New Zealand: Politics
OFF TARGET: Carbon over-shoot could cost billions
30 May 2016
Officials warned the Government that New Zealand was at risk of over-shooting its 2030 emissions reduction target by 150 million tonnes – due largely to subsidies to emitters and a stockpile of privately held carbon units.
Public signals support for scrapping of 1:2 subsidy
30 May 2016
Scrapping the one-for-two carbon subsidy has widespread support, if submissions on the current review of the Emissions Trading Scheme are anything to go by.
Catholic Bishops back agriculture in ETS
30 May 2016
An agency of New Zealand’s Catholic Bishops says agriculture must be brought into the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Government to snaffle 1:2 subsidy revenue
27 May 2016
Revenue from the scrapping of the one-for-two subsidy will not be earmarked to fund emissions-reduction policies.
What they said ...
27 May 2016
Budget – what they said on the removal of the one-for-two carbon subsidy:
BUDGET 2016: One-for-two goes but price cap stays
26 May 2016
The one-for-two subsidy to emitters will be phased out from January, but the $25 price cap and the allocation of free credits to trade-exposed heavy emitters are staying, the Government has just announced in the Budget.
Carbon prices jump after Budget breakthrough
26 May 2016
Carbon prices jumped this afternoon on confirmation that the one-for-two subsidy is to be phased out, and could reach $20 by the end of the year.
NATS' 19%: Bennett blames population growth
26 May 2016
New Zealand’s net greenhouse gas emissions have gone up 19 per cent under the National Government – and Climate Change Minister Paula Bennett is blaming population growth.
Minister puts figure on hot-air credits
26 May 2016
More than a quarter of the units New Zealand used to meet its Kyoto commitments were hot-air credits, Climate Change Minister Paula Bennett said in Parliament yesterday.
New report sees world of expanding carbon markets
26 May 2016
Carbon markets will expand on the back of the Paris Agreement, and carbon prices will need to rise to between $50 and $66 for the world to meet the climate change agreement’s goals, a new survey says.
US insurance aid props up climate-risk homes
26 May 2016
Lloyd’s, one of the world’s biggest insurance companies, says the US government must stop providing insurance subsidies to homeowners building on flood plains and in coastal areas exposed to mounting risks related to climate change.
Now hear this ...
26 May 2016
If the development of international carbon markets is your idea of a good story, settle back with your headphones and listen to this.
PARIS PUSH: Pact could be ready to go next year
25 May 2016
The Paris Agreement could well come into force next year, says a New Zealander leading work to flesh out the details of the new global climate change pact.
CARBON CRISIS: Our emissions up a whopping 56%
23 May 2016
New Zealand’s net greenhouse gas emissions – the amount it actually contributes to damaging the climate – rose a whopping 56.7 per cent over 24 years in which it was supposed to be cutting emissions, new Government data shows.
Scientists can't do it alone, says PM's adviser
23 May 2016
The Prime Minister’s chief science adviser has told a United Nations forum that scientists and policy-makers need to work together on issues like climate change.
I agree this is serious, Bennett tells scientists
20 May 2016
A group of scientists and other prominent New Zealanders has had a reply to a letter accusing the Government of an “indefensible” lack of leadership on climate change.
Why funds managers must come clean on climate risks
18 May 2016
Superannuation and other fund managers should be telling customers just how big a risk climate change is to their investments, says the government’s financial markets regulator.
Chairman aside, AMP says it's serious about climate
18 May 2016
AMP says it is taking climate change seriously, despite a recent comment from chairman Simon McKeon that suggested otherwise.
ETS ANSWERS: Three ways to make it work
17 May 2016
Bringing agriculture into the Emissions Trading Scheme, setting an emissions cap, and building cross-party support to cut emissions and lift carbon prices should all be part of the ETS review, says one of its architects.
New RMA proposals won't cut it, say farmers
17 May 2016
Federated Farmers told the select committee considering the Resource Legislation Amendment Bill yesterday that current proposals will reduce the opportunity for public input, reduce opportunity for local decision making, and increase process costs.
Memo property investors: You have a climate duty
13 May 2016
Real estate investors now have a fiduciary duty on climate change, say the authors of a new guide on sustainable real estate investment.
Forest carbon storage risky, warns thinktank
12 May 2016
Storing carbon in forests is risky and should be used to meet no more than a fifth of New Zealand’s emissions reductions, says a group of prominent scientists and other New Zealanders.
Student caps ceremony with message for management
12 May 2016
An Auckland University student used his own graduation ceremony yesterday to draw attention to the university’s refusal to divest from fossil fuels.
FAIR GO: What to make of our emissions targets
11 May 2016
New Zealand’s post-2020 emissions reduction target is fair - if you don’t expect rich countries to bear the brunt of fixing the climate change problems they’ve caused, a new government paper shows.
How a global carbon price will bring emissions down
11 May 2016
International carbon trading and a single global carbon price will drive deeper emissions cuts than those promised by countries under the Paris Agreement, a new report says.
Bloomberg task force extends deadline
11 May 2016
The Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures is extending its deadline for consultation.
CREDITS CRUNCH: We'll need millions of international units
5 May 2016
New Zealand is likely to need up to 220 million international credits to meet its 2030 emissions reduction target because even a domestic carbon price of $300 a tonne is unlikely to drive enough domestic emissions cuts, the Government says.
