New Zealand: All stories
Scientists use TikTok to explain, fight climate change
10 Mar 2023
With his moustache caked in icicles and frozen droplets, glaciologist Peter Neff shows his 220,000 TikTok followers a sample of old ice excavated from Antarctica's Allan Hills.
Greenpeace slams govt U-turn on climate and roading
9 Mar 2023
Greenpeace has slammed the government’s U-turn on making emissions reduction a top priority of its land transport plan as “short-sighted” in a climate crisis.
Massey University to host one of NZ’s largest solar farms
9 Mar 2023
Massey University is planning to host a large solar PV system at its Manawatū campus, in a step towards its goal of being net carbon zero by 2030.
Climate change blamed for declines in mountain plants
9 Mar 2023
Climate change has likely led to the decline of some of Scotland's mountain plants, according to new research.
Doubts about whether next week’s ETS auction will clear
8 Mar 2023
A week out from the first Emissions Trading Scheme auction of the year, the price of carbon on the secondary market continues its slide, closing at $65.75 yesterday, its lowest level since December 2021.
High seas treaty a step forward - but “the work is far from over,” say experts
8 Mar 2023
Experts have welcomed an international treaty for the high seas - but say there is still a long way to go to ensure adequate protection and sustainable use.
Risky feedback loops are accelerating climate change, scientists warn
8 Mar 2023
Risky feedback loops that are accelerating global climate change may not be fully accounted for in current climate models, according to a recent study published in the scientific journal One Earth.
Decisive climate action could add $64 billion to NZ economy
7 Mar 2023
Decisive climate action could add $64 billion to New Zealand’s economy by 2050, while inadequate action could cost $4.4 billion over the same period, according to a new report.
Bikes and carriage, the perfect marriage
7 Mar 2023
By Patrick Morgan - Cycling Action Network | Imagine biking to the railway station, loading your bike, and relaxing on the train ahead of a weekend ride.
Global food systems can cause world to exceed temperature targets: study
7 Mar 2023
A new study by climate scientists sheds light on the significant role food systems will play in future global warming and what can be done about it.
Speaking truth to power: Be less shit
6 Mar 2023
Thousands of school students took to the streets of cities around the country on Friday and their message to the powers that be could hardly have been more direct.
Bathurst reports record profit as coal prices soar
6 Mar 2023
Bathurst Resources said soaring coal prices provided record first half-year profits for the company despite record increased costs.
Scientists discover a new way climate change threatens cold-blooded animals
6 Mar 2023
All animals need energy to live. They use it to breathe, circulate blood, digest food and move. Young animals use energy to grow, and later in life, to reproduce.
Tropical plankton in jeopardy from climate change
6 Mar 2023
Scientists from the University of Texas at Austin have found that tropical plankton could be negatively affected by climate change.
The price of carbon: it’s up, up and away in Europe and down, down, down in Aotearoa
3 Mar 2023
Last week the price of carbon hit €100 (NZ$170) for the first time. Meanwhile, in New Zealand the price of NZUs has settled at around $70 on the secondary market - down 24% from a peak of $88.50 in November last year.
Climate strikes to hit Aotearoa this afternoon
3 Mar 2023
Thousands of students will be rallying for climate action around the country this afternoon as part of the global climate strike movement, with young people all over the world demanding climate justice from their governments - and calling on adults to join them.
Best by the rest...
3 Mar 2023
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in local media: Commentator Max Rashbrooke argues that advocates for climate adaptation over mitigation are making a terrible mistake; economist Eric Crampton writes that risk-based insurance premiums would keep our homes safer; and why managed retreat isn’t the solution tangata whenua are looking for.
Ocean tipping point: Climate change to worsen rapidly
3 Mar 2023
The oceans help to limit global warming by soaking up carbon dioxide emissions. But scientists have discovered that intense warming in the future could lessen that ability, leading to even more severe warming.
La Niña could lead to more heavy rain in the North Island
2 Mar 2023
Weather in the flood ravaged North Island looks to be drier in the coming months, but La Niña could still lead to the risk of heavy rain, according to NIWA’s March to May outlook.
Govt announces $9.5 million in funding for agricultural greenhouse gas research
2 Mar 2023
The government yesterday announced an additional $9.55 million dollars for research into reducing agricultural greenhouse gas emissions.
