New Zealand: All stories
CARBON FIBRE: The wonder material with a dirty secret
24 Mar 2017
Carbon fibre is increasingly celebrated as a wonder material for the clean economy.
Moore’s Law for carbon could beat global warming
24 Mar 2017
A plan to halve carbon emissions every decade, while green energy continues to double every five years, provides a simple but rigorous roadmap to tackle climate change, scientists say.
London taxis go green with electric factory
24 Mar 2017
London’s iconic black cabs are going green with the opening of a £300 million electric vehicle manufacturing plant.
Europe poised for total ban on bee-harming pesticides
24 Mar 2017
The world’s most widely used insecticides would be banned from all fields across Europe under draft regulations from the European commission.
Govt MPs vote down 'good idea' sustainability bill
23 Mar 2017
A bill to include sustainability measures in public finance reporting has been voted down – despite Government MPs saying they supported the sentiment.
Coal in freefall as new plants dive by two-thirds
23 Mar 2017
The amount of new coal power being built around the world fell by nearly two-thirds last year, prompting campaigners to claim the polluting fossil fuel is in freefall.
European cities want 10 million smart streetlamps
23 Mar 2017
Local governments around Europe paid €7.6 billion to light public streets in 2015. But their bills could be cut down by up to 70 per cent if local governments are willing to shell out extra funds to install new lighting.
Climate change on pace to kill an Ice Age remnant
23 Mar 2017
Humans are in the process of changing the planet in a way that hasn’t happened in 2.6 million years.
Grassland lab raises the alarm on species loss
23 Mar 2017
Scientists in California who turned a patch of natural grassland into a laboratory have established a subtle link between flowering times and the mix of species in an ecosystem – indicating that global warming could change planetary biology and disrupt ecosystems in hitherto unsuspected ways.
Norway must put oil ventures to ‘climate test’
23 Mar 2017
Norway has some of the most ambitious emissions policies in the world, but is opening oil fields that cannot pay back in a safe climate future.
FAMILY FEUD: Princess Anne backs GM crops and livestock
23 Mar 2017
Princess Anne has strongly backed genetically modified crops, saying she would grow them on her own land and that GM livestock would be a “bonus”.
Minister hints at cross-party work on climate change
22 Mar 2017
New Zealand has received the strongest indication yet of cross-party agreement on climate change, with climate minister and deputy prime minister Paula Bennett saying she can work with a new far-reaching report on how the country can be carbon-neutral.
Peak oil? Sooner than you think
22 Mar 2017
Once peak oil is finally reached – whenever that is – demand will begin to drop thereafter, perhaps precipitously.
EDITORIAL COMMENT: We cannot continue on this path
21 Mar 2017
Two reports out today signal a sea-change for New Zealand. One says the New Zealand’s economy is reaching its environmental limits. The other says New Zealand cannot meet its Paris Agreement emissions reduction targets without changing land use.
OECD REPORT: We need price on agricultural emissions
21 Mar 2017
The OECD says New Zealand needs to put a price on greenhouse gases from the agricultural sector.
NET-ZERO REPORT: Pastoral farming must change
21 Mar 2017
New Zealand cannot cut greenhouse gas emissions in line with the Paris Agreement and keep farming the way it is now.
South Australian energy plan signals storage revolution
21 Mar 2017
Australia's largest battery storage technology will be built in South Australia to warehouse renewable energy, providing more affordable and reliable electricity, along with jobs and investment.
US signs up for work on drought-resistant crops
21 Mar 2017
Scientists' efforts to develop new crops able to resist climate change, droughts and other shocks have been boosted by the United States joining an international seeds treaty.
Environment reports cast eye over NZ efforts
20 Mar 2017
Two major environmental reports and a new sustainability law are on the agenda this week.
Wind turbine manufacturer needs more capital
20 Mar 2017
Windflow Technology, the unprofitable wind turbine manufacturer, has widened its first-half loss and says it needs new injections of capital.
China kickstarting coal boom in Pakistan
20 Mar 2017
In a region of Pakistan besieged by drought, and blessed with solar potential, China is funding the expansion of huge new coal projects.
Humans cause up to 70% of sea-ice loss
20 Mar 2017
Scientists have calculated that at least 30 per cent and perhaps one half of the decline in Arctic summer sea ice could be attributed to natural causes – changes of ocean and atmospheric circulation that happen according to some long-term cycle.
Windfarms commercial director to run company
20 Mar 2017
NZ Windfarms says its new commercial director, John Worth, will assume full responsibility for the company's daily operations, taking over from acting chief executive Stuart Bauld.
Companies queue to supply Air NZ with biofuels
17 Mar 2017
Air New Zealand and Virgin Australia say they now have a shortlist of companies to supply them with biofuels.
Businesses face increasing risk from pollution
17 Mar 2017
New Zealand businesses are increasingly at risk from pollution and contamination, says an insurance expert.
