New Zealand: All stories
Contact Energy likes what it's doing with green bonds
10 Nov 2017
Contact Energy is getting a lot of attention for its pioneering green borrowing programme, certified by Climate Bonds Initiatives and launched in mid-August.
POWER PLAY: 100% renewable in reach by 2050
9 Nov 2017
Researchers say a world running on 100 per cent renewable electricity is attainable by mid-century, or even earlier.
TREE TALK: Why we need a better forest philosophy
9 Nov 2017
On November 6, 1217, Henry III’s Charter of the Forest gave ordinary English people back their traditional rights to use royal hunting grounds for livestock grazing and collecting firewood.
Winter shrinking, say scientists
8 Nov 2017
New Zealand's winters are a month shorter than they were 80 years ago, NIWA scientists say.
Get behind Zero Carbon Act, Morgan tells Nats
8 Nov 2017
The National Party should offer cross-party support for the Zero Carbon Act, providing the country with stable climate-change policy, says Gareth Morgan’s The Opportunities Party.
Polish grab for carbon-market cash
8 Nov 2017
A Polish bid to siphon off up to €29bn of EU carbon market money for ageing coal plants has been slapped down in a backroom statement by the UK, France, Germany and four other countries.
Climate change brings truffles to Wales
8 Nov 2017
An expensive Mediterranean black truffle has been cultivated in the UK for the first time, the farthest north that the species has been found.
Five reasons not to spray the bugs this summer
8 Nov 2017
The weather is getting warmer, and gardens are coming alive with bees, flies, butterflies, dragonflies, praying mantises, beetles, millipedes, centipedes, and spiders.
Bishops urge Church to divest from Exxon because of climate change
8 Nov 2017
The Church of England should "show moral leadership" and immediately sell its investments in the oil giant ExxonMobil, according to a group of bishops and other clergy.
New Zealand feeling the impacts of the hot year - scientist
7 Nov 2017
Evidence that this year will be one of the hottest on record is alarming, says one of New Zealand’s leading climate experts.
This year one of three hottest on record - WMO
7 Nov 2017
The World Meteorological Organisation says 2017 is among the three warmest years recorded, with human wellbeing facing mounting risks.
Report: oil refineries will close as world decarbonises
7 Nov 2017
A quarter of global oil-refining capacity could become unviable and be forced to close by 2035 as a swelling tide of climate regulations and rapid advances in clean technologies cut oil demand, a new report shows.
Blockchain powers consumer choice at Thanksgiving
7 Nov 2017
American agricultural conglomerate Cargill is testing the blockchain to track and trace the origin of turkey products produced by family farms.
Memo coalminers: we're looking at your climate policies
7 Nov 2017
ANZ BANK is telling thermal coalminers to clean up their act ,as it starts to pick and choose which it will back through a transition to a low-carbon economy.
Scots on track to be 100% renewable
7 Nov 2017
Scotland is on target to generate all of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020.
Why we can't keep on flying
7 Nov 2017
Staying home is going to be the new normal if we're going to "bend the curve"on carbon emissions.
Carbon-neutral eggs, anyone?
6 Nov 2017
There’s the much-criticised battery hen egg, and then the pricier organic and free-range varieties. But for the truly ethically committed, how about the carbon-neutral egg, laid in what has been billed as the world’s most environmentally friendly farm?
Dockless bikes and the tragedy of the commons
6 Nov 2017
WASHING DC has become the latest testing ground for what happens when technology and good intentions meet the real world.
Cape Verde may beat NZ to 100% renewable power
6 Nov 2017
By ERIK NORDMAN | Cape Verde, the small island archipelago nation off Africa’s northwest coast, has set itself a very bold renewable energy target - to obtain 100 per cent of its electricity from renewale resources by 2025.
China’s largest ride-hailing company to build its own electric-vehicles charging network
6 Nov 2017
CHINA'S LARGEST ride-sharing company is to build its own electric-vehicle charging network.
Previous govt wrong about 2050 emissions - court
3 Nov 2017
The Government should have reassessed New Zealand’s emissions-reduction target after the International Panel on Climate Change released its new report, the High Court says.
Nats choose new spokespeople
3 Nov 2017
MPs from the pan-Parliamentary Globe group have taken over responsibility for climate change and the environment in the National Party caucus.
Rooftop gardens a game-changer for Wellington
3 Nov 2017
Wellingtonians want rooftop gardens – and the idea is being investigated by the city’s university.
Forests can bring 1.5deg Paris target closer
3 Nov 2017
Protecting the world’s forests could achieve a quarter of the greenhouse gas emissions cuts needed to meet the 1.5°C Paris target, scientists say.
Our carbon price too low, says bank report
2 Nov 2017
New Zealand's carbon price is at the low end of global prices – and well below the level that will trigger the emissions cuts needed to meet the Paris Agreement, a new report shows.
