New Zealand: All stories
Home-energy firm wins UK accolade
4 Oct 2013
A Wellington-based home-energy efficient company has been recognised as part of the fastest-growing business in Britain.
Pressure grows to act on Maui's dolphin
4 Oct 2013
New Zealand is under increasing international pressure to take action over the near-extinction of Maui's dolphin.
True carbon price bioenergy aid, says expert
27 Sep 2013
A realistic carbon price and support from large companies would help to propel bioenergy from a good idea to reality, says one of our leading experts.
100% Pure? We're ranked at a lowly 36
27 Sep 2013
“100% Pure” New Zealand ranks at just 36th in the world when it comes to environmental sustainability, according to a new international energy report.
Business better, gas emissions worse
27 Sep 2013
New Zealand’s strengthening economy is showing in our carbon emissions.
LanzaTech wins $4m US research grant
27 Sep 2013
LanzaTech has been awarded a $US4 million grant by the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy of the US Department of Energy to work with partners on unlocking the energy in waste methane gases.
IPCC serious over sea levels
27 Sep 2013
By HOLLY RYAN, Science Media Centre. Rising sea levels will receive increased attention from climate scientists today when the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change unveils its latest report on the state of the climate.
High Court throws out One Plan appeals
27 Sep 2013
The High Court has backed the legality of the ground-breaking Horizons Regional Council One Plan.
She'll be reading Ecoman ...
27 Sep 2013
Jane O’Loughlin of Wellington is the winner of Ecoman, the story of how Ecostore founder Malcolm Rands developed an international business out of eco-friendly cleaning products.
Emitters make canny use of cheap ERUs
20 Sep 2013
Canny emitters used the international glut of cheap ERUs to cut carbon liabilities last year to a fraction of previous levels.
NZ Steel takes almost $5m in free credits
20 Sep 2013
New Zealand Steel is once again the biggest recipient of free carbon credits, receiving nearly $5 million worth from the Government.
We're giving away a copy of Ecoman, the story of a sustainable business
20 Sep 2013
Ecostore founder Malcolm Rands has written a book to explain how he built a successful, sustainable international business.
Waikato students set to tackle Outback in e-car
20 Sep 2013
A group of University of Waikato mechanical engineering students have unveiled their masterpiece – an electric car they will race 3000km from Darwin to Adelaide over six days next month.
Power rental market expects the best
20 Sep 2013
Emissions regulations could have an impact on the booming global power rental market, a new report says
Scientist gets $2m for dairy research
20 Sep 2013
University of Waikato Earth Scientist Professor Peter Kamp has been awarded $2.07 million funding to continue research into energy efficiency in the dairy sector.
Smart Sydney landlords save millions
20 Sep 2013
Sydney's major commercial office landlords are saving more than $25 million a year on their electricity bills, thanks to more energy-efficient buildings.
Political parties back Palmer on RMA
13 Sep 2013
Sir Geoffrey Palmer’s call for environmental protections to be written into a New Zealand constitution is gaining political traction.
Labour hopefuls and their green values
13 Sep 2013
Which of the three MPs battling to be leader of the Labour Party would be best for the environment?
Start now, science chief tells businesses
13 Sep 2013
New Zealand’s chief science adviser says that businesses should not be distracted by apparent argument over the validity of anthropogenic climate change.
Why sustainable building speaks for itself
13 Sep 2013
Sustainable building no longer has to prove its economic worth – the business case more than stacks up in terms of lower operating and life cycle costs, and improved value for owners, according to a new report.
Waterfront building becomes a star
13 Sep 2013
One of New Zealand’s leading sustainable buildings has achieved a market-leading NABERSNZ rating for energy performance.
Renewables yes, but thermal power will win
13 Sep 2013
Thermal power will continue to be the dominant source of power for the foreseeable future, despite growth in renewables, a new report says.
Warehouse switches off energy-hungry bulbs
13 Sep 2013
The Warehouse will no longer sell energy-hungry incandescent light bulbs.
Our businesses must lead, says green champion
6 Sep 2013
The Global Sustainability Leader of the Year says New Zealand businesses need to step up to the responsibilities – and opportunities – of environmental issues like climate change.