Phosphorous is vital ... and we're running out
17 Mar 2017
All life needs phosphorus and agricultural yields are improved when phosphorus is added to growing plants and the diet of livestock. But there is a problem.
PLANES v POLLUTION: A new-look for Heathrow
17 Mar 2017
Britain and Europe’s largest airport is not the most obvious target for an eco-friendly rebranding. Yet Heathrow Airport recently unveiled a new sustainability strategy.
Scotland goes big with offshore wind farm
17 Mar 2017
The Scottish government has approved planning consent for one of the world’s largest floating offshore wind farms.
Whanganui's new status huge call for the environment
16 Mar 2017
The Whanganui River has become entity in its own right – a move potentially of huge environmental significance.
There's nothing like a healthy diet to beat climate change
16 Mar 2017
Scientists have worked out how to combat climate change and improve human health, one mouthful at a time.
Biofuels mix could see end of chemtrails in the sky
16 Mar 2017
Mixing biofuels into aviation gas cuts chemtrails, new research shows.
THE DECOUPLING DELUSION: Rethinking growth and sustainability
16 Mar 2017
Our economy and society ultimately depend on natural resources: land, water, material (such as metals) and energy. But some scientists have recognised that there are hard limits to the amount of these resources we can use.
Government offers new money for electric cars
15 Mar 2017
The second round of Government funding for projects to get more electric vehicles on New Zealand’s roads opens today.
Smaller forests get financial helping hand
15 Mar 2017
Landowners wanting to plant small-to-medium-sized new forests might be able to get some government funding to help them.
SPINNING SAILS: Ancient idea to be given a new airing
15 Mar 2017
An ocean-going tanker is to be fitted with a type of “spinning sail” invented almost a century ago in a step that could lead to more environmentally friendly tankers worldwide.
Private capital must play big part in climate adaptation
14 Mar 2017
Governments will need private capital to deal with the multi-billion-dollar challenges of adapting to climate change, says a report out today.
While governments dither, companies do the job
14 Mar 2017
Businesses and cities are taking up the slack left by government policy, aligning environmental goals with climate science.
Boaty McBoatface heads off to work in the southern seas
14 Mar 2017
A small yellow robot submarine, called Boaty McBoatface after a competition to name a new polar research ship backfired, is being sent on its first Antarctic mission.
Scientists track down travelling droughts
14 Mar 2017
The biggest and worst droughts might not stay fixed in one place but can travel thousands of kilometres from their origin, according to a new study.
Organic farming matters - just not in the way you think
13 Mar 2017
Organically produced food looks good and tastes good ... but can it feed the world?
Science is getting closer to sun-powered cars
13 Mar 2017
Scientists are developing a practical method to convert water and sunshine into fuel — a key step in someday powering cars with the sun.
Morganists want new approach to controls on farming
10 Mar 2017
The Opportunities Party would put a cap on New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions, get rid of the $25 carbon price cap and free credits for heavy emitters and bring some agricultural emissions into the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Baring Head records show CO2 on the rise
10 Mar 2017
Atmospheric carbon dioxide in the Southern Hemisphere continues to rise, with testing at Wellington’s Baring Head now consistently recording around 401 parts per million.
Forests still key to mitigating climate change
10 Mar 2017
Researchers have reminded the world’s governments that forests will play a vital role in mitigating the effects of climate change – provided policies are robustly pursued and reported with transparency.
CRUISE CONTROL: Choppy seas for sustainable ocean travel
10 Mar 2017
Not many of the 25 million people enjoying the sea breeze on a cruise ship this year are likely to think about the air pollutants being emitted from the vessel.
The Opportunities Party wants us carbon neutral by 2050
9 Mar 2017
Pressure is mounting for New Zealand to make deep emissions cuts by the second half of the century, despite the country’s official target being to only halve emissions by 2050.
Global solar leaps 50% thanks to US and China
9 Mar 2017
The amount of solar power added worldwide soared by 50 per cent last year because of a sun rush in the US and China.
Chinese city plans to pump water from Russia
9 Mar 2017
China is reportedly considering plans to build a 1000km pipeline to pump water all the way from Siberia to its drought-stricken northwest.
Magic tricks in the forest can make carbon emissions vanish
9 Mar 2017
Countries are free to manage their forests as they choose, but reducing them to a tool of light-fingered carbon accounting can leave world deprived of vital carbon sinks.
Energy needs broader view, says new minister
8 Mar 2017
New Zealand needs to broaden use of renewable energy beyond the electricity generation, says the new energy minister - but she expects fossil fuels to stay in the mix.
Pacific Islands call for fossil fuel phase-out, NZ hangs back
Today 11:00am
By Liz Kivi | Pacific Islands nations have launched a landmark declaration for a Fossil Fuel Free Pacific, calling for a Fossil Fuel Treaty and urgent phase-out of fossil fuels, however New Zealand isn’t rushing to join the call.
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.
