New Zealand: All stories
NZ to push carbon trade deal to Europe and UK
30 Nov 2020
Joining a New Zealand-led trade pact on climate change could be more effective than putting up trade barriers on carbon, New Zealand will tell Europe and the United Kingdom.
Don't be too quick to dismiss the 'emergency'
30 Nov 2020
By PATTRICK SMELLIE | There was an outburst of skeptical tongue-clicking last Thursday when Climate Change Minister James Shaw announced New Zealand will this week declare a state of ‘climate emergency’.
Climate ‘apocalypse’ fears stopping people having children
30 Nov 2020
People worried about the climate crisis are deciding not to have children because of fears that their offspring would have to struggle through a climate apocalypse, according to the first academic study of the issue.
Ammonia – a fuel of the future?
30 Nov 2020
Like hydrogen, ammonia can play a key role in decarbonising Europe’s heavy industry and transport. So why isn’t it grabbing the headlines in the same way?
WORTH NOTING ...
30 Nov 2020
Parliament sits this week, with the James Shaw’s climate emergency declaration expected in the House on Wednesday.
Large slice of Kupe gas could be up for sale
27 Nov 2020
Genesis Energy – one of the country’s biggest emitters of greenhouse gases – is considering selling its stake in the Kupe oil and gas field, freeing up money it could invest in renewable generation.
FRIDAY POLITICS: Tough-talking Shaw
27 Nov 2020
Climate minister James Shaw appears to be sticking with the new bullish approach he’s adopted since the election.
EU urged to address aviation’s full climate impact, including non-CO2 emissions
27 Nov 2020
The aviation sector’s climate impact is three times bigger than the effect of its carbon dioxide emissions alone, a new study shows, prompting calls for action.
Western Europe cools on plans for nuclear power
27 Nov 2020
News that two more reactors in the United Kingdom are to shut down on safety grounds earlier than planned has capped a depressing month for nuclear power in Europe.
Fletcher Building cracks Asia-Pacific DJSI
26 Nov 2020
One of New Zealand’s largest emitters has made it on to the Dow Jones Asia-Pacific Sustainability Index.
Gas, carbon capture key to emissions cut - BP
26 Nov 2020
By GAVIN EVANS | Natural gas, especially when combined with carbon capture use and storage, can play a critical role meeting the world’s net-zero carbon targets, BP economist Michael Cohen says.
'Jet-zero' green flight goal dismissed as a gimmick
26 Nov 2020
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s “jet-zero” goal of a commercial transatlantic flight producing no carbon emissions by 2025 is a gimmick, according to experts, who say technology alone cannot solve the impact of global aviation on the climate crisis.
Norway hikes cash for rainforests, seeking corporate help to slow losses
26 Nov 2020
Norway is doubling the price it guarantees developing nations to keep their tropical forests standing, in a step to slow catastrophic losses and encourage big companies to invest far more in nature to combat climate change.
WORTH NOTING ...
26 Nov 2020
The Sustainable Business Network’s Convergence Conference on transitioning to a low-carbon economy over the next decade is on today in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and online.
Dairy company says it's well on the way to measuring farm emissions
25 Nov 2020
Fonterra is optimistic it will find a way to accurately measure the amount of greenhouse gas emissions being produced by each dairy farm in time to meet a Government deadline of 2022.
WORTH NOTING ...
25 Nov 2020
Parliament opens today, with the swearing in of new MPs and the election of a Speaker. The formal Speech from the Throne, outlining the Government’s plans, will be made tomorrow.
Coal financing evaporates as countries go carbon-free
25 Nov 2020
Financing for coal projects is drying up at ever increasing rates as more countries target zero carbon emissions amid an energy transition sweeping the world, participants at Asia’s biggest gathering of the coal industry said on Tuesday.
Ardern talks climate with Biden and farmers
24 Nov 2020
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the Government is pressing ahead at home and abroad with action on climate change.
Kiwi company uses Bitcoin to buy solar panels
24 Nov 2020
New Zealand’s latest and largest solar farm is being partially funded by cryptocurrency.
