7 April 2026
26-OIAD-00428
Nigel Gray
Tēnā koe Nigel
Thank you for your email of 21 February 2026 requesting the following under the Of icial
Information Act 1982 (the Act) of the Ministry for the Environment (the Ministry):
I am seeking any information held by the Ministry for the Environment relating to sulphur
dioxide emissions from shipping, their conversion into sulphate aerosols, their role as cloud
condensation nuclei, and any resulting impacts on rainfal acidity, cloud formation, rainfall
intensity, or acid deposition (commonly referred to as acid rain) within New Zealand’s coastal
or inland regions.
Please provide the following:
1. Monitoring, Modelling, and Data
Any monitoring data, modelling, assessments, or environmental measurements held by the
Ministry relating to:
sulphur dioxide emissions from ships
conversion of sulphur dioxide into sulphate aerosols
formation of cloud condensation nuclei from sulphur compounds
impacts on cloud formation, cloud density, or rainfal intensity
rainfal acidity or acid deposition linked to maritime emissions
2. Internal or External Scientific Advice
Any internal or external reports, briefings, memos, scientific advice, or commissioned
research relating to:
environmental impacts of sulphur dioxide or sulphate aerosols from ship exhaust
effects on soil chemistry, vegetation health, freshwater ecosystems, or coastal environments
any assessment of acid rain or acid deposition in New Zealand
3. Policy and Regulatory Considerations
Any documents, advice, or correspondence relating to whether sulphur dioxide emissions
from shipping are considered within:
New Zealand’s air‑
quality standards
national environmental reporting frameworks
maritime emissions policy settings
climate or atmospheric monitoring programmes
4. Inter‑
Agency Correspondence
Any correspondence between the Ministry for the Environment and
Maritime New Zealand
NIWA
Ministry of Transport
Environmental Protection Authority
PO Box 10362, Wellington 6143 | Freephone 0800 499 700 | environment.govt.nz
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relating to sulphur dioxide emissions, sulphate aerosol formation, cloud condensation nuclei,
cloud‑
seeding effects, rainfall acidity, or acid deposition.
5. Identified Gaps or Limitations
Any documents that identify gaps, limitations, or uncertainties in New Zealand’s monitoring,
model ing, or regulatory oversight of sulphur dioxide emissions from shipping.
In response to point one of your request, the Ministry does not hold any such responsibilities and
does not hold any such information specific to shipping emissions.
While this request may more closely align with the functions of Maritime New Zealand or the
Ministry of Transport and would ordinarily be transferred under section 14(b)(i ) of the Act, we
understand you have already made similar requests to both agencies. In these circumstances, we
do not consider a transfer to be necessary.
I am refusing points two, three and five of your request under section 18(g)(i) of the Act as the
information requested is not held by the Ministry and we have no grounds for believing that the
information is held by another department (for itself and for a departmental agency hosted by it or
an interdepartmental executive board serviced by it) or interdepartmental venture or Minister of the
Crown or organisation, or by a local authority.
Note we have interpreted point four of your request to refer to correspondence between agencies
regarding the key terms you have raised resulting in impacts to weather. I am refusing this part of
your request under section 18(e) of the Act as the document al eged to contain the information
requested does not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it, cannot be found.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Of ice of the Ombudsman of my
decisions relating to this request, in accordance with section 28(3) of the Act. The relevant details
can be found at: www.ombudsman.parliament.nz.
Please note that due to the public interest in our work, the Ministry publishes responses to requests
for official information shortly after the response has been sent on our website at:
https:/ environment.govt.nz/about-us/official-information-act-requests/. If you have any queries
about this, please feel free to contact our Ministerial Services team at: [email address].
Nāku noa, nā
Jo Gascoigne
General Manager – RMA Operations
Ministry for the Environment | Manatū Mō Te Taiao
PO Box 10362, Wellington 6143 | Freephone 0800 499 700 | environment.govt.nz
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