[3] The purpose of the ICCC is to provide independent analysis on issues identified in the Government's "Terms of Reference" that will be passed to the Climate Change Commission.
[4] The opposition National Party's climate change spokesperson Todd Muller expressed support for the Committee but criticised Minister Shaw's position to look into agriculture when the science to reduce ruminant emissions had not yet been refined.
[3] On 1 June 2018 the ICCC updated its Work Programme with the Minister for Climate Change Hon James Shaw and further clarified its Terms of Reference.
In 2019, the ICCC proposed that Lake Onslow in the South Island's Otago region be used for a pumped hydro-storage system to provide backup electricity generation in dry years.
[7][8] In July 2020, Minister of Energy Megan Woods announced that the New Zealand government would fund a detailed feasibility study of the plan.