New Zealand: All stories
We can survive without oil, says Saudi
26 Apr 2016
Saudi Arabia’s cabinet has approved Vision 2030, a package of economic reforms designed to reduce dependence on oil revenues.
Shipping leaders back faster emissions cuts
26 Apr 2016
The global shipping fleet should be cutting its fuel use 20 per cent a decade, according to a coalition of 15 business leaders.
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.
San Francisco demands solar panels on new buildings
22 Apr 2016
San Francisco has unanimously passed legislation that would require new construction that is shorter than 10 floors to install solar panels or solar water heaters on top of both new residential and commercial buildings.
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 Bus going electric will save the capital's trolleys
21 Apr 2016
New Zealand’s largest bus company is going electric in a move that will save Wellington’s beloved trolley buses – albeit without the overhead wires.
NZ court fines Australian carbon farmer
21 Apr 2016
An Australian carbon farming company that used a New Zealander to buy land has been fined $40,000.
Europe’s biggest carmakers are in for a rough ride
21 Apr 2016
Between Dutch plans to ban sales of petrol cars from 2025 and the rapid rise of car-sharing, the automotive industry faces some big challenges.
US-Canada pact eases Arctic drilling fears
21 Apr 2016
Low oil prices have reduced pressure to exploit Arctic fossil fuels and boosted hopes that the region’s fragile environment and indigenous people may be better protected.
Millions must choose between eating and heating
21 Apr 2016
An estimated 54 million Europeans suffer from energy poverty, according to a European Commission analysis, which blames rising prices, low income and energy inefficient homes for forcing people to choose between eating or heating.
Mangroves might help to combat climate change
21 Apr 2016
Scientists from 13 research institutions across India are studying the carbon sequestration potential of mangroves, under plans to use the species to build resilience to climate change in coastal regions and islands.
Dodgy units aside, we could make money from ETS credits
20 Apr 2016
Accusations that almost all the international units brought into the Emissions Trading Scheme are fraudulent are an exaggeration, says an expert who believes that the scheme could generate a nice international export in carbon credits.
YES WE CAN! Business leaders to make blueprint for our low-carbon future
20 Apr 2016
Some of the country’s largest businesses, lobby groups and organisations will meet in Wellington next month to draw up a blueprint for making New Zealand into a low-carbon economy.
Business backs stronger line on climate
20 Apr 2016
Business leaders say they hope this week’s signing of the Paris Agreement on climate change by New Zealand signals a stronger line on climate change action – with New Zealand reaching net-zero emissions not long after 2050.
Z Energy's biodiesel plant strikes gold
20 Apr 2016
Z Energy’s $26 million dollar biodiesel plant has earned it gold membership of the Bioenergy Association.
Feeding cows brassicas might solve the nitrogen problem
20 Apr 2016
Could feeding cows brassicas help to reduce nitrogen loss from the soil?
Nuclear costs are travelling in uncharted territory
20 Apr 2016
As some governments press on with new nuclear installations to address climate change, a multi-billion dollar industry will be needed to make safe old power plants and their hazardous waste.
Australian partners want $1b for clean energy move
20 Apr 2016
Australiafs Clean Energy Finance Corporation and infrastructure manager Palisade have announced a partnership to attract investment of $1 billion in clean energy projects.
Netherlands eyes petrol and diesel ban by 2025
20 Apr 2016
Dutch politicians have voted through a motion calling on the country to ban sales of new petrol and diesel cars starting in 2025.
Aviation talks face headwinds on rich-poor compromise
20 Apr 2016
A deal to slash aviation emissions later this year risks being blown off course unless it overcomes major differences between wealthy and developing countries.
WAKE UP! The nation must start taking action
19 Apr 2016
By editor ADELIA HALLETT | A climate change report released today by worried scientists should shake all New Zealanders, from the prime minister down, to their core.
Bennett to talk climate change with the big guns
19 Apr 2016
Climate Change Minister Paula Bennett will take part in the Major Economies Forum on Climate Change in the United States this week.
Soil could save Earth from overheating
19 Apr 2016
New research shows that changing the way we farm and manage soils so they store carbon rather than lose it would help to avoid dangerous climate change.
CONFIRMED: Over 90% of climate scientists are believers
19 Apr 2016
When the University of Queensland published a paper in 2013 finding 97 per cent scientific consensus on human-caused global warming, what was surpising was how surprised everyone was.
Australia's air pollution increases 69%
19 Apr 2016
Air quality across Australia has deteriorated to alarming levels with the coal industry the nation's worst polluter, new data has shown.
