Maybe the government needs to find ways to use biofuels on farm animals to reduce emissions. What is wrong with the people in our governments? Do they not have a clue as to what is going on? And I thought things were getting bad here in the U.S. O.K., I've gotten it out of my system, I just remembered we elected these dummies. Ron ----- Original Message ----- From: Keith Addison <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <biofuel@yahoogroups.com> Sent: Sunday, May 20, 2001 7:35 AM Subject: [biofuel] More about methane :-)
> http://www.spacedaily.com/news/010520103041.1y4o72zc.html > > SPACE WIRE > > Tax on flatulent animals could cost NZ farmers a packet > > WELLINGTON (AFP) May 20, 2001 > A flatulence tax proposed to offset the damage to the ozone layer by > farm animal gases could cost New Zealand farmers up to five billion > NZ dollars (2.1 billion US), a report said Sunday. > > The proposal is included in the government's policy on climate > change, aimed at complying with the Kyoto Protocol guidelines to > reduce greenhouse gases, the Sunday Star-Times reported. > > The government is looking at taxing farmers between four and 60 NZ > dollars for each cow and sheep they own, because of the dangerous > gases the animals produce through dung, urine and flatulence. > > Nitrous oxide from dung and urine, and methane from flatulence, are > blamed for damaging the ozone layer and contributing to global > warming. > > New Zealand has nearly 47 million sheep and 10 million beef and dairy cattle. > > While New Zealand contributes only 0.2 percent of world greenhouse > gas emissions, 55 percent of that comes from methane and nitous oxide > in agricultural soil. > > The tax proposal suggests that the government could reap between two > and five billion NZ dollars from the levy on farm animals between > 2008 and 2012. > > Farmers are baffled about how to remedy natural animal behaviour and > say the tax could make farming uneconomic. > > But cabinet minister Pete Hodgson, who is responsible for the > government's climate change policy, denied Sunday that a tax was > being considered, saying research was the way to go. > > "Research into livestock digestion and pasture composition may > deliver the double benefit of reducing emissions while improving the > efficiency of the animals conversion of food to bodyweight," he said > in a statement. > > Federated Farmers president Alastair Polson said the tax move -- if > it went ahead -- was "a significant shift in the tax burden to the > productive economy." > > The federation argues that any reduction in emissions New Zealand > could make were so small in a global sense that the cost of achieving > them would outweigh the benefits. > > It will soon release a discussion paper on the proposed tax. > > The government aims to introduce climate change legislation by the > end of the year, which would lead to the ratification of the protocol > by mid-2002. > > All rights reserved. © 2000 Agence France-Presse. > > Biofuel at Journey to Forever: > http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html > Please do NOT send "unsubscribe" messages to the list address. > To unsubscribe, send an email to: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ > > Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Please do NOT send "unsubscribe" messages to the list address. To unsubscribe, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
