New Zealand: All stories
Auckland researchers get funding to test "cool roofs" in climate hot spots
3 Aug 2023
A trial led by Auckland scientists to test "cool roofs" in countries vulnerable to climate heating has received a massive boost, with funding from a $37 million pool.
Cost pressures “intensifying” for Environment Commission
2 Aug 2023
The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, Simon Upton, says his office will likely need more funding soon.
National’s transport policy slammed for overlooking carbon emissions
1 Aug 2023
Environmentalists have slammed National’s plan to spend almost $25 billion over 10 years building roads across the country, including four lanes all the way from Whangārei to Tauranga.
Bill to amend forestry provisions of Climate Change Response Act
1 Aug 2023
The government has introduced a “tidy-up bill” to Parliament, to change the Climate Change Response Act 2002 administered by the Ministry for the Environment.
Energy Council releases wish list for the next govt
31 Jul 2023
The BusinessNZ Energy Council says the next government should set long-term energy goals and stick to them - without reactive kneejerk policy changes.
Z’s parent company predicts “robust” fossil fuel demand for next 10 years
31 Jul 2023
Demand for petrol retailers will remain high into the 2030s in New Zealand – years after some countries have banned the sale of fossil fuel vehicles, an energy giant predicts.
Forest & Bird accused of promoting “greenwashing” at centennial conference
28 Jul 2023
A talk planned for Forest & Bird’s centennial conference tomorrow has ruffled feathers among environmentalists, with some supporters threatening to cancel longstanding memberships, and even debating whether to protest with placards at the event.
Best by the rest...
28 Jul 2023
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in local media: Do we need a Ministry for the Ocean? Are pine trees good or bad in the climate fight? And what are the implications for NZ of a former UNFCCC executive secretary losing faith in the oil and gas industry?
Foresters welcome ETS reset
27 Jul 2023
Foresters have welcomed the government’s reset of Emissions Trading Scheme auction settings, saying it should incentivise forestry and wood processing investors for the embattled industry.
Labour votes down bill to stop new mines on conservation land
27 Jul 2023
The Government has voted down a Green Party’s members’ bill to stop new mining on conservation land.
Forestry consultations
27 Jul 2023
The Ministry for Primary Industries is consulting on two forestry-related issues, with the deadline for one just a week away.
Open letter: To Forest & Bird from Paul Callister and Robert McLachlan
27 Jul 2023
Paul Callister, a climate change policy researcher at Victoria University’s Institute for Governance and Policy Studies, and Massey University mathematician Robert McLachlan - both long-time supporters of Forest & Bird - say they are “deeply concerned” that the organisation is giving the aviation industry a platform for greenwashing at the upcoming conference.
Climate extremes make NZ’s supply chains highly vulnerable – it’s time to rethink how we grow and ship food
26 Jul 2023
By Alan Renwick | Supermarket customers around New Zealand are noticing gaps in the grocery aisles that have nothing to do with the global pandemic or Ukraine war.
The ETS works just fine, but unaffordable, ideological reforms will set us back
25 Jul 2023
By Andrew Cushen | OPINION: We are seeing a lot of noise about the Emissions Trading Scheme at the moment. If you listen to the likes of Climate Change Minister James Shaw, and previous Carbon News correspondent, Deirdre Kent, you may be thinking the scheme is a failure and in desperate need of reform.
Additional funding for energy centre
25 Jul 2023
The government has announced an additional $70 million of funding for Ara Ake future energy centre over ten years.
Greens and NZ First launch election campaigns
24 Jul 2023
The Greens and NZ First were the first parties to officially launch their election campaigns over the weekend, with the climate crisis a core part of the Greens campaign - while it got only a passing mention at the NZ First launch.
RMA reform bill makes progress in Parliament
24 Jul 2023
Resource management law reform bills completed their second readings in Parliament last week with Labour on track to pass them with Green Party support and National and Act adamant they will repeal them before Christmas if elected to government.
ETS reforms puts $16 billion of potential Māori forestry earnings at risk, UN told
21 Jul 2023
By Jeremy Rose | A representative of Māori forestry interests in the Far North this week told a United Nations hearing in Geneva that the government’s ETS reforms were putting a $16 billion economic opportunity at risk
Annual emissions fall
21 Jul 2023
Greenhouse gas emissions fell 3.1% (2,369 kilotonnes) for the year to December 2022, according to new figures from Stats NZ.
Best by the rest...
21 Jul 2023
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in local media: Is the ETS really working for the planet? From a high in 2019, emissions have fallen for three straight years and how to leave the world a better place than we found it.
Govt gives Fonterra $90 million as part of $790 million spend to cut coal
20 Jul 2023
The government is giving Fonterra $90 million as part of a $790 million investment to cut coal use at six of its dairy factories.
Kiwis call for science to lead UN sustainable development goals
20 Jul 2023
Three prominent New Zealanders are part of the International Science Council’s global commission calling for a new way of doing science to tackle “unacceptably slow” progress on the UN sustainable development goals (SDGs).
Deep sea mining can have detrimental long-term impacts: new research
19 Jul 2023
A deep sea mining test that lasted just two hours may have reduced fish and shrimp populations in the surrounding area a year after the event, according to international research.
Oil and gas reserves decline along with use
18 Jul 2023
The latest data on oil and gas reserves forecasts that gas production is expected to drop below 2022 gas use of 145 petajoules in 2027, unless existing fields have further investment and development.
Research into biofilters to cut agricultural methane
18 Jul 2023
Researchers in the South Island are looking at on-farm biofilters to convert potent agricultural methane into carbon dioxide - a much less potent gas in terms of global heating.
