New Zealand: All stories
How electric cars can be recharged for free
3 Oct 2017
Electric car owners in the UK will be paid for letting an energy company use their vehicle’s battery.
E-vehicles could lead to more use of fossil fuels
2 Oct 2017
New Zealand will have to use fossil fuel-generated electricity to charge electric cars if it’s not careful, Canterbury electricity distribution company Orion is warning.
NZ safe from global animal emissions discovery
2 Oct 2017
New research showing the impact of methane from agriculture has been under-estimated doesn’t affect New Zealand greenhouse gas measurements.
Livestock emit more methane than we thought
2 Oct 2017
Global emissions of methane from livestock are larger than previously thought, scientists have said.
The Plutocene is waiting ... and it isn't pretty
2 Oct 2017
Beyond the Anthropocene – the geological epoch marked by humankind’s fingerprint on the planet – lies an even more hostile era of our own making.
It's about more than politics
29 Sep 2017
The next three years are more than an electoral cycle; they make up the period that could determine – quite literally – what sort of world we live in. And that’s what should be on the minds of politicians jockeying to form the next government.
Z Energy backs car-sharing company
29 Sep 2017
Z Energy is investing in the carbon-positive car-sharing company Mevo.
CARBON CALM: Worldwide emissions stood still in 2016
29 Sep 2017
Global emissions of climate-warming carbon dioxide remained static in 2016, a welcome sign that the world is making at least some progress in the battle against global warming.
Tropical forests no longer doing the carbon job
29 Sep 2017
Tropical forests now emit more carbon than they are able to absorb from the atmosphere as a result of the dual effects of deforestation and land degradation, a new study says.
Europe gives diesel $11bn a year in tax breaks
29 Sep 2017
Diesel fuel, a major cause of toxic air pollution in cities, was handed $NZ34 billion in tax breaks in the EU between 2014 and 2016, new research has found.
E-vehicle policy lacking, say transport officials
28 Sep 2017
A second government department has said New Zealand’s current electric vehicle policy won’t get people out of fossil fuel-driven cars.
CUTTING EDGE: Meet the mean, green (electric) mower
28 Sep 2017
Carbon South director BRUCE SCOTT featured in yesterday’s Carbon News calling for carbon credits to be issued for projects that cut New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions. He’s got other ideas, too, about ways to cut emissions, including mowing public parks with electric mowers.
EasyJet backs plans for electric planes
28 Sep 2017
EasyJet is backing plans to develop commercial passenger aircraft powered by electric batteries instead of conventional aero engines.
Carbon credits key to finding project capital
27 Sep 2017
Issuing carbon credits for schemes that cut greenhouse gas emissions could tip the balance in favour of projects like public transport, a consultant says.
Getting energy from water evaporation is not just hot air
27 Sep 2017
Harvesting power from naturally evaporating water could become a new form of renewable energy, according to an American study.
New biomaterial could replace plastic laminates
27 Sep 2017
Researchers from Penn State University have developed a compostable and economical alternative to plastic laminates in packaging.
Dyson to invest billions in 'radically different' e-car
27 Sep 2017
British inventor Sir James Dyson has announced plans to build an electric car that will be “radically different” from current models and go on sale in 2020.
Productivity probe has got it wrong, say lawyers
26 Sep 2017
The Productivity Commission is under-estimating the role the Resource Management Act can play in cutting New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions, the Auckland District Law Society says.
On a parched planet, nations look to the clouds
26 Sep 2017
To cope with worsening heat and drought, countries from the United States to China are turning to “cloud seeding” to boost rainfall.
Assumed safety of pesticide use is false, says top scientist
26 Sep 2017
Damning assessment by one of the UK’s chief scientific advisers says global regulations have ignored the impacts of dosing whole landscapes and must change.
SHEAR CRUELTY: Forget fur, is it time to stop wearing wool?
26 Sep 2017
Animal rights charity Peta is best known for its naked anti-fur stunts, but these days it is more worried about wool.
WINSTON'S THE WORD: What NZ First leader wants
25 Sep 2017
A party which has vowed to get rid of the Emissions Trading Scheme now holds the balance of power in New Zealand’s Parliament.
Electric cars could be biggest disruption since the iPhone
25 Sep 2017
It’s been 10 years since Apple unleashed a surge of innovation that upended the mobile phone industry. Electric cars could be about to pull the same trick on Big Oil.
More countries eye turning waste into energy
25 Sep 2017
Countries with large quantities of waste from forestry, manure or straw from farms are now looking for economic ways to turn them into forms of renewable energy.
Evian launches carbon-neutral bottling plant
25 Sep 2017
Evian has introduced its first carbon-neutral bottling facility as part of the company’s plans to become 100 per cent carbon neutral by 2020.
Furious farmers should get with the programme
22 Sep 2017
Political protests this week over fart taxes and water charges are at odds with research showing the agricultural sector knows it has to pay for its pollution.
Dining with mining in the House of the Lord
22 Sep 2017
The mining industry possibly got more than it bargained for when it decided to hold its annual dinner in Christchurch’s Cardboard Cathedral this month – a climate change debate with the Anglican Church.
Better 'use by' labels, less food waste
22 Sep 2017
Simplifying "sell by" dates should help to reduce food waste, which releases greenhouse gases as it rots in landfills. The move could save people money, too.