The counting of 9.9 billion trees could help manage climate credits and nature restoration
2 Mar 2023
Researchers from the University of Copenhagen and NASA have developed a method that has now mapped several billion trees and their carbon uptake in Africa's Sahel region.
Microalgae to help capture carbon from power plants in new research venture
2 Mar 2023
US researchers have been awarded a $2 million grant from the Department of Energy to explore the potential of microalgae to absorb CO₂ emissions from industrial power plants.
Emissions up for third consecutive quarter, driven by increased use of coal and gas
1 Mar 2023
New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions increased 0.8% in the June 2022 quarter, up 161 kilotonnes from the previous quarter, despite a 7.5% fall in manufacturing emissions (194 kilotonnes).
Could imitating volcanos fix the climate crisis? Science is spilt
1 Mar 2023
The controversial theory of solar geoengineering is at the centre of a growing body of climate research in Asia and elsewhere.
Scientists want near moratorium on geoengineering to cool climate — for now
1 Mar 2023
Scientists are slamming the brakes on deliberately interfering with the climate to temporarily counteract global warming until the pros and cons are more fully known.
An incendiary form of lightning may surge under climate change
1 Mar 2023
A form of lightning with a knack for sparking wildfires may surge under climate change.
Concern about climate change at a record high
28 Feb 2023
Concern about climate change has significantly increased, rising by six percentage points to 27% in the latest Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor - the highest since tracking began in 2018.
Researchers look at marine environment’s huge potential for carbon sequestration
28 Feb 2023
Scientists are aiming to unlock the local secrets of blue carbon, with research underway to deliver Aotearoa’s first national estimate of natural kelp-carbon sequestration in the marine environment.
Reflecting sunlight to cool the Earth must be studied before climate change gets much worse, urges group of 60 scientists
28 Feb 2023
More than sixty scientists from prominent institutions are advocating for rigorous study into reflecting sunlight away from the Earth to mitigate the effects of climate change.
World's forests losing ability to absorb carbon due to climate change
28 Feb 2023
A recent study published in the Nature journal has found that the world's forests are losing their ability to absorb carbon due to the increasingly 'unstable' conditions caused by human activities.
National Party leader Christopher Luxon slams govt’s climate change record
27 Feb 2023
National Party leader Christopher Luxon slammed the government’s track record on climate change in a speech over the weekend but failed to propose a single alternative policy.
Converting Huntly would take mass amounts of biomass
27 Feb 2023
Fuelling the Huntly power station with wood pellets will require building a domestic supply chain which would dwarf current global supply of the specialised product Genesis Energy would need.
A looming El Niño could give us a preview of life at 1.5C of warming
27 Feb 2023
The last three years were objectively hot, numbering among the warmest since records began in 1880. But the scorch factor of recent years was actually tempered by a climate pattern that slightly cools the globe, “La Niña.”
Remove exotic forests from ETS until completion of inquiry: Pure Advantage
24 Feb 2023
Pure Advantage is calling on the government to remove exotic trees from the Emissions Trading Scheme until the results of its inquiry into forestry are known.
Green Party launches petition opposing cuts to Auckland climate programmes
24 Feb 2023
The Green Party has launched a petition to stop proposed cuts to Auckland’s climate and environmental programmes.
Best by the rest...
24 Feb 2023
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in local media: Lillian Te Hau-Ward tells E-Tangata that in the wake of Cyclone Gabrielle "now is the time for mana motuhake."; Parker’s office says slash an issue for Nash; and bike lanes and cycleways may be parked in race to complete government climate funded projects.
Government co-funding helps businesses switch to clean and clever energy
24 Feb 2023
Partner content - Emissions from our energy and industry sectors make up 27% of our total emissions, so they represent a big opportunity for decarbonisation.
Carbon price drives rising waste disposal fees
23 Feb 2023
Masterton District Council is the latest in a long list of councils raising waste disposal fees and citing the cost of carbon.
Genesis biomass trial could lead to 90% reduction in Huntly’s emissions
23 Feb 2023
Genesis has completed a biomass burn trial as it looks at alternative fuels for Huntly Power Station, which could reduce emissions from the coal-fired plant by 90%.