High Court orders govt to review ETS settings
17 Jul 2023
By Liz Kivi | The government will be forced to review Emissions Trading Scheme settings, after climate activist lawyers won a High Court case arguing the decision-making process for the December 2022 regulations was flawed.
Govt funding for low-emissions marine and off-road vehicles
17 Jul 2023
The government has announced $6.4 million of funding towards low-emissions marine and off-road vehicles, which will lead to a further $18.2 million from businesses transitioning to clean energy transport.
Scientists call on govt to develop climate-friendly national food strategy
13 Jul 2023
The directors of six National Science Challenges are joining calls to the government to develop a national food strategy for New Zealand - one that will help reduce emissions as well as increase resilience to the climate crisis.
Isn’t it time to admit the Emissions Trading Scheme will never work?
13 Jul 2023
By Deirdre Kent | OPINION: The ETS won’t work and the time has come to explore other methods of reducing emissions instead, like Tradable Energy Quotas.
Govt to include carbon sinks in Emissions Trading Scheme
12 Jul 2023
Cabinet agreed last week to reform the Emissions Trading Scheme to recognise all forms of carbon sinks rather than just forestry.
Climate researchers look for answers in the deep ocean
12 Jul 2023
Scientists are using four autonomous robots at depths of up to 6 km along the Kermadec Trench, in the southwest Pacific, to research how climate change is affecting deep ocean processes.
Forestry lobbying heats up over ETS review
11 Jul 2023
Forestry interests are continuing their campaign to ensure forestry retains value under a reviewed Emissions Trading Scheme, with another open letter to the government saying climate goals are at risk.
Govt funding to reduce climate emissions from commercial buildings
11 Jul 2023
The government is fronting up $40 million to help commercial building tenants and owners improve the climate and energy efficiency of their buildings.
Sustainable aviation fuel funding is govt “greenwash”: fuel expert
10 Jul 2023
By Liz Kivi | A former senior oil executive says that the government and Air New Zealand investing more than $2 million in research into sustainable aviation fuel is a blatant greenwashing tactic.
New Zealand signs trade agreement with EU with “ambitious” climate commitments
10 Jul 2023
New Zealand and the European Union signed a Free Trade Agreement last night that includes “ambitious” climate commitments, with sanctions if targets are not met.
Major energy policy papers delayed
10 Jul 2023
Clashes between different streams of advice and political imperatives have been blamed for the delay in the release of four important energy policy papers last week.
Govt launches consultation on biodiversity credits
7 Jul 2023
The government has launched consultation on a national biodiversity credit system, which it says could address “the gap” between exotic and native forests under the emissions trading scheme.
Best by the rest...
7 Jul 2023
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in local media: Public investment to make NZ a ‘first mover’ in synthetic jet fuel; govt holds another meeting with He Waka Eke Noa and; how lowering the voting age might fix the climate crisis.
Foresters launch campaign to stop their carbon credits losing value
6 Jul 2023
The climate change minister says a new campaign entitled “Halt the NZU Grab” is spreading misleading information.
NZ has "unique opportunity" to decarbonise with rail
5 Jul 2023
By Liz Kivi | An international rail expert says New Zealand has a unique opportunity to become a frontrunner in transport decarbonisation with electric rail.
Parties disagree on RMA reform
5 Jul 2023
Political reactions to the resource management reform bills dispelled what little chance there was of a bipartisan way forward.
More than $200 billion of NZ housing at risk from floods
5 Jul 2023
More than 12% of the country’s national housing value - worth more than $200 billion - is in a flood hazard area.
Forestry investment at risk, along with climate targets
4 Jul 2023
By Liz Kivi | Foresters may lose their businesses if the carbon price stays low, with contractors already losing their jobs.
Govt funds research into microalgae as low carbon protein
4 Jul 2023
The government is funding research into native microalgae as a low-carbon protein, which it hopes could lead the way for an entirely new food industry at the same time as capturing carbon.
Govt moves to phase out coal boilers
3 Jul 2023
The government is following through on its promise to ban new coal boilers and to phase out existing ones by 2037.
Next stage of RMA reform met with virtual silence
3 Jul 2023
The release of the select committee report on the resource management reform bills last week was noticeable for the near silence that greeted it.
Should climate scientists fly?
3 Jul 2023
By Robert McLachlan | COMMENT: Have you ever thought a climate scientist hypocritical for flying to a climate change conference?
Food-waste rescue saves food and carbon emissions
30 Jun 2023
A Wellington food-waste service has served up 10 million meals worth of kai and saved the equivalent of 90 tonnes of carbon emissions since it opened in 2008.
Best by the rest...
30 Jun 2023
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in local media: Kiwi investment in planet-damaging fossil fuels nearly doubles; exotic tree crops established for carbon credits 'morally corrupt'; and regional council needs hybrid utes to cut emissions.
NZU spot price drops further
29 Jun 2023
The price of NZUs on the secondary market is in freefall following the government’s consultation announcement on ETS settings and restrictions on permanent forestry.
Green Party calls for national electrification plan
Mon 20 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Green Party is calling for a national plan to electrify homes, transport and industry using renewable energy, to reduce fossil fuel dependence in response to the Middle East crisis.
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
Fri 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
Fri 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.
Businesses look for ways to cut costs in response to oil shock
1 Apr 2026
New Zealand’s small and medium-sized businesses are looking for ways to ease the pressure as global tensions see rising fossil fuel prices and diminishing supply, with decision-makers mulling measures including work-from-home polices and transport or logistics changes.
