New Zealand: All stories
Solar behemoth arises in China
23 Sep 2016
A massive 2-gigawatt solar project is under development in China's Ningxia region. The $2.34 billion project will need about six million panels and will likely be the world's largest solar farm.
Asia eyes renewable energy super grid
23 Sep 2016
Entrepreneurs in China, Russia, Japan and South Korea have signed a memorandum of understanding which sets out plans to create an Asian renewable energy super grid.
NZ mulls over stand on aviation emissions
22 Sep 2016
New Zealand is considering its position on international plans to reduce the aviation industry’s impact on the climate.
No way, Nick, you can't claim credit for the ETS
22 Sep 2016
The Government is doing it again – claiming to have introduced the Emissions Trading Scheme when it actually voted against it.
Emissions targets need all-electric cars
22 Sep 2016
A new study says that achieving limits on temperature rise agreed at last year’s Paris climate conference will require a massive switch to zero emissions electric-powered vehicles, coupled with the development of a completely decarbonised power sector.
Tokyo wants self-drive cars for 2020 Olympics
22 Sep 2016
Tokyo aims to introduce self-driving vehicles by the time the Olympic Games are staged there in 2020.
Study sees carbon price reaching $60 by 2030
21 Sep 2016
Carbon could be $60 a tonne by 2030, boosting renewables and fuelling a drive toward energy efficiency, a new report shows.
CARMAGEDDON | Let's face it, cars always were a dumb idea
21 Sep 2016
It was a mistake – a monumental, world-class mistake. Cars for everyone was one of the most stupid promises politicians ever made.
Native American pipeline resistance is about climate justice
21 Sep 2016
Over the past months, hundreds of indigenous persons and their allies have gathered near the crossing of the Missouri and Cannon Ball rivers in the ancestral territories of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe.
New patent boosts CO2 capture hopes
21 Sep 2016
A technology that could in theory catch 90 per cent of carbon dioxide from coal-fired power stations has been patented by US government scientists.
Toyota using sewage to power new electric car
21 Sep 2016
For unlimited clean energy, Toyota is turning to one of the dirtiest places there is: the toilet.
We need a million electric vehicles, says report
20 Sep 2016
New Zealand needs 1.2 million light electric vehicles on the road by 2030 to meet its Paris Agreement emissions reduction target, a report shows.
Minister admits Government can't afford e-cars
20 Sep 2016
Government departments are so cash-strapped they can’t afford to buy electric vehicles, the transport minister says.
Green glue hailed as gamechanger
20 Sep 2016
An environmentally friendly bioadhesive labelled a gamechanger for the wood panel industry has been named Biotechnology of the Year.
Why are millions of trees dying across the US?
20 Sep 2016
A quiet crisis playing out in US forests as huge numbers of trees succumb to drought, disease, insects and wildfire – much of it driven by climate change.
DUNNE DEAL | United Future offers cash for e-cars
19 Sep 2016
One of the Government’s support parties is promising to do what Treasury advised and what the Government has refused to do – offer cash to anyone buying electric vehicles.
New stations blossom in e-drive week
19 Sep 2016
International Drive Electric Week last week saw new electric vehicle charging stations opened in Nelson, Thames Wellington and Auckland.
Agriculture emissions continue to grow
16 Sep 2016
New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture continue to climb.
RAIL v ROAD: Trains still come out in front
16 Sep 2016
Rail will continue to out-perform road transport when it comes to climate change, regardless of whether it’s using electric trains or not, KiwiRail says.
GOODBYE GAS: Why petrol cars must go by 2035
16 Sep 2016
The last gasoline-powered car will have to be sold by about 2035 to put the world on track to limit global warming to the most stringent goal set by world leaders last year, a new study says.
Renewables establish economic lead
16 Sep 2016
The cheapest way of generating energy today is to use renewable fuels – and the authors of a new analysis predict that renewables are set to enjoy even more of an advantage within a few years.
Investment in new renewables outpaces demand
16 Sep 2016
The International Energy Agency has released a report showing that investment in new renewables has covered the global electricity demand in 2015.
Minister way off mark on EVs, says transport expert
15 Sep 2016
Government suggestions that improved fuel efficiency will get New Zealand’s transport emissions under control are nonsense, an expert says.
Scientists get closer to methane answers
15 Sep 2016
New research has added yet another layer to a major scientific debate about the global emissions of methane.
Modified wood aims to save forests from the axe
15 Sep 2016
A hardwood substitute has been developed to effectively end the need to log native forests.
Stand by for the electric Mini
15 Sep 2016
BMW is planning a big shift in its electric vehicle strategy that would greenlight electric versions of some of its most important vehicles, including the 3-series sedan, X4 crossover and iconic Mini.
