New Zealand: All stories
Bill sets dangerous precedent, says law expert
30 Oct 2009
The government’s climate change amendment bill is controversial, possibly unconstitutional, and sets a dangerous precedent, says constitutional law expert Professor Noel Cox.
Foss committee has tight deadlines
30 Oct 2009
The select committee considering amendments to the emissions trading scheme will be working hard to meet the November 16 reporting back deadline, says its chairman.
Carbon certifier moves into British market
30 Oct 2009
The government-owned CarboNZero carbon certification programme is moving into Britain on a large scale.
Ecostore: First, we take Manhatten …
30 Oct 2009
An Auckland businessman who this week takes on Manhatten says that a recession is the perfect time in which to embrace ideas like carbon neutrality.
Australian provider buys CERs from China
30 Oct 2009
Australian company COzero says it has completed the purchase of more than 1.4 million CERs (certified emission reduction units) from three projects in China.
$209 MILLION A YEAR - that's what we'll pay to protect Rio Tinto, says analyst
23 Oct 2009
Protecting Rio Tinto’s Tiwai Point aluminium smelter from the full impacts of the emissions trading scheme will cost New Zealand $225,000 a year for every job at the smelter, a management consultant says.
Hide hacks at ETS policy management – tied bill voting more likely
23 Oct 2009
Act party leader Rodney Hide says the process of establishing the ETS is “shot through with lobbying, unprincipled deal-making and divergent treatment of different economic activities”.
Japan casts keen eye on NZ forest credits
23 Oct 2009
Interest in New Zealand’s forestry credits is growing in Japan, says the company involved in the first international sale of the units.
Legal tangle awaits amended climate bill
23 Oct 2009
The Government might have scored an own goal in its haste to push through its climate change amendment bill.
Farming opportunites huge, says recruiter
23 Oct 2009
Carbon reduction and carbon trading hold huge potential for farmers – if they can get beyond the rhetoric and see the opportunities, says an Australian consulting firm looking for staff in New Zealand.
Turia confirms big iwi leading Maori Party ETS policy
23 Oct 2009
The Maori Party is taking its lead from the iwi leadership group on emissions trading policy.
Chauvel to energy leaders: ETS changes too generous to last
23 Oct 2009
It’s unfair to business to give large concessions and subsidies that won't last.
ETS committee grants more time
23 Oct 2009
Politicians will hear more submissions next week on changes to the emissions trading scheme.
Committee vote-tie could send ETS bill back with no changes
16 Oct 2009
EXCLUSIVE - The Government is facing the prospect of a vote tie which will stop any changes to ETS law emerging from select committee.
Fishing carbon quota plan splits industry
16 Oct 2009
Government plans to give some $17 million worth of free carbon credits to quota holders, instead of to the owners of fishing boats as originally planned, has divided the fishing industry.
INTERVIEW: It's time to do the hard bit, says Nick Main
16 Oct 2009
Talking about a carbon economy is easy, says expatriate New Zealander Nick Main, but doing it is the hard part.
Business blasts rushed changes to ETS
16 Oct 2009
The Government came under fire from business last night for rushing through changes to the emissions trading scheme.
Taxpayers face hefty bill from ETS subsidies, says business council
16 Oct 2009
Subsidies to heavy emitters could cost taxpayers $3.5 billion, the Business Council for Sustainable Development is warning.
'Unique' sustainability role under study
16 Oct 2009
New Zealand is a "unique" case study in the politicisation of sustainable development, say researchers at Waikato University.
Protests force slowdown on full-speed-ahead ETS
15 Oct 2009
The Government has been forced to back down over plans to restrict oral submissions on changes to the emissions trading scheme to 50 – all of which were to be heard today.
ETS changes being rammed through, says angry Act
15 Oct 2009
The Act Party is demanding more time for oral submissions on changes to the emissions trading scheme.
Business lobby group gets a night appointment
15 Oct 2009
Business New Zealand will deliver its oral submission on changes to the emissions trading scheme tonight.
Thanks, but no thanks, says Greenpeace
15 Oct 2009
At least one of the organisations down to give an oral submission on the emissions trading scheme is refusing to appear.
NEWS ALERT: Move to hear all oral submissions in ETS bill today
15 Oct 2009
A move will be made at 1pm to have the select committee considering major emissions trading scheme changes hear all oral submissions today.
Who Foss wants to hear on the ETS today
15 Oct 2009
Carbon News has obtained the list of organisations the ETS select committee chair wants to hear from in a single day for oral submissions.
No choice but to accept timeline, say Greens
15 Oct 2009
Oral submissions on changes to the emissions trading scheme will go ahead this afternoon, despite a lack of notice.
