New Zealand: All stories
NZ joins international drive to free up trade in green goods
11 Jul 2014
A move to free-up the trade in environmental goods could see tariffs fall on goods ranging from bamboo products to high-tech machinery.
Australian farmers led astray on carbon farming
11 Jul 2014
Australian farmers and rural land owners are being told that they will be given powerful and direct incentives to store carbon in the land under the federal government’s new climate policy.
Scientists accuse Shell of climate doublethink
11 Jul 2014
The world’s biggest oil company has been accused of ‘doublethink’ in claiming that its fossil fuel assets will continue to be highly profitable and in demand, while recognising the need for decisive action on climate change.
Cut emissions, say scientists, it's the only way
11 Jul 2014
Once again, American scientists have come to the same conclusion: there really is no alternative. The only way to contain climate change and limit global warming, they say, is to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
Crisis-mauled Montserrat turns disasters to its advantage
11 Jul 2014
The eastern Caribbean island of Montserrat has suffered more than its fair share of natural disasters.
Sydney takes lead role in urban energy drive
11 Jul 2014
Sydney is to head an international network of global cities looking at energy efficiency.
NORMAN: The longer we wait the more it will cost
11 Jul 2014
By RUSSEL NORMAN, Green Party co-leader.- Thanks to Federated Farmers’ incoming president William Rolleston for taking the time to write about the Green Party’s Climate Tax Cut in last week’s Carbon News.
Project sheds light on how we use power
11 Jul 2014
A Victoria University engineering lecturer is shedding light on household power usage, as part of her research into improving the way New Zealand uses electricity.
Keen, green Penang shows us how it's done
4 Jul 2014
By editor ADELIA HALLETT.- The Malaysian island state of Penang is out to topple New Zealand from its clean-green throne.
Asia-Pacific targets $2.5 trillion for renewables
4 Jul 2014
The Asia-Pacific region will invest a massive $3.6 trillion over the years ahead to equip itself with the power capacity it needs for 2030.
Climate target needs new money … but not that much more
4 Jul 2014
Climate change will require substantial new investment in low-carbon energy and energy efficiency – but no more than what is currently spent on today’s fossil-dominated energy system, according to new research.
'I shuddered at the thought of connecting my cooking stove with a toilet’s septic tank'
4 Jul 2014
Sunita Bote, a 30-year-old housewife from the small village of Kumroj in eastern Nepal, was far from convinced when energy specialists from the capital city, Kathmandu, talked about the benefits of constructing a small biogas plant near her house.
Doctors swap fossil fuels for renewables
4 Jul 2014
The body that represents doctors in the UK has voted to end its investments in fossil fuel companies − making it the first national medical organisation in the world to do so.
Memo America: It could be a lot worse than you think
4 Jul 2014
The sheer economic cost of climate change to Americans could be far greater than many realise, an influential study says.
New solar panel system safer and cheaper
4 Jul 2014
British researchers have found a new way to cut the cost of solar cell manufacture, and at the same time make the process less hazardous.
Sorry, say most Britons, but electric cars are not for us
4 Jul 2014
The electric car trend is still to take off, with drivers largely put off by up-front costs, according to a survey by Britain's Department for Transport.
Coal forever? It depends on what we do now
4 Jul 2014
At the recent midyear UN climate negotiations in Bonn, an unprecedented 60 countries (including Germany) called for a total phase-out of fossil fuels by 2050, as part of a global agreement on climate change to be concluded in Paris in 2015.
Why carbon tax proposal won't work
4 Jul 2014
Newly elected Federated Farmers' president Dr William Rolleston explains why he thinks the Green Party's carbon tax proposal is not a runner:
Bioenergy group praises Auckland action
4 Jul 2014
Auckland City’s Energy Resilience and Low Carbon Action Plan will create green jobs and economic growth, says the Bioenergy Association.
Be in to win a sustainability award
4 Jul 2014
Entries for this year's Sustainable Business Network awards are open.
Morgan's water report damns official actions
27 Jun 2014
Businessman and economist Gareth Morgan could pull the plug on the Government’s plans for our crucial freshwater resources.
Millionaire miner rocks Canberra carbon camp
27 Jun 2014
Australia’s emissions trading scheme is on again. Maybe.
Foresters leave scheme
27 Jun 2014
Forty-seven participants left the Emissions Trading Scheme over the past year.
Palmer position won't solve problem, says analyst
27 Jun 2014
Clive Palmer's zero-price emissions trading scheme won't solve Australia's biggest problem - how to meet its 2020 emissions reduction target, says carbon market analyst Reputex:
No worries, says Bridges, the world loves us
27 Jun 2014
Associate Climate Change Minister Simon Bridges says New Zealand’s is respected internationally for its action on climate change.
Carbon tax won't fix troubled ETS, says report
27 Jun 2014
New Zealand's emissions price beacon is "obscured in the fog of policy uncertainty", but dumping it in favour of a carbon tax isn't the only way to fix it, say Motu Research's Catherine Leining and Suzi Kerr.
NZ has warmest winter
27 Jun 2014
Last winter was New Zealand's warmest on record, says the latest international report on global climate.
Why blue means better solar energy systems
27 Jun 2014
When it comes to solar power, it’s a case of the more blue the better, according to Victoria University of Wellington researcher Dr Jonathan Halpert.
Northern gas plant will cut CO2 emissions
27 Jun 2014
A $40 million plant to be built at Marsden Point by industrial gases company BOC will help Refining NZ to further reduce carbon dioxide emissions from its oil refinery.
Australian Senate likely to pass carbon tax repeal
27 Jun 2014
The bill to repeal Australia’s carbon tax is poised to pass the Senate, potentially leaving Australia without a working price on carbon.