Genetically modified trees are taking root to capture carbon
23 Feb 2023
A start-up has created poplar trees that are genetically engineered to grow larger and suck up more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than standard trees do. This month, workers planted rows of these poplars in southern Georgia, kicking off the company’s plan to revolutionize forestry.
Parliament unites to stop gifting of carbon credits to big emitters
22 Feb 2023
Parliament has unanimously supported the first reading of an amendment bill that puts an end to the over-allocation of carbon credits to trade-exposed industries. The current system of “industrial allocation” has seen some of the country’s biggest emitters receiving a $60 million annual windfall.
UN climate resolution tabled
22 Feb 2023
New Zealand was among a group of 19 countries that tabled a resolution at the United Nations General Assembly, yesterday, asking the world’s highest court to clarify what international law requires of States in the face of the climate crisis.
Commissioner for the Environment doubts govt’s resource management plans are fit for purpose
21 Feb 2023
Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Simon Upton has told a select committee that two key pieces of legislation in its climate change adaptation plan are unlikely to provide an enduring framework that protects the environment.
Scrapping the biofuels mandate is short-term thinking during climate crisis
21 Feb 2023
By Paul Bennett | OPINION: The Government’s decision to halt the biofuels mandate may ease concerns about looming price hikes at the petrol pump but it’s a political can that can’t be kicked down the road forever.
Women and girls are disproportionately affected by climate change
21 Feb 2023
The adverse effects of climate change have impacted numerous areas of human health and well-being. In most parts of the world, women are least able to mitigate such changes, so they are an appropriate focus in a recent research paper.
Rationing: A fairer way to fight climate change?
21 Feb 2023
World War II-style rationing could be an effective way to reduce carbon emissions, according to new research from the University of Leeds.
Clear-felling forest must stop in Tairāwhiti, expert says
20 Feb 2023
Clear-felling is inappropriate for fragile East Coast land - and Indigenous voices must lead the change, an expert says.
Counting the cost in the wake of Gabrielle
20 Feb 2023
Energy & Environment | Part of the aftermath of Cyclone Gabrielle will be counting the cost and a long hard rethink about aspects of energy and environment policy.
Nearly 30 dangerous feedback loops could permanently shift the Earth’s climate: scientists
20 Feb 2023
Dangerous climate feedback loops are increasing global warming and risk causing a permanent shift away from the Earth’s current climate, according to a new study.
Bioenergy Association says forestry slash could help drive our heavy transport fleet
17 Feb 2023
The Bioenergy Association says the forestry slash causing havoc on the East Coast could have been slashing the country’s carbon emissions.
ETS a ‘broken paradigm’ undercutting biodiversity efforts
Mon 25 Aug 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Pure Advantage is calling on the government to reform the Emissions Trading Scheme, with a new policy briefing saying that New Zealand’s offset-heavy approach is a “broken paradigm” undermining biodiversity and shifting risk to communities.
Profound shifts in our changing energy system – new data
Wed 27 Aug 2025
New Zealand’s energy system is undergoing a profound shift as falling gas production and a dry hydro year reshaped the electricity market in 2024, according to data from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s Energy in New Zealand 2025.
International scientists slam NZ govt's proposed approach to methane
13 Aug 2025
New Zealand's proposed approach to methane emissions has again been attacked by international climate scientists, with a new study saying the attempt to redefine climate target-setting by livestock-exporting countries undermines the transition to a sustainable and equitable food system
Marginal drop in last year's regional emissions
Wed 27 Aug 2025
Regional greenhouse gas emissions were down slightly last year, with a fall in gas supply leading to a big drop in Taranaki, but more coal burnt leading to higher emissions in Waikato, according to new figures from Stats NZ
Fund for low emissions transport winds up
31 Jul 2025
New Zealand’s Low Emission Transport Fund has officially wrapped up, ending a nine-year programme that put hundreds of millions of dollars towards accelerating the country’s shift to cleaner transport.
Certainty crucial to emissions cuts – Watts
20 Aug 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says that policy certainty is the Government’s primary lever for unlocking private capital and meeting climate targets, telling a carbon forestry conference that ETS settings are 'locked' through 2030.
Why climate strategy is now central to business success
Tue 26 Aug 2025
SPONSORED CONTENT: Ahead of next month’s Climate Change and Business Conference, New Zealand businesses are being urged to treat climate strategy not as a regulatory burden, but as a core driver of economic competitiveness.