Papers show initial ETS costs as high as $500m
9 Oct 2009
The Government’s changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme will cost $400m to $500m between now and the end of 2012, according to just-released Cabinet papers.
Cabinet paper reveals possible major policy shock for forestry
9 Oct 2009
The forestry industry might be in for a shock ETS policy change, Cabinet papers released today hint.
Cabinet buys a piece of string on cost of new ETS subsidies
9 Oct 2009
A cabinet paper released today confirms no work has been done to budget for the cost of extending subsidies to large emitters after 2012.
Was National pretending to deal with Labour?
9 Oct 2009
Had National already decided what ETS changes it wanted while still outwardly wanting a deal with Labour?
Smelter might suffer under Aussie rules
9 Oct 2009
New Zealand operations powered by renewable energy - like the Rio Tinto aluminium smelter at Bluff - could be disadvantaged by plans to calculate average emissions levels with Australia under a new intensity-based scheme.
Smith: No costings on deal with Maori
9 Oct 2009
The Government has no official costings of its ETS deal with the Maori Party, Climate Change Issues Minister Nick Smith says.
Did Govt cut Maori deal without officials' advice?
9 Oct 2009
The Government appears to have negotiated support from the Maori Party for changes to the emissions trading scheme without input from officials.
How trees can give us fuel freedom ... and 'plastic' bonanza
9 Oct 2009
Trees could give New Zealand total energy independence and a burgeoning bio-plastics industry to boot, says Scion.
ASX green move means good news for NZ
9 Oct 2009
A move by ASX into the green economy will be good for New Zealanders and New Zealand emitters, says local carbon trader Nigel Brunel.
COMMENT: Are farmers still denying climate change?
9 Oct 2009
On September 4, 2003, Federated Farmers led hundreds to the steps of Parliament to oppose paying for research into reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Halve our GHG emissions, say doctors
9 Oct 2009
New Zealand doctors are calling for a rapid halving of this country’s greenhouse gas emissions – for the sake of our health.
Deadline looms with committee silent on rules
9 Oct 2009
No decision has been made yet on whether the select committee considering changes to the emissions trading scheme will hear oral submissions.
Domestic NZUs price likely to settle at $23 a tonne, says trader
2 Oct 2009
The domestic market for New Zealand Units is likely to settle around $23 a tonne if the Government’s cap on prices goes ahead, says a leading trader.
BMW to Government: get your vehicle policies right
2 Oct 2009
BMW’s New Zealand leader has called on the Government to deliver consistent policies on motor vehicle standards.
Go online and have your say on the ETS
2 Oct 2009
Parliament is calling for submissions on changes to the emissions trading scheme – and for the first time they can be made online.
OPINION: The ETS and your business
2 Oct 2009
Kensington Swan energy and resources team leader Bryan Gundersen looks at the implications of proposed amendments to the ETS:
Labour grizzles as ETS changes go through House
23 Sep 2009
National’s changes to the emissions trading scheme moved a step closer yesterday amid threats that a Labour Government would throw them out again.
Back our bill, pleads 'proud' climate minister
23 Sep 2009
Climate Change Issues Minister Nick Smith says that National has delivered on its election promise to amend the emissions trading scheme.
Switch to trees pays off for carbon-conscious farmer
23 Sep 2009
Politicians might be bogged down in arguments over the emissions trading scheme, but in Marlborough, they’re quietly getting on with cutting emissions and making money.
Emissions plan good news for NZ shipping companies
23 Sep 2009
Good news is at hand for New Zealand domestic shipping companies facing competition from foreign vessels not subject to the emissions trading scheme.
Let farmers opt in to ETS, says expert
23 Sep 2009
New Zealand farmers should be able to opt-in to the emissions trading scheme to benefit from cuts to their emissions levels, says AbacusBio.
Emissions action can create millions of jobs, says report
23 Sep 2009
The new report shows how action to cut CO2 emissions can increase both GDP and employment in all major economies.
IN THE HOUSE: First reading, Climate Change Response (Moderated Emissions Trading) Amendment Bill, September 24, 2009
23 Sep 2009
Climate Change Issues Minister Nick Smith: Mr Speaker, I move that the Climate Change Response (Moderated Emissions Trading) Amendment Bill now be read a first time.
FORUM: ETS is farmers' ball and chain
23 Sep 2009
Dr Peter Amer, of AbacusBio, says there are opportunities for farmers in the ETS.
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.
Announcements expected soon on $200M gas fund
Fri 24 Apr 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | Fossil fuel companies appear likely to take up a $200 million government fund to encourage additional oil and gas exploration, dashing lobbyist Business New Zealand’s hopes that it might be repurposed to underwrite industrial electrification.
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.
