New Zealand: All stories
Could one million smart pool pumps store renewable energy better than giant batteries?
15 Jun 2015
As more wind and solar energy comes online, the people who run the power grid have a problem: how do they compensate for the variable nature of the sun and wind?
Desert farms could power flight with sunshine and seawater
15 Jun 2015
The aviation industry is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions. In 2011 aviation contributed around 3% of Australia’s emissions. Despite improvements in efficiency, global aviation emissions are expected to grow 70% by 2020 from 2005.
Group aims to improve transport systems
15 Jun 2015
A high-level United Nations advisory group has agreed to take measures that could accelerate a shift toward safer, healthier, more efficient and sustainable transport systems.
China sets the pace in solar installations
15 Jun 2015
China will remain the world’s largest market for annual solar photovoltaic installations, a new report says.
Leadership is what we need, say scientists
8 Jun 2015
New Zealand lacks the leadership to achieve the 40 per cent cut in greenhouse gas emissions it needs to make by 2030, the country’s top scientists are warning.
10,000 have their say on carbon emissions
8 Jun 2015
The Government has received more than 10,000 submissions on New Zealand’s post-2020 emissions reduction target.
Stranded assets not for us, declares minister
8 Jun 2015
Stranded fossil fuel assets are not a risk for New Zealand, the Government says.
Drop free carbon credits, says environment chief
8 Jun 2015
The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment wants the Government to stop giving free carbon credits to high-intensity trade-exposed emitters, who, she says, could still be paying for just 5 per cent of their emissions by 2050.
Lobby group wants think tank to set emissions target
8 Jun 2015
An environmental lobby group is calling for a cross-sector working group on New Zealand’s post-2020 emissions reduction target.
Climate targets not a cost, says bioenergy bloc
8 Jun 2015
The Government should see its climate change targets as an opportunity for New Zealand business and the economy, not a cost, the BioEnergy Association says.
Bonn talks take step forward - but it's only a small one
8 Jun 2015
The combined climate plans for the G7 and EU have made a small step toward the right track to hold warming to 2degC, but there is still a substantial emissions gap, the Climate Action Tracker model shows.
Bio-waste boon for natives on poor pine soils
8 Jun 2015
Bio-waste can be utilised on former pine plantations to generate big economic returns, new research shows.
Clean water company seeks public backing
8 Jun 2015
A Hawkes Bay company with new technology to treat wastewater has launched an equity crowd-funding campaign.
How modern crops can ensure food security in a heatwave
8 Jun 2015
India’s heatwave again highlights just how seriously extreme weather conditions threaten our ability to put sufficient nutritious food on all our plates.
Africa’s advocates say fossil fuel subsidies must go
8 Jun 2015
Developed countries should rapidly end subsidies for fossil fuels, says a group established to argue for equitable and sustainable development for Africa.
Treasury tells Government how to cut emissions
2 Jun 2015
Treasury has told the Government that if it wants to reduce greenhouse gas emissions it should introduce a carbon price floor, get rid of the two-for-one provisions or cut the number of free carbon credits it gives to emitters.
We're handing big emitters $160m in free credits
2 Jun 2015
Taxpayers will give $160 million worth of free carbon credits to heavy emitters this year.
Our businesses don't get it, says new Greens leader
2 Jun 2015
Too many New Zealand companies just don’t get sustainable business, says the new Green Party co-leader.
Clean-green brand not working overseas, says report
2 Jun 2015
Many overseas consumers are unaware their food originates in New Zealand, undermining attempts to promote our “clean and green” and premium brand image, a new study finds.
Networking good way to make wind power reliable
2 Jun 2015
Researchers say they’ve figured out how to make wind power reliable.
Shell can’t afford to wait until 2050 to adapt its business to climate change
2 Jun 2015
Shell’s recent AGM was tumultuous. Shareholders voted overwhelmingly for the company to report on whether its activities were compatible with promised government action on climate change.
Coffee drinkers beware, your brew will change with the climate
2 Jun 2015
We have known for some time that coffee is a climate-sensitive crop. Now we have the first global evidence that increasing minimum, or night-time, temperatures are having the hardest impact on your daily brew.
Take care with electric vehicles, says academic
2 Jun 2015
Converting New Zealand’s car fleet to electricity needs careful management, a Canterbury University researcher says.
Group sits down to settle cod question
2 Jun 2015
Consultation on new proposals to manage the blue cod fishery in the Marlborough Sounds start today.
New energy policy needed as nuclear giants take a hit
2 Jun 2015
The European nuclear industry, led by France, seems to be in terminal decline as a result of the cancellation of a new Finnish reactor, technical faults in stations already under construction, and severe financial problems.
