New Zealand: All stories
Scientists say it’s ‘fatally foolish’ to not study catastrophic climate outcomes
3 Aug 2022
As global greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise, some climate scientists say it’s time to start paying more attention to the most extreme, worst-case outcomes, including the potential for widespread extinctions, mass climate migration and the disintegration of social and political systems.
Government’s decision to delay permanent forestry decision slammed
2 Aug 2022
Beef + Lamb NZ and farming protest group 50 Shades of Green have slammed the government’s move to put off a decision on removing exotics from the permanent forest category of the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Youth scholarships to Climate Change and Business Conference up for grabs
2 Aug 2022
The Climate Change and Business Conference, being held in Auckland in September, has announced a scholarship for 18-30-year olds to allow them to attend the $975 event.
Smelter’s future on the line
1 Aug 2022
By Ian Llewellyn - Energy & Environment | It came later than many expected, but NZ Aluminium Smelters confirmed it would begin talks for power supply to extend the life of the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter past 2024 when its current deal with Meridian and Contact ends.
How is the jet stream connected to simultaneous heat waves across the globe?
1 Aug 2022
The deadly heat waves that have fueled blazes and caused transport disruptions in Europe, the U.S. and China this month have one thing in common: a peculiar shape in the jet stream dubbed “wavenumber 5.”
Tourism expert calls to scrutinise cruise ships’ emissions
29 Jul 2022
By Liz Kivi | A sustainable tourism expert wants greater scrutiny around cruise travel, including the impacts of mega cruise ships and their carbon emissions, ahead of the vessels’ return to New Zealand waters in October.
Petition to support transition to plant-based agriculture
29 Jul 2022
The Vegan Society is calling on the government to support farmers to transition to a plant-based economy, with a petition sent to parliament yesterday.
Best by the rest...
29 Jul 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: Is the government abandoning its proposal to limit permanent exotic forest in the ETS? Two court cases fighting over further fossil fuel prospecting; and why confronting climate change means sharing power.
Global CCS rates overestimated by up to 30% – Imperial College London
29 Jul 2022
The amount of carbon that has been captured and stored globally via carbon capture and storage (CCS) since 1996 has been overestimated by up to 30%, according to new research from Imperial College London.
How forests lost 8,000 years of stored carbon in a few generations
29 Jul 2022
"Plant a tree" seems to be the go-to answer to climate change concerns these days. Booking a rental car online recently, I was asked to check a box to plant a tree to offset my car's anticipated carbon dioxide emissions.
Carbon market wakes from its slumber following Climate Change Commission advice
28 Jul 2022
The price of NZUs on the secondary market reached $82.50 – a jump of close to 13% on its opening price – following yesterday’s release of the Climate Change Commission’s advice to government on the NZ ETS settings.
Active transport subsidy a hit with staff
28 Jul 2022
A $750 active transport subsidy has proved a hit with employees of the New Zealand arm of the international engineering consultancy WPS.
Supervolcano study indicates carbon dioxide emissions key to avoid climate change
28 Jul 2022
A new study has linked the volume and speed of carbon dioxide emissions from supervolcanoes to past environmental crises. According to the researchers, the findings are instrumental in understanding how to prevent future climate disasters.
Climate Change Commission recommends reducing number of NZUs on offer
27 Jul 2022
The Climate Change Commission has recommended the government reduces the number of NZUs on offer at auction and an increase in the trigger price of the cost containment reserve, in advice to the climate change minister released this morning.
New e-bike subscription service electrifies Christchurch commutes
27 Jul 2022
By Liz Kivi | A new e-bike subscription service is on a mission to reduce barriers for light electric vehicle uptake and help users decarbonise their commute.
Delay to improving insulation could increase GHGs by 200,000 tonnes
26 Jul 2022
The government has delayed tightening building regulations outlined in the Emissions Reduction Plan by six months, a move that could potentially increase GHG emissions by nearly 200,000 tonnes.