Get yourself ready for a world 3deg warmer in 80 years
2 Nov 2017
The UN expects a world 3deg warmer by 2100, even if countries cut their greenhouse gas emissions as they promised in 2015.
How Bennett toyed with cross-party climate move
1 Nov 2017
Former climate minister Paula Bennett sought advice on forming a cross-party agreement on climate change.
Shaw vows better climate deal for Pacific
1 Nov 2017
The new government says it will pull climate policy into line with Pacific aspirations.
Nations too slow to decarbonise, says report
1 Nov 2017
Countries are failing to decarbonise at the rate needed to meet their Paris Agreement pledges, let alone hold warming to less than 2deg, says global accountancy firm PwC.
Emissions failure will hurt NZ farmers, warns Fonterra
31 Oct 2017
A global failure to cut greenhouse gas emissions will see New Zealand farmers face demands for major production cuts, the world’s largest milk-processor is warning.
Shell and BP planning for 5deg global warming
31 Oct 2017
Oil giants Shell and BP are planning for global temperatures to rise as much as 5deg by the middle of the century.
How double-dealing killed off the electric bus
31 Oct 2017
The electric bus would have let Londoners enjoy clean air early in the 20th century, saving but for the dishonesty and double-dealing which promoted the internal combustion engine instead.
Get ETS working, say superfund guardians
30 Oct 2017
New Zealand cannot afford an Emissions Trading Scheme that doesn’t work, say the guardians of the $36.4 billion New Zealand Superannuation Fund - and that means bringing the agricultural sector into the scheme.
Big businesss targets unambitious, say analysts
30 Oct 2017
Nearly nine out of 10 of the world’s biggest companies have plans in place to reduce carbon emissions, new research has found, but only a fifth of them are doing so for 2030 and beyond.
We deliberately misled the public, says shipping executive
30 Oct 2017
Shipping lobbyists at UN talks were "prostitutes employed by our racket to try to put one over on the public’, says a marine industry veteran.
Shaw set to brief officials on plans for ETS
27 Oct 2017
New climate minister James Shaw next week will detail to officials his plans for the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Government planting target OK, say forest owners
27 Oct 2017
The Government’s plan to plant an extra 50,000 hectares of new forest a year is “optimistic but achievable”, say forest owners.
Changing climate threatens our water systems
27 Oct 2017
Much of New Zealand’s $20 billion worth of stormwater and wastewater systems will not cope with the impacts of climate change, an expert is warning.
Falling solar costs further boost booming market
27 Oct 2017
Solar power costs will fall by another 60 per cent over the next decade giving an already booming market another boost.
Electric cars emit 50% less greenhouse gas than diesel
27 Oct 2017
Electric cars emit significantly less greenhouse gases over their lifetimes than diesel engines even when they are powered by the most carbon intensive energy, says a new report.
Food ruined by drought could feed more than 80m a day
27 Oct 2017
The food destroyed by droughts would be enough to feed a country with a population the size of Germany’s every day for a year, says the World Bank.
WISE WORDS: It's not all about economic growth
26 Oct 2017
The Productivity Commission is being told not to let economic growth rule its investigation into cutting New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions.
Changing climate will put our health at risk
26 Oct 2017
Scientists are warning that climate change will harm New Zealanders’ health.
Farming's ETS emissions bill no more than 5%
25 Oct 2017
The agricultural sector will be held responsible for no more than 5 per cent of its greenhouse gas emissions – and that’s if the new Government brings it into the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Carbon price set to break through $19 mark
24 Oct 2017
Carbon looks set to break the $19 barrier today as the market adjusts to a new government with more ambition to address climate change.
Toyota hooks up with Mazda and Denso to make e-cars
24 Oct 2017
Toyota, Mazda, and Denso will jointly establish a new company to develop zero-emission electric cars.
Labour in power sees carbon prices on the rise
20 Oct 2017
Carbon prices are rising on the back of the new government, hitting their highest level in a year within an hour of the market opening today.
Scientists predict ecological Armageddon as insects die off
20 Oct 2017
The abundance of flying insects has plunged by three-quarters over the past 25 years, according to a new study that has shocked scientists.
UN launches $1bn fund for sustainable farming
20 Oct 2017
UN Environment has partnered with Dutch financial institution Rabobank to establish a $1 billion fund offering grants and loans to businesses interesting in investing in sustainable farming practices.
New leaders have serious climate job to do
19 Oct 2017
Whichever political party forms a government this afternoon has a critical job preparing New Zealand for the impacts of climate change and in getting the country’s emissions under control.
Pacific climate response in question as NZ finance remains unclear
19 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | With New Zealand's $1.3 billion international climate finance commitment set to end with no clarity on what follows, the Auditor-General says oversight of that funding remains patchy and long-term outcomes are unclear.
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.