Japan’s emissions fall to three-year low
19 Apr 2016
Japan’s greenhouse gas emissions have fallen to a three-year low due to growing use of renewable energy and reduced power demand.
Agriculture key to UN sustainable goals
19 Apr 2016
Agriculture will play a crucial role in addressing the planet’s future needs – whether on food production, health or the preservation of the environment. But transforming the dominant agricultural model could be the greatest challenge of all.
Global electric car sales on the rise
19 Apr 2016
After four years of steady growth, US plug-in electric car sales were essentially flat last year. However, in other parts of the world, it was a different story.
NZ international credits dealing is fraud, says report
18 Apr 2016
New Zealand’s determination to use carried-over international carbon credits to meet its 2020 emissions reduction target make it party to an international fraud, a new report says.
Our man in Tokyo gets top climate-change job
18 Apr 2016
New Zealand’s next Climate Change Ambassador will be career diplomat Mark Sinclair.
Farming fund backs 25 sustainable projects
18 Apr 2016
Twenty-five projects have been given a total of $6.9 million in the latest round of grants from the Sustainable Farming Fund.
Forgetting fossil fuels a turning point in history
18 Apr 2016
The head of a global philanthropic foundation says that the world turning away from fossil fuels is a critical moment in human history, akin to the abolition of slavery.
World Bank head warns against new coal plants
18 Apr 2016
The planet is in a race against time to stop construction of new coal-fired power plants across the globe, Word Bank head Jim Kim has told media.
Asia facing severe water shortages by 2050
18 Apr 2016
Within 35 years, China and India - where roughly half the world's population lives - might be facing what scientists are calling a "high risk of severe water stress".
Why carbon price is key to forestry worth billions
15 Apr 2016
Carbon prices will need to hit $35 a tonne by 2017 or forest owners will quit the Emissions Trading Scheme, leaving New Zealand unable to meet its emissions reductions targets, an expert is warning.
Michael Bloomberg needs your help
15 Apr 2016
The G20 taskforce drawing up guidelines for companies to disclose to investors their carbon exposure wants public input.
Scientists to join forces on 1.5C climate report
15 Apr 2016
Scientists from around the world will contribute to a major UN report on how global temperatures can be held to a rise of 1.5degC and what the impact might be on sea level rises, the bleaching of corals and biodiversity.
Wasted food places heavy burden on climate
15 Apr 2016
As obesity levels soar, cutting the vast amount of food we waste could have a major impact on reducing the effects of climate change, as well as alleviating world hunger.
Blame burning fossil fuels for most sea-level rise
15 Apr 2016
Global average sea level has risen by about 17 cm between 1900 and 2005. This is a much faster rate than in the previous 3000 years.
Biggest coal company files for bankruptcy
15 Apr 2016
Peabody Energy, the world’s largest privately owned coal company, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, following a significant downturn in the coal market that left the company saddled with debt.
Norway fund drops deforestation firms
15 Apr 2016
Norway’s $700 billion sovereign wealth fund, the largest in the world, has dropped 11 companies for their connections to deforestation.
Solar sets UK record by beating coal for a day
15 Apr 2016
The sun provided British homes and businesses with more power than coal-fired power stations for 24 hours last weekend.
Top table invites us to chew over carbon market
14 Apr 2016
New Zealand is to join a select group of countries talking about developing a global carbon market.
Big powers in push for small nuclear reactors
14 Apr 2016
Concerns are being raised about the billions of dollars being spent on research to design and build small nuclear reactors for electricity production.
China coal use: Here’s how to read the tea leaves
14 Apr 2016
As the largest emitter of carbon dioxide in the world, how much coal China is burning is of global interest.
BP playing fast and loose with future, by Bill McKibben
14 Apr 2016
As shareholders gather for BP’s AGM in London this week, they deserve to be made aware of just how at-risk their investments are — and what BP thinks about the future of the firm and the planet. Because the company their investments allow to operate is fourth in a list of the world’s top-emitting companies and was responsible for 2.47 per cent of global emissions from 1751-2010.
China buys up farmland in central France
14 Apr 2016
A Chinese company has acquired hundreds of hectares of cereal-producing farmland in central France, provoking astonishment and anger in the farming community.
Hotel chain grows own veges to cut food waste
14 Apr 2016
One of the world’s biggest hotel chains has announced it will plant vegetable gardens at many of its hotels as part of a plan to cut food waste by a third.
TASK FORCE: Bennett going public to cut emissions
13 Apr 2016
The Government looks set to establish up a public task force to plan New Zealand’s transition to a low-carbon economy.
Pacific Islands call for fossil fuel phase-out, NZ hangs back
Thu 23 Apr 2026
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
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
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.