The case for paying carbon taxes on unsustainable food
26 Jul 2022
Minimizing the risk of living on an unlivable planet requires significantly reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through various means, like shifting to renewable energy and electrifying sectors that rely on fossil fuels.
Shaw “quietly confident”
25 Jul 2022
Climate Change Minister James Shaw declared himself “quietly confident” of winning an upcoming vote for the Green Party co-leader position at a press conference this morning.
Regulation change aims to support decarbonisation - Woods
25 Jul 2022
By Ian Llewellyn - Energy & Environment | Energy minister Megan Woods has urged electricity lines companies to be more innovative now that Low Fixed Charges regulations are being rolled back and more money is available to electrify industrial processes.
Federated Farmers “devastated” stations sold to offshore forestry interests
22 Jul 2022
By Liz Kivi | Federated Farmers says the sale of 6000 hectares of sheep and beef farming land to an overseas buyer for forestry is “devastating” for the East Coast.
Taupo’s carbon bill grows by close to $2 million since 2017
22 Jul 2022
Taupo District Council’s ETS obligations have grown from $75,560 in 2017 to an estimated $2.057 million in the 2022/23 financial year.
Best by the rest...
22 Jul 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: How not to solve the climate crisis; Are carbon markets hurting farming communities? Plus the government’s $9.8 million climate-wrecking stimulus.
Government to slash number of free carbon credits given to industry
21 Jul 2022
The government has announced the first reduction in the number of free carbon credits allocated to trade exposed businesses under the Emissions Trading Scheme in more than a decade.
First six months of 2022 second warmest on record
21 Jul 2022
While an unprecedented heat wave wreaks havoc in Europe, and temperatures reach all-time highs in the U.S., New Zealand’s weather also shows clear evidence of global heating, according to NIWA’s latest figures.
AAP fact checks Groundswell and finds it's telling porkies
21 Jul 2022
The Australian Associated Press has fact checked a claim by lobby group Groundswell that New Zealand has the world's lowest carbon footprint and, not surprisingly, declared it false.
MPI calls for submissions on changes to ETS forestry regulations
20 Jul 2022
The Ministry for Primary Industries is calling for submissions on draft changes to forestry regulations in the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).
Micro-EV promoter disappointed by government’s inaction
20 Jul 2022
Toa Greening, who’s been campaigning for a change to New Zealand’s laws regarding micro-EVs for close to a decade, says safety concerns are over-blown when compared to the risk posed by e-scooters which can be legally driven on our roads.
Government looking at carbon tariff
19 Jul 2022
In an ideal world New Zealand would replace the current system of allocating NZUs to trade exposed industries with a border adjustment levy, climate change minister James Shaw told the Environment Select Committee yesterday.
Shared transport could reduce emissions: Researchers
19 Jul 2022
A team of researchers from multiple universities are looking at shared transport as part of the solution to New Zealand’s currently unsustainable systems, which they say are belching greenhouse gases, inequitable, and congested.
PSA launches Vote Climate campaign
18 Jul 2022
The Public Service Association (PSA) has launched a campaign to get voters to support local government candidates who will invest in reducing transport emissions.
Five buyers gobbled up 95% of NZUs at June’s ETS auction
18 Jul 2022
The top five participants in June’s ETS auction bought more than 96% of the 6,125,000 NZUs up for grabs, the interim NZETS auction monitoring report reveals.
Government must balance potential costs of reducing gas
18 Jul 2022
By Ian Llewellyn - Energy & Environment | A Cabinet paper on the Government’s development of the Gas Transition Plan says it must reduce the use of gas but balancing the potential costs in doing that will require shifting priorities over time.
Micro EV regulations to be reviewed… sometime
15 Jul 2022
Transport minister Michael Wood says regulations that currently prohibit the sale of some of the world’s most popular EVs will be reviewed but not any time soon.
Best by the rest...
15 Jul 2022
IN our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: some of the country's biggest companies won't be covered by new climate disclosure laws; how protein from our paddocks could by-pass the cows-in-the-middle altogether; and is the government indulging in "magical thinking" with its biofuel plans?
