"It is really disappointing the US has chosen to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, but New Zealand remains absolutely committed to it," Climate Change minister Paula Bennett said this morning.
"We have an ambitious work programme under way to implement our own commitments under the Paris Agreement."
Bennett said there was a clear message from other members of the agreement that they would press on with the Paris agenda and noted that G7 leaders had recently reaffirmed their commitment to the agreement.
Trump announced this morning that the United States would pull out of the 195-nation agreement, but would begin negotiations to "re-enter either the Paris accord or an entirely new transaction".
Trump said the deal "disadvantages" the US and was causing lost jobs and lower wages.
The announcement fulfils one of Trump's top campaign pledges, but also undermines world efforts to combat global warming.
The United States is the world's second-biggest emitter and had agreed under former President Barack Obama to reduce emissions to 26 per cent to 28 per cent of 2005 levels by 2025 - about 1.6 billion tons.
It joins just two other UN member countries, Syria and Nicaragua, in rejecting the accord.
New Zealand has a goal of reducing its emissions to 11 per cent below 1990 levels by 2030.
Green Party co-leader James Shaw said he was confident that if other countries remained united, global action on climate change would continue.
"New Zealand should join China, the European Union and other countries promising to accelerate efforts to reduce climate pollution."
The Government should not use the US withdrawal as an excuse to do nothing on climate change, he said.
New Zealand scientists today described Trump's move as a damaging but not fatal blow to the Paris Agreement.
Victoria University climate change expert James Renwick said other countries, especially those in the EU and China, were already taking the lead on the issue and committing to deeper cuts in pollution.
"Plus, the President and Washington is not the USA. Individual cities and states are doing their own thing.
"The Governor of California has already signalled that he's looking internationally for partners to push emissions reductions."
