Why is GreenFleet important? The hard facts..

• Transport contributes 42% of CO2 emissions in New Zealand.  Airborne particulate levels in Auckland are comparable to those in New York and regularly exceed World Health Organisation standards.
• There are over 3 million motor vehicles registered in New Zealand (Statistics NZ, 2001) – this is a five-fold increase since 1951.  Approximately 80.3% of Aucklanders travel to work by car (Statistics NZ, 1996).
• Inefficient Transportation Impacts on our Society, Environment and Economy

• In Auckland alone, 253 people over the age of 30 died in 2002 as a result of motor vehicle emissions (Health effects due to motor vehicle air pollution in New Zealand, Report to the MOT, 20 January 2002).  This is more than three times the Auckland region’s road toll in 2001 of 73 deaths.
• Other health effects of vehicle emissions include cancer, respiratory and circulatory problems.
• Poor design of road networks has meant many communities live in congested areas, impacting upon their access and mobility, and suffering from the effects of traffic noise and pollution.
• Traffic congestion and inefficiencies in public transport are daily sources of stress and frustration.

• Air pollution – the 3 million or more registered vehicles traveling in New Zealand release thousands of tonnes of toxic air pollutants including particulate matter, carbon dioxide, oxides of sulphur, carbon monoxide, oxides of nitrogen, and hydrocarbons. The effects of these contribute to global warming, acid rain and photochemical smog.
• New Zealand has the highest proportion of carbon dioxide emissions from transport in the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) where the average is 30% (EECA, 2000).
• Water pollution – resulting from other types of car emissions produced from fluids, oil, tyres, paint, plastic components, and adhesives.

• Congestion is affecting the ability of businesses to function efficiently.
• A study commissioned by the councils of the Auckland region in 1997 estimated that congestion costs the Auckland region $755 million a year, of which $185 million is a cost to business - a cost that has national economic consequences (ARC, 2003).
• Currently, there are no policies or legislation to control vehicle emissions.  New Zealand’s emissions standards are far behind the rest of the developed world’s, which impacts upon the ‘clean green’ image we are trying to promote and our trade and tourism industries.