OPTIMISM OUT: We need new ways to talk climate change
22 Sep 2017
The extreme weather of the past months is a game-changer: surely now the world is ready to talk about climate change as a civilisation-collapsing catastrophe.
GREEN IS GO: Investors seek good businesses
21 Sep 2017
Institutional investors in New Zealand and Australia want to put more money into good green businesses – if they can find them.
Big Business makes commitment to electric vehicles
21 Sep 2017
A coalition of global corporations has launched a global campaign to accelerate the shift to electric vehicles.
San Miguel pulls plug on bottled water business
21 Sep 2017
Asian beverage giant San Miguel Corporation announced that it will soon discontinue its bottled water business as part of its strategy to limit plastic waste.
First step is cut domestic emissions, says report
20 Sep 2017
New Zealand could meet a large chunk of its Paris Agreement emissions reduction target through cuts in emissions at home, a new report says.
Nat turns up to debate and makes lone stand
20 Sep 2017
All political parties except National told an audience in Auckland last night that they rank climate change as the biggest issue they face.
Cash shortfall stops electricity reaching world’s poor
20 Sep 2017
Finance for electrification of developing countries is flowing at less than half the rate needed to achieve the global goal of universal access by 2030.
TAX OR TRADE?: It doesn't make much difference
19 Sep 2017
Ditching the Emissions Trading Scheme in favour of a carbon tax will not solve New Zealand’s emissions woes, a new report says.
With political will, the world can get to 1.5deg
19 Sep 2017
Global warming can be held to 1.5deg if there is the political will, new research published today shows.
Climate debate tonight - but Nats might give it a miss
19 Sep 2017
The National Party is looking like a no-show for a climate debate in Auckland tonight.
UN shipping chief hails progress on carbon emissions
19 Sep 2017
Countries are nearing agreement on how to tackle shipping’s carbon footprint, UN shipping chief Kitack Lim has told an industry conference, but resistance to a binding cap remains.
THE COUNT: English stays silent on climate
18 Sep 2017
With less than one week left in the election campaign, Prime Minister Bill English has yet to mention climate change in any of his formal speeches or statements.
United Future backs emissions trading
18 Sep 2017
United Future’s new leader says he supports the Emissions Trading Scheme, the Zero Carbon Act and wants New Zealand to be carbon netural by 2050.
Energy forecast sees global emissions growing
18 Sep 2017
Worldwide emissions of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels could grow 16 per cent by the year 2040 from the levels of 2015, the year by which the Paris Agreement intended to reverse the trend.
Silence rules as Frankfurt shows off electric cars
18 Sep 2017
When Angela Merkel addressed the Frankfurt motor show, it was not to a backdrop of revving engines but an exhibition of noiseless electric Golfs, South Korean hybrids and Japanese fuel-cell cars.
Coal's a danger - even when sitting around doing nothing
18 Sep 2017
Even when sitting in uncovered piles, coal can pose dangers to human health.
ELECTION UPDATE: Where parties stand on climate
15 Sep 2017
What does next weekend’s general election mean for climate change?
Climate change threatens Te Puke kiwifruit
15 Sep 2017
The most commonly grown variety of kiwifruit around Te Puke will not be commercially viable in the area by the end of the century, say scientists.
POO POWER: Welcome to the new economy of excrement
15 Sep 2017
Entrepreneurs are finding profits turning human waste into fertiliser, fuel and even food.
Climate-change baddies doing business in NZ
14 Sep 2017
Companies operating in New Zealand have been named as some of the most obstructive to global action on climate change.
More than 320,000 sign climate action plan
14 Sep 2017
A climate action plan that includes a fund to relocate people dispossessed by climate change now has the support of more than 320,000 people.
How to make air conditioners 20% more efficient
14 Sep 2017
Specially designed fluid-filled roof panels can help to make air conditioning significantly more efficient, according to new research.
Green Party calls for national electrification plan
Mon 20 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Green Party is calling for a national plan to electrify homes, transport and industry using renewable energy, to reduce fossil fuel dependence in response to the Middle East crisis.
Going concern status flags depth of Methanex NZ's gas crisis
Tue 21 Apr 2026
Methanex's New Zealand operation is relying on financial support from its Canadian parent to remain a going concern after a second consecutive year of asset impairments left the business with negative equity.
Fonterra admits ‘100% grass-fed’ claim breached law in greenwashing row
2 Apr 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Fonterra has admitted its “100% New Zealand grass-fed” claims on Anchor butter were misleading and breached the law, settling a case brought by Greenpeace Aotearoa over packaging used between December 2023 and April 2025.
Climate pollution static but NZ still on track for first emissions budget, says MfE
Fri 17 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand is still on track to meet its first emissions budget, according to the Ministry for the Environment, despite the pace of emissions reductions slowing to a standstill.
NZ’s latest push to roll out more EV chargers is a good thing – but can it go the distance?
14 Apr 2026
A $50 million plan to expand New Zealand’s public electric vehicle (EV) charging network marks another step toward a lower-emissions transport system.
Wilding conifers continue to plague Southland
Fri 17 Apr 2026
By Matthew Rosenberg, Local Democracy Reporter | Fast-spreading conifer trees are causing headaches in Southland as inconsistent funding continues to hinder control efforts.
Victorian Hydrogen announces Southland urea fertiliser project using coal
Wed 22 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | Australian-based Victorian Hydrogen has announced it is developing a new 1.5 million-tonne-a-year urea fertiliser operation in Southland, which it will apply for under fast-track legislation.