Make ETS like a market, says our biggest emitter
3 May 2016
New Zealand’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases says that carbon trading needs to be automated and standardised.
Busy Bennett draws up climate to-do list
3 May 2016
Higher carbon prices, scrapping the one-for-two, and a detailed plan to decarbonise the New Zealand economy are on Climate Change Minister Paula Bennett’s to-do list.
Government might not carry over units
3 May 2016
The Government might not carry any carbon units over after 2020.
Run carbon prices like the dollar, says academic
2 May 2016
Carbon prices should be managed like the Reserve Bank manages the value of the New Zealand dollar, a submission on the Emissions Trading Scheme is recommending.
Morganites want moratorium on free credits
2 May 2016
A think-tank which has strongly criticised New Zealand’s use of hot-air credits is now calling for a one-year moratorium on the allocation of free credits to trade-exposed heavy emitters.
Officials eye pile of ETS submissions
2 May 2016
Government officials are today working their way through a large stack of submissions on the technical aspects of the Emissions Trading Scheme.
CLIMATE CRISIS: Why English must act on costs
29 Apr 2016
Finance Minister Bill English must investigate the fiscal implications of climate change, says the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.
Watchdog wants answers to solar questions
29 Apr 2016
The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment is investigating whether the uptake of solar panels really will cut New Zealand’s greenhouse gases.
Fewer car parks, greener cities, says commissioner
29 Apr 2016
Getting rid of requirements for minimum numbers of car parks with apartment developments could be one practical step toward greening New Zealand’s cities, says the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.
Deadline nears for Stage 2 of ETS review
29 Apr 2016
Submissions on the second stage of the Emissions Trading Scheme review close tomorrow.
MEMO MINISTER: How to do it the Morgan Way
29 Apr 2016
The Morgan Foundation is keeping up the pressure on the Government over the use of hot-air carbon credits.
WINDFALL MILLIONS: Govt quiet on future of free credits
28 Apr 2016
The Government is being cagey over whether it will cancel millions of dollars worth of carbon units heavy emitters might be sitting on after using international carbon credits of dubious quality to meet their emissions liabilities.
We need an emissions cap, says business council
28 Apr 2016
New Zealand needs a cap on emissions and to include all sectors in the Emissions Trading Scheme, says the Sustainable Business Council.
Higher carbon prices will bring change, says report
27 Apr 2016
Higher carbon prices will kick-start many of the changes needed to decarbonise the New Zealand economy, a new report says.
CARBON CLUES: The Govt must tell us what it's doing
27 Apr 2016
A new report on decarbonising the New Zealand economy says the Government is failing to explain how it plans to do meet the country's emissions reductions targets.
Carbon budgeting big success, says UK expert
27 Apr 2016
Carbon budgeting and an independent statutory body that reports on the Government’s performance have been critical to the United Kingdom’s success in cutting greenhouse gases, says a visiting expert.
What we must change to get emissions under control
26 Apr 2016
A cross-party forum on climate change, efficient agriculture, and using revenue from auctioned carbon credits to stimulate innovation are some of the measures necessary for New Zealand to get to net-zero emissions, according to a paper to be released later today.
Why domestic carbon prices are hard to predict
26 Apr 2016
Uncertainty over supply and demand is making it impossible to predict domestic carbon prices, says a new analysis.
Bennett stays on course for higher carbon price
26 Apr 2016
Climate Change Minister Paula has again said that carbon prices need to be higher.
Paris Agreement delay and we could face lock-out
22 Apr 2016
New Zealand could be locked out of crucial discussions on the Paris Agreement rules around land use and access to international carbon markets if the new international climate treaty comes into force early, as now looks likely.
What NZ must to do under the climate treaty
22 Apr 2016
Tomorrow, New Zealand will sign the Paris Agreement on climate change.
ETS ADVICE: Supply more important than price
21 Apr 2016
Any carbon market controls in New Zealand’s Emissions Trading Scheme should be based on supply, not price, says an international business organisation promoting markets to reduce climate change.
NZ hydrogen regulation to catch up with the world
18 Dec 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | The government has announced a regulatory reset for New Zealand’s emerging clean tech hydrogen sector.
State-owned farmer drives profit growth with emissions reductions
19 Dec 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Government-owned Landcorp, trading as Pāmu, is one-third of the way to meeting its 2031 emissions reduction targets, with five years left to run to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 30.3% against 2021 emissions.
Transport dominates NZ’s rising consumer emissions
10 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Transport pollution was the biggest contributor to an increase in New Zealand’s consumption-based emissions in 2023, with emissions from household travel up 12%, and consumption-based emissions totalling 58.3 million tonnes – up 1.6% from the previous year.
NZ could become ‘dumping ground’ for dirty vehicles: Commissioner
16 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | Simon Upton, Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, has warned the Government that its changes to the clean car standard could turn the country into a dumping ground for high emitting cars, making future emissions budgets harder to achieve.
Uncertainty eroding confidence in forestry sector
5 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Warnings are mounting that tree planting is set to plunge to “very close to zero”, as new Ministry for Primary Industries data shows ETS registration applications falling sharply as confidence in forestry declines.
Investors must support positive climate-tech
28 Nov 2025
OPINION: We need better leadership than the current ‘climate opportunism’ that is rife in the Beehive, and we need to back a marketplace that will make it happen, writes Rob Campbell.