Kia loves its new e-car but we won't see it ... yet
27 Jun 2014
Kia Motors says its new zero-emissions electric car has gone into volume production.
Climate crisis puts pressure on King Corn
27 Jun 2014
One-third of cropland in the US is devoted to corn. It produces nearly 40 per cent of the world’s corn, and a record harvest last year was valued at nearly $70 billion.
Scientists see dangers in jet contrails
27 Jun 2014
Air travel is a rapidly-growing source of carbon dioxide and is helping to heat the Earth. It accounted for 6 per cent of the UK’s total greenhouse gas emissions in 2011.
Queenstown plays big part in Aussie ski season
27 Jun 2014
By SUSANNE BECKEN, Professor of Sustainable Tourism and Director Griffith Institute for Tourism at Griffith University. Australia’s ski season is finally getting under way, with the first resort, Perisher, opening its ski lifts.
The many reasons why wood is the way to go
27 Jun 2014
By CHAD OLIVER, Professor of Forestry and Environmental Studies and Director of the Global Institute of Sustainable Forestry, Yale University.- Although it may seem counter-intuitive, it would be better if we built buildings from wood than from concrete, brick, aluminium and steel.
Capital to switch off trolley buses
27 Jun 2014
Wellington Regional Council says its new transport plan will get up to 20 per cent more people out of cars and on to public transport.
Tauranga offers $50,000 for waste ideas
27 Jun 2014
Tauranga businesses are being asked for their ideas on waste management.
Green award finds top farmers
27 Jun 2014
The finalists have been named in the inaugural Green Agricultural Innovation Awards.
Market watchdog welcomes Palmer move
27 Jun 2014
An international carbon market watchdog is welcoming Australian politician Clive Palmer's shift on climate change.
Maori act to mobilise carbon-conscious voters
20 Jun 2014
Maori angry about the Government’s twin failures over carbon prices and sustainable economic development are looking to mobilise the crucial 18-to-34-years-old vote.
Figures show how coal curbs cut gas emissions
20 Jun 2014
Latest energy figures show the dramatic impact cutting coal-fired generation has on greenhouse gas emissions.
Rivers' turn as Wright fires second salvo at Government
20 Jun 2014
The Parliament Commissioner for the Environment has just fired another shot over the bows of the Government for putting economic interests ahead of the environment.
Hot rocks are a core asset for renewable energy
20 Jun 2014
Many countries with volcanoes have long used hot rocks and steam to generate electricity, but new engineering methods promise a boom in geothermal energy.
Foot-draggers back robust 2030 climate goals
20 Jun 2014
A groundswell of public support for binding EU-wide action on renewable energy and energy efficiency has been revealed by a new poll.
Supercritical steam new frontier for power generation
20 Jun 2014
Australian scientists have used solar energy to generate hot and pressurised “supercritical” steam, at the highest temperatures ever achieved in the world outside fossil fuel sources.
Nat's transport plan a fantasy, say Greens
20 Jun 2014
National's transport budget for the next decade is a fantasy plan that pretends climate change doesn’t exist and locks New Zealanders into their cars for the next 50 years, the Green Party says.
Fracking seriously dangerous, say campaigners
20 Jun 2014
Campaigners in the United States are warning that fracking for oil or gas, which has transformed the country’s energy market, is seriously depleting or contaminating supplies of the most vital asset − water
Carbon tax call is all about playing politics
20 Jun 2014
By CHARLES ETHERINGTON, Warren Forestry Ltd.- The Greens are giving the impression of being ahead on the topic of a carbon tax versus the Emissions Trading Scheme, but, as usual, they are actually behind and just playing politics.
Big sports events can come with a high social price tag
20 Jun 2014
THE World Cup in Brazil is again putting the spotlight on the sustainability, legacy and license to operate of large global sporting events.
Finns launch sustainable business tools
20 Jun 2014
The VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has launched a suite of new tools to help manufacturers and farmers develop economically, environmentally and sociallay sustainable business models.
‘Pathetic': experts slam govt’s approach to adaptation
Today 11:00am
By Liz Kivi | The government has signalled it will step back from full property buyouts if assets are hit by climate disasters, a move adaptation experts say will condemn hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders to a “dismal” future.
Electricity Authority proposes doubling solar export limits to 10 kW
Today 11:00am
The Electricity Authority is proposing a default 10kW export limit for small-scale generation, saying new inverter standards and voltage settings allow homes and businesses to feed more power into local networks without compromising safety.
All carrot, no stick for farmers on methane
Fri 17 Oct 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | COMMENT: The abandonment of methane emissions pricing and the adoption of a weaker target is effectively the last nail in the coffin of the historic cross-parliamentary consensus embedded in the Zero Carbon Act 2019.
Govt releases updated emissions projections
13 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Ministry for the Environment has released updated emissions projections to 2050, which show significant differences to the Climate Change Commission's recent projections for the same period.
Air NZ inks deal for its first internationally verified carbon credits
9 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | Air New Zealand has committed to buying 8000 tonnes of carbon removals by 2030, in partnership with local native forest investment platform My Native Forest.
Emails show forestry lobby fought Gisborne crackdown as slash clean-up drags on
26 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Sustainable land use advocates are accusing Eastland Wood Council of stonewalling efforts to tighten forestry rules, after correspondence between the group and the local council was released under the Official Information Act.
Climate credibility gap widening for Aussie firms
1 Oct 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Australian public companies’ climate change commitments are in retreat, reflecting difficulty in achieving stated targets and increased fossil use, but not because of any pressure to make less effort, according to a study of major companies’ ESG reporting.
