the production side, domestic industry and household emissions are the same as those reported in Greenhouse gas emissions (industry and household): Year ended 2021.

Link to Text alternative for Flow of greenhouse gas emissions from production to consumption, 2021.

Carbon footprint of New Zealand’s households

Household consumption emissions were 38,408 kilotonnes, down 3.8 percent (1,519 kilotonnes) from the previous year. Household consumption emissions can be broken down by Classification of Individual Consumption According to Purpose (COICOP) category.

Downward drivers were:

• food and non-alcoholic beverage emissions, down 8.8 percent (968 kilotonnes)
• housing and household utility emissions, down 6.3 percent (349 kilotonnes)
• household contents and services emissions, down 8.4 percent (162 kilotonnes).

Upward drivers were:

• transport emissions, up 2.4 percent (278 kilotonnes)
• imports of low value goods, up 10 percent (75 kilotonnes).

Despite the drop in household consumption-based emissions in 2021, households were still the largest contributor to New Zealand’s carbon footprint at 67 percent.

Transport consumption-based emissions showed the biggest increase in emissions, up by 2.4 percent (278 kilotonnes) in 2021, but remain below the pre-COVID 2019 level. Transport was the largest contributor to household consumption-based emissions at 31 percent.

Transport emissions are composed of direct emissions (emissions from personal vehicle use), which were up 4.9 percent (362 kilotonnes) in 2021, and indirect emissions (emissions embodied in transport expenditure, such as air travel, and the emissions embodied in the production/extraction of fuels), which were down 2.0 percent (83 kilotonnes) in 2021.

In 2021, food and non-alcoholic beverages contributed 26 percent to total household consumption emissions. Consumption emissions from this expenditure category decreased 8.8 percent (968 kilotonnes) after a strong increase in 2020.

In 2021, housing and household utilities was the third largest contributor to household consumption emissions at 14 percent, falling 6.3 percent (349 kilotonnes) from 2020. Over the time series 2007–2021, housing and household utilities emissions fluctuated reflecting the changes in the mix of energy sources used for electricity generation.

Total household consumption emissions (carbon footprint) remained flat over much of the time series, where falling emissions intensity (emissions in relation to expenditure) offset increases due to growth in population and expenditure per capita.

In recent years, household consumption emissions have decreased due to changes in expenditure per capita as well as changes in the composition of consumption which has moved expenditure away from high emissions goods and services, such as air transport, resulting from COVID-19 travel restrictions.

Gross fixed capital formation

Gross fixed capital formation includes the consumption emissions embodied in capital expenditure. Emissions embodied in gross fixed capital formation increased 2.3 percent in 2021. The key movements were:

• transport equipment, up 28 percent (242 kilotonnes)
• other construction, up 4.0 percent (88 kilotonnes)
• residential buildings, up 1.7 percent (63 kilotonnes)
• other (including software, research and development, and land improvements), down 7.8 percent (68 kilotonnes).

The emissions embodied in transport equipment include emissions resulting from the extraction and production of materials used for manufacturing transport equipment, the processing and transportation of these materials, and from the manufacturing process itself.

Government and non-profit institutions serving households

Emissions embodied in Government expenditure fell 3.9 percent (204 kilotonnes) in 2021.

Central government was the main driver of government emissions embodied in consumption, down 3.5 percent (144 kilotonnes). Local government consumption emissions decreased 5.9 percent (60 kilotonnes).

In 2021 emissions from non-profit institutions serving households, such as most charities, sports clubs, and churches, fell 3.3 percent (16 kilotonnes).

Overseas trade emissions

Consumption-based emissions are estimated by subtracting estimates of emissions embodied in exports from the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) production emissions (as those goods are consumed by non-residents) and adding estimates of emissions embodied in imports.

In 2021, emissions embodied in exports were 73 percent greater than emissions embodied in imports, resulting in New Zealand being a net exporter of greenhouse gas emissions.

Emissions embodied in exports decreased

Flow of greenhouse gas emissions (kilotonnes CO₂-e) from production to consumption, 2021 shows how production-based emissions can ultimately become embodied in our exports for consumption by non-residents. These production-based emissions can be associated with either resident industries, as recorded in Greenhouse gas emissions (industry and household): Year ended 2021, or non-resident industries, as recorded in the production-based emissions of other countries.

In 2021, emissions embodied in exports decreased 2.0 percent (982 kilotonnes). The key industry movements were:

• non-resident industry emissions associated with the imports used in domestic production, down 7.7 percent (466 kilotonnes)
• agriculture, forestry, and fishing emissions, down 1.1 percent (338 kilotonnes)
• manufacturing emissions, down 2.3 percent (139 kilotonnes).

Of all the emissions embodied in our exports, 67 percent came from the agriculture, forestry, and fishing industry representing 78 percent of this industry’s production-based emissions. An additional 13 percent of emissions embodied in exports came from manufacturing in 2021 representing 59 percent of manufacturing’s production-based emissions.