Health impacts being ignored, say doctors
2 Jun 2015
The Government is ignoring the health impacts of climate change, doctors say.
Budget holds hint of carbon credit auctions
25 May 2015
The Government is developing the architecture to auction carbon credits.
We're overdoing farm fertilisers, says report
25 May 2015
Nitrogen and phosphorus application rates in parts of New Zealand are exceeding known safe limits, a new report shows.
OPINION: New Zealand should be using its abundant renewable electricity generation capacity to power its transport fleet, argues BOB BINGHAM:
25 May 2015
Oil is a fantastic high energy and very portable fuel and currently it’s very cheap In fact, it has almost always been cheap and plentiful and we have built a good life with it. So what’s the problem?
Farmers given early warning about hungry crop pest
25 May 2015
It is small, bright green and an unwelcome visitor. But global warming means that this particular agricultural menace arrives earlier than ever − and consumes more than ever.
The skyscrapers of the future will be made of wood
25 May 2015
By PETER WILSON.- Vancouver architect Michael Green was unequivocal at a conference at which I heard him speak a while ago: “We grow trees in British Columbia that are 35 storeys tall, so why do our building codes restrict timber buildings to only five storeys?”
Farmers hold the key to nature conservation ... so give them a break
25 May 2015
The town of Bethlehem in the Free State Province, South Africa, gets its name from the Hebrew words “Beit lechem” - house of bread. It is a fitting name for a town nestled within a patchwork of privately owned commercial farmland. Much can be learnt here about the challenges farmers face when conserving nature.
Brazil leads South American renewable energy charge
25 May 2015
Brazil will spearhead renewable energy development in South America to 2017, as the continent changes its energy profile.
Inter-island ferry tests cleaner fuels
25 May 2015
KiwiRail is testing the viability of using cleaner fuels for its ferries.
In the new war of the worlds, the old world is losing
18 May 2015
The power of traditional companies is declining in the face of sustainable and techno companies, new research shows.
Storm shows we haven't got the message, say weather experts
18 May 2015
Reaction to last week’s Wellington floods shows that New Zealanders are not prepared for the impacts of climate change, scientists say.
Forest policy action pleases timber industry
18 May 2015
The Government appears to be putting in place the ingredients of a national forestry policy, an industry leader says.
Where's the clean-tech economy talk, Mr Little?
18 May 2015
Labour leader Andrew Little is blasting the Government for failing to diversify the economy, but he is still not talking about a low-carbon, clean-tech economy.
Why lack of leadership breeds lack of concern
18 May 2015
A lack of leadership on climate change is probably behind a drop in public concern over the issue, says a lecturer in science communication.
You must find a way, academics tell farmers
18 May 2015
Farmers must find ways of farming more sustainably while maintaining production, warns the Foundation for Arable Research.
Why the Government's forestry policies are not working
18 May 2015
Labour Party climate changes spokesperson MEGAN WOODS on why the Government’s forestry policies are failing:
Tesla's battery power could give Nevada a $100b jolt
18 May 2015
The new Tesla Motors factory being built outside Sparks, Nevada, was already on tap to produce 500,000 electric car batteries and become the largest battery factory in the world when chief executive Elon Musk announced last month it would also produce the potentially revolutionary home battery, the Powerwall.
Oceans generate rising tide of renewables ideas
18 May 2015
A race is on worldwide to harness the tides and waves for electrical power, with more than 100 different devices being tested by companies hoping to make a commercial breakthrough.
Why falling oil prices should not undermine investment in green energy
18 May 2015
When the price of crude oil dropped from US$110 a barrel in mid-2014 to below US$50 by January 2015, there were fears that it would destroy the “green revolution”.
Islands switch to solar power
18 May 2015
Foreign Minister Murray McCully and Cook Islands Prime Minister Henry Puna have officially opened solar arrays on the islands of Penrhyn and Manihiki this week, and marked the completion of the Cook Islands Solar Project.
At last, Government reveals cost of gases reduction
11 May 2015
The Government has revealed how much it thinks cutting greenhouse gases might cost the country.
We've got the chance to turn green into gold
11 May 2015
New Zealand could turn “green into gold” by capitalising on emerging clean technologies and showing leadership on climate change.
Forest grants scheme gets $22m injection
11 May 2015
The Government will put $22.5 million into restarting the Afforestation Grant Scheme, it says.
'PM's bank' pulls back from coal investments
11 May 2015
A company in which Prime Minister John Key is a shareholder is reducing coal investment because of the risk of financial exposure.
Why we must join the clean energy race (and quickly)
11 May 2015
SolarCity founder and chief executive ANDREW BOOTH argues for 100 per cent renewable electricity generation in New Zealand by 2025:
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.