Gas pipelines run over EU energy policy
15 Sep 2016
Civil society campaigners have accused the European Union of pouring unprecedented amounts of state aid into a huge energy project that runs counter to its own climate change objectives.
Lower crop yields test market forces
15 Sep 2016
Food will cost the consumer more as a result of climate change, but it is not at all clear that farmers will profit accordingly, says a new study.
UNIVERSITY CHALLENGE: Otago puts heat on Auckland
14 Sep 2016
Otago University is extending its ban on fossil-fuel investments as part of a global divestment movement of nearly $5 trillion, putting more pressure on Auckland University to do the same.
Now it's milk ... minus the dairy industry
14 Sep 2016
A San-Francisco startup believes it has found a solution for the guilty conscience of consumers who love eating dairy ice-cream, cheese and yoghurt, but oppose factory-style farming and its environmental footprint.
Green-powered boat readies for round-world voyage
14 Sep 2016
Dubbed the “Solar Impulse of the Seas”, the first boat to be powered solely by renewable energies and hydrogen aims to make its own historic trip around the world.
E-bus can run 560km on one charge
14 Sep 2016
Manufacturer Proterra is debuting a new electric bus, called the Catalyst E2 Series, that can drive up to 560 kilometres per charge.
Taxpayers gift $80m to industrial emitters
13 Sep 2016
Taxpayers have this year given industrial emitters of greenhouse gases free carbon credits worth more than $80 million on today’s market – and soon they’ll be getting twice as many.
Warmer world not healthy for wheat crops
13 Sep 2016
Global wheat production will fall as temperatures rise, a new study shows.
New fabric generates electric power on the go
13 Sep 2016
A super-thin fabric that generates electricity from both sunlight and movement promises a lightweight, flexible, foldable power source on the go.
Fasten your seat belt - turbulence is on the rise
13 Sep 2016
Severe turbulence, which recently forced the emergency landing of a transatlantic flight, is on the rise. But why and what can be done?
RUC exemption could save thousands for truckers
12 Sep 2016
Truck and bus operators could save thousands of dollars a year under road-user charge exemptions now before the Government.
Survey quizzes big business on sustainability
12 Sep 2016
Environmental and social sustainability in business is going mainstream, say those behind the latest S&P Dow Jones sustainability indices.
Our best shot at cooling the planet might be right under our feet
12 Sep 2016
Studies suggest that regenerating the soil by turning our backs on industrial farming holds the key to tackling climate change.
Making wine brings a lot of energy headaches
12 Sep 2016
Wine production consumes large amounts of energy and generates a sizeable quantity of greenhouse gases.
Planting flooded paddies raises rice methane threat
12 Sep 2016
Directly seeding rice into fields rather than transplanting it into flooded paddies would dramatically reduce methane emissions and slow down climate change, according to scientists studying the staple crop.
New EV exemption won't work, says Treasury
9 Sep 2016
The Government is extending an exemption from road user charges for light electric vehicles – despite being told by Treasury that the move won’t get more people into electric cars.
Waste Management fleet going electric
9 Sep 2016
Waste Management is converting its rubbish trucks to run on electricity as part of plan to switch its 1000-strong fleet away from fossil fuels.
Shipping industry prepares for looming climate tax
9 Sep 2016
As pressure mounts on shipping to pull its weight in global climate efforts, the sector is anticipating a carbon price on bunker fuels.
BIOGAS BONUS: NZ is slow to get the message
8 Sep 2016
New Zealand is slow to grasp the potential to cut greenhouse gas emissions and other pollution by turning waste into biogas, says a company providing the technology all over the world.
Lobby group asks investor to drop fossil fuels
8 Sep 2016
KiwiSaver provider Simplicity is being challenged to add fossil-fuel companies to the list of investments it won’t touch.
Humans running the show, so let’s make sure we learn
8 Sep 2016
As we head into the Anthropocene epoch, we often stand accused of inadvertently running “global experiments” through our effects on wildlife, food chains, landscapes and the climate.
Europe’s nuclear club slows emissions cuts
8 Sep 2016
The prospect of using nuclear energy appears to deter European countries from adopting renewable technologies such as wind and solar, and from introducing energy efficiency measures.
Auckland chemist strikes gold in biogas breakthrough
7 Sep 2016
A membrane invented in Auckland and worth more than its weight in gold could drastically change biogas production.
Shipping pollution kills thousands a year in Asia
7 Sep 2016
A boom in shipping is aggravating air pollution in China and other nations in east Asia, causing thousands of deaths a year in a region with eight of the world’s 10 biggest container ports, scientists have said.
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.
