New agriculture greenhouse gas research centre

Scientists are battling to pull together a 10-year research plan, financial budgets, and a mountain of other details over the next month to create the Government's new Centre for Agriculture Greenhouse Gas Research.

The centre is expected to receive $5 million in taxpayer-funding year for the next 10 years.

Set up as a "virtual centre" through AgResearch, the nation's biggest state science company at Palmerston North, it will focus on reducing emissions from farms, particularly pastoral properties.

Arable, horticultural, pork and poultry farming will be secondary activities, because the bulk of methane and nitrous oxide comes from livestock grazing.

AgResearch's former head of climate and environment, Harry Clark, who is setting up the centre, said today he was working through key issues including what it would do, how it was structured and staffed, and what work it would fund.

The timeframe is tight because the Government wants to officially launch the centre at the end of February.

AgResearch and its partners were selected to run it on October 15, and by December 15, Dr Clark has to compile a 10-year strategy, science work plan and business plan to be signed off by agricultural officials.

He envisages it developing new knowledge in mitigation of greenhouse gases in pastoral farming, and coordinating research efforts nationally and internationally.

Industry commentators have said New Zealand needs to create a strong international profile in working to reduce agriculture emissions to avoid trade barriers likely to be erected against meat and dairy produce exported by nations regarded as having set minimal targets for greenhouse gas reduction.

Agriculture causes nearly half the nation's greenhouse gas emissions .

Dr Clark said the centre would move to make sure New Zealand work meshed with research overseas - even though many livestock farms in the northern hemisphere relied more heavily on grain-fed animals, where emissions could be reduced more easily by changing feed.

He said its work was closely linked to the proposed "global alliance" which Prime Minister John Key advocated at the United Nations in September.

The other research partners were Pastoral Greenhouse Gas Research Consortium, DairyNZ, Lincoln and Massey Universities, and crown research institutes Landcare Research, Niwa, Plant and Food Research and Scion.

- NZPA