Emissions embodied in imports decreased

Emissions embodied in imports are the production-based emissions that become embodied in the goods and services supplied to New Zealand from overseas industries, as either inputs into domestic production or for consumption by final users.

Emissions embodied in imports decreased 1.2 percent (334 kilotonnes) in 2021. Key industry movements in import emissions were:

• transport, postal, and warehousing, up 5.4 percent (40 kilotonnes)
• agriculture, forestry, and fishing, down 2.0 percent (36 kilotonnes).

In 2021, 80 percent of all emissions embodied in imports were supplied by non-resident manufacturing industries.

Imports and exports by gas

In 2021, greenhouse gas emissions embodied in exports comprised:

• methane 25,447 kilotonnes CO₂-e (54 percent)
• carbon dioxide 15,176 kilotonnes (32 percent)
• nitrous oxide 6,238 kilotonnes CO₂-e (13 percent)
• fluorinated gases 319 kilotonnes CO₂-e (0.7 percent).

Methane emissions embodied in exports decreased by 1.0 percent (269 kilotonnes) in 2021, largely due to the drop in exports of biological methane emissions from the agriculture, forestry, and fishing industry.

Greenhouse gas emissions embodied in imports comprised:

• carbon dioxide 19,017 kilotonnes (70 percent)
• methane 6,613 kilotonnes CO₂-e (24 percent)
• nitrous oxide 1,199 kilotonnes CO₂-e (4.4 percent)
• fluorinated gases 396 kilotonnes CO₂-e (1.5 percent).

Tourism consumption-based emissions

Emissions embodied in tourism consumption estimate the carbon footprint of New Zealand tourism. The activity considered from a consumption perspective is the emissions embodied in the consumption of goods and services supplied by resident tourism industries. Additionally, it includes the emissions associated with the use of private vehicles by domestic (resident) and international (non-resident) tourists. Tourism consumption-based emissions can be broken down by domestic and international tourists consistent with the Tourism Satellite Account.

The emissions by tourists can also be broken down into direct and indirect emissions (see table below). Direct emissions result from the use of fuel in private vehicles. Indirect emissions are the emissions embodied in the goods and services consumed (purchased) from tourist industries such as electricity use and heating/cooling in accommodation, and the fuel use of air travel, as well as the emissions associated with producing and transporting the fuel used in private vehicles.

In 2021, the total carbon footprint of New Zealand tourism was 6,452 kilotonnes (down 7.9 percent). This follows a 42 percent decrease (5,000 kilotonnes) in 2020 due to COVID-19-related border restrictions.

The biggest decrease to tourism consumption-based emissions in 2021 was from domestic indirect emissions, down 795 kilotonnes (16 percent). The biggest increase to tourism consumption-based emissions in 2021 was from domestic direct emissions, up 341 kilotonnes (25 percent). As a result, total consumption-based emissions by domestic tourists decreased 7.0 percent (454 kilotonnes) and accounted for 6,037 kilotonnes (94 percent) of total tourism consumption-based emissions.

International tourism consumption-based emissions decreased 19 percent (100 kilotonnes) in 2021. As a result, international tourists contributed only 6.4 percent (415 kilotonnes) to total tourism consumption-based emissions in 2021 and is down 92 percent (4,641 kilotonnes) from pre-COVID 2019 levels.

Border restrictions impacted both international and domestic tourists by heavily restricting international travel in and out and of New Zealand in 2021. This kept emissions from international tourists (both indirect and direct) subdued throughout 2021. Although households were restricted from travelling internationally, they appeared to travel more domestically resulting in lower indirect emissions, but higher direct emissions in 2021.

Text alternative for Flow of greenhouse gas emissions from production to consumption, 2021

Image is of a Sankey chart, a type of flow diagram where the width of an arrow is proportional to the flow quantity. This chart shows how emissions from the production of goods and services (from the emissions production account) shown on the left side of chart, align (flow) to consumption emissions (emissions generated as a result of what we consume), on the right side. The industries that produce emissions are listed on the left: agriculture, forestry, and fishing; mining; manufacturing; electricity, gas, water, and waste services; construction; transport, postal, and warehousing; services excluding transport, postal, and warehousing. Households also produce emissions directly, for example, through cars burning fuel, and are also included on the production side. We also consume imports. Imports are included on the left as an input to consumption emissions. Final users/consumers of what we produce and import are listed on the right: households; government; non-profit institutions serving households, gross capital formation; and exports/foreign consumers.

Definitions and metadata 

Greenhouse gas emissions (consumption-based): Year ended 2021 (provisional) – DataInfo+ gives information on the methodology underlying the data and outlines revisions made in this release. 

Consumption-based greenhouse gas emissions (industry and household): Sources and methods – DataInfo+ presents the data sources and methods used for producing this account. 

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Next release

Greenhouse gas emissions (industry and household): September 2023 quarter will be released on 1 February 2024.