Millions more at risk from dangerous summer temperatures if climate goals aren't met
15 Jul 2022
Health-threatening heatwaves will become more intense due to climate change, putting millions more people at risk from dangerous summer temperatures, new research has revealed.
$2.1 million up for grabs for greenhouse gas inventory research
14 Jul 2022
The Ministry of Primary Industries’ annual round of funding for research that will help improve its agricultural, forestry and land-use inventory opens today.
Forests are becoming less resilient because of climate change
14 Jul 2022
Climate change has been linked with a widespread decline in the ability of many of the world’s forests to bounce back after events such as drought and logging.
"Sparky" the tug set to electrify Auckland ship moves
13 Jul 2022
The world's first full-sized ship-handling electric tug could be plying Auckland’s waters by the end of the month, with “Sparky” on track for handover and commissioning by July 25.
Rich nations caused climate harm to poorer ones, study says
13 Jul 2022
Scientists, officials and activists have long called out the inequity in national histories on greenhouse gas emissions with rich nations benefiting and poor ones hurting from global warming, and now a study published Tuesday aims to calculate just how much economic impact large emitters have caused to other nations.
Seaweed restoration project to boost carbon absorption
12 Jul 2022
An environmental project has secured a funding boost to regenerate seaweed forests off Wellington’s coast.
Species extinction threatens the livelihoods of billions: new report
12 Jul 2022
With billions of people depending on wild flora and fauna for food, medicine, and energy, a million species are at risk of extinction due to the combined impacts of climate change, other forms of pollution, overexploitation, and deforestation, warns a new report backed by the United Nations.
High Court decision sets high bar for climate change litigation
11 Jul 2022
The High Court’s rejection of All Aboard Aotearoa’s case against Auckland Transport and Auckland Council, released on Friday, sets a high bar for those wanting to hold government bodies to account for their climate policies.
Government presses on with Lake Onslow project
11 Jul 2022
By Ian Llewellyn - Energy & Environment | Officials have been given the go-ahead to work on final feasibility studies for the Lake Onslow pumped hydro project.
New study identifies rapidly emerging threats to oceans
11 Jul 2022
A globe-spanning study outlines new, potentially unexpected threats to ocean ecosystems and vulnerable coastal communities within the next five to 10 years that will come on top of the already harmful effects of overfishing, pollution and global warming.
CarbonCrop units being traded again but questions remain
8 Jul 2022
CarbonCrop chief executive Jo Blundell and Carbonz founder Finn Ross says an update to their “messaging” was all that was required to re-start the trading of CarbonCrop units (CCUs) this week.
New Kiwi tech electrifying jetboats
8 Jul 2022
Kiwi tech is electrifying jetboats here and around the world, with an Auckland startup going global with the world’s first turnkey electric jet propulsion system for boats; while the iconic Shotover Jet has completed a prototype conversion of one of its ICE models.
Best by the rest…
8 Jul 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: Offshore oil and gas exploration goes ahead despite bans; indigenous forests’ carbon sequestration superpowers; and is romanticising New Zealand’s colonial past hindering our climate response?
“Time for action is now”: Climate Change Commission
7 Jul 2022
The Climate Change Commission has thrown its support behind a system of farm-level pricing for agricultural emissions outside of the ETS in its advice to government released yesterday.
Waikato student wins scholarship to study Antarctic carbon release hotspots
7 Jul 2022
A Waikato student has won a $20,000 scholarship to study possible carbon dioxide release hotspots in the Southern Ocean.
Methane emissions reach new highs despite pandemic—four times more sensitive to climate change than first thought
7 Jul 2022
Eliminating emissions of CO₂ is high up the environmental agenda—but the world should not lose sight of the threat from methane. There has been a disturbing recent surge in atmospheric methane, which is more than 25 times more potent as a greenhouse gas over the course of a century than CO₂.
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.