Industry unhappy with forest credits move
6 Sep 2013
The Government’s decision to replace Permanent Forest Sink Initiative credits with NZUs is wrong, says a market analyst.
We're talking ETS with Australia and Korea
6 Sep 2013
New Zealand has had discussions with Australia and Korea on the theoretical requirements involved in linking emissions trading schemes.
Shane Jones: It's all about balance
6 Sep 2013
Labour MP Shane Jones says that a Government led by him would balance environmental and economic interests.
Greens criticise good-news minerals report
6 Sep 2013
A new Government report will promote investment in, and better policies on minerals in New Zealand, Straterra says.
Businessmen join the stars in oil protest
6 Sep 2013
Business leaders Phillip Mills and Nick Gerritsen are among a list of A-list New Zealanders opposing the Government’s plans for deep-sea oil drilling and its crackdown on protesting at sea.
Bag maker gets fine over environment claim
6 Sep 2013
Companies have been given a clear warning that their environmental claims must stand up to scrutiny.
Labour thermal power bid fails
6 Sep 2013
A bid by Labour MP Moana Mackey to bring back the ban on new thermal electricity generation has fallen at the first hurdle.
BOC boasts fumigant is ozone safe
6 Sep 2013
BOC gases has come up with a non-ozone-damaging fumigant to replace methyl bromide.
La Nina effect cause of warming pause
6 Sep 2013
New findings that show a slowing of global surface temperature warming are no cause for complacency, scientists warn.
Solar installation rates trend down
6 Sep 2013
Solar module installations enjoyed a significant increase from approximately 1.4 GW in 2006 to 29 GW in 2011, but the industry has started to move away from the initial spur, according to research and consulting firm GlobalData.
Environment first, vows Labour contender
30 Aug 2013
A government led by Labour leadership contender Grant Robertson would make all legislation subject to an environmental impact assessment.
Is this the new Groser, asks academic
30 Aug 2013
Climate Change and Trade Minister Tim Groser appears to have had a Road to Damascus experience.
Production of biodiesel falls
30 Aug 2013
Production of biodiesel fell after the Government scrapped the Biodiesel Grant Scheme last year.
'I don't think I've ever driven a Kyoto Protocol ...'
30 Aug 2013
Last Sunday, Radio New Zealand’s Down The List programme turned its satirical eye on New Zealand’s 2020 emissions reduction target.
Renewable energy generation drops
30 Aug 2013
The percentage of electricity generated in New Zealand from renewable sources fell last year.
Expert slams our motorway madness
30 Aug 2013
New Zealand is one of the last countries in the world still building motorways as the solution to urban congestion, a visiting expert says.
We're switching on to energy-saving bulbs
30 Aug 2013
New Zealanders are buying more energy-efficient light bulbs.
Geothermal projects win new funding
30 Aug 2013
GNS Science has won government funding for two geothermal energy projects that will help to make geothermal energy developments more efficient and more attractive to investors.
Kyoto rules govern new emissions stand
23 Aug 2013
New Zealand’s 2020 emissions reduction target will be implemented under Kyoto Protocol rules.
Experts slam 5% emissions target
23 Aug 2013
Leading climate policy and science experts say the Government’s emissions reduction target is “markedly inadequate and disappointing”.
Tourism leaders stick with 100% Pure
23 Aug 2013
Tourism New Zealand is pressing on with its 100% Pure brand, despite on-going international criticism.
Sanford charge new blow to image, says MP
23 Aug 2013
Charges of dumping oil at sea against one of New Zealand’s largest fishing companies, Sanford, is another potential body blow to our clean, green image, says Labour’s Environment spokesperson Maryan Street.
Contact decision disappoints wind energy body
23 Aug 2013
The New Zealand Wind Energy Association is disappointed that Contact Energy has decided to exit the Hauâuru mâ raki wind generation development on the Waikato coast.
Interest in eels pleases green watchdog
23 Aug 2013
The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment says she is pleased with the Government’s response to date on threats to the endangered longfin eel.
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.