EU, UN-led pact commits oil and gas firms to tackle methane emissions
24 Nov 2020
Dozens of oil and gas companies have committed to report more accurately on and, ultimately, reduce emissions of the potent greenhouse gas methane which is liable to leak from oilfields and pipelines.
Mixed farming beats intensive agriculture methods
24 Nov 2020
Once again, researchers have shown that it should be possible to feed the human race and leave enough space for the rest of creation, simply by going back to centuries-old mixed farming practices.
WORTH NOTING ...
24 Nov 2020
Finding ways to greenhouse gas emissions from farming will dominate discussion at the Primary Industries Summit today.
Net-zero and ‘passive’ houses can cut carbon emissions
24 Nov 2020
From the street, you wouldn’t be able to tell a net-zero or passive house from any other recently built home. Even from the inside, the only visible clues are thick walls and deep windowsills. Only if you looked at the utilities bill would you know.
Carbon farming makes space for native forests
23 Nov 2020
One of New Zealand biggest carbon farmers say New Zealand can have its carbon cake and eat it too.
'Super emitters' polluting climate at expense of those who don't fly
23 Nov 2020
Just one per cent of the population is responsible for half of global emissions from aviation, a study shows.
WORTH NOTING ...
23 Nov 2020
It's back to the office for MPs this week, with Parliament opening on Wednesday and the Speech from the Throne, outlining the new Government’s agenda, on Thursday.
FRIDAY POLITICS: Border tariffs on Govt's to-do list
20 Nov 2020
Carbon tariffs at the border are on the Government's agenda this term to protect the country’s steel, aluminium and cement industries as they decarbonise.
And the award goes to...
20 Nov 2020
A sustainable farm producing top-quality honey in Northland is the big winner in this year’s Sustainable Business Awards announced in Auckland last night.
WORTH NOTING ...
20 Nov 2020
Climate activist group Extinction Rebellion says it will target Genesis Energy’s headquarters in downtown Auckland this afternoon.
Green-trolling to bring down Big Oil
20 Nov 2020
Mary Heglar has a “maniacal plan” to save the planet. It doesn’t involve shutting down pipelines or protesting in the streets. Heglar has simply been “trolling the shit out of fossil fuel companies” on social media.
Let's recycle our urine for agriculture
20 Nov 2020
Every year on November 19, the United Nations celebrates one of public health’s greatest inventions – the toilet. Those who are fortunate enough to have access to one spend more than a year of their lives on it, yet millions of people worldwide cannot use one and many have never even seen one.
Cutting carbon will cost tourism and export industries
19 Nov 2020
The tourism and export sectors need to prepare for growing transport costs, Climate Change Commission chair Dr Rod Carr is warning.
Ardern joins Mandela et al
19 Nov 2020
Implementing “stringent” measure on climate change have helped win Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern a prestigious international leadership title previously awarded to Nelson Mandala.
Anger as IMO says shipping emissions can keep climbing
19 Nov 2020
Countries have agreed a package of energy-efficiency measures that will allow emissions from global shipping to continue to rise until 2030.
WORTH NOTING ...
19 Nov 2020
The annual Sustainable Business Awards will be held in Auckland tonight.
NZ's seas are heating up again, scientists say
18 Nov 2020
New Zealand is heading for another marine heatwave this summer – the third in four years, scientists are warning.
WORTH NOTING ...
18 Nov 2020
Consultation opens today on what rate the Government’s Energy Levy – the money it collects from the road transport, energy and gas sectors – should be set at this year.
Climate crisis finds ample answers in world’s trees
18 Nov 2020
The great climate change challenge should consider the world’s trees.
Upton, Parker - Nats stopped the ETS working
17 Nov 2020
New Zealand’s failure to seriously address its emissions problem through the 2010s has come under fire from two politicians whose attempts to effectively price carbon were thwarted by National Governments.
Cyclones could last longer in a warmer world
16 Nov 2020
Tropical cyclones weaken after they reach land. But it emerges that for the North Atlantic basin, storms are weakening more slowly as regional sea surface temperatures increase.
NZ needs to do more, says High Commissioner
13 Nov 2020
Britain wants New Zealand to do more on climate change, calling on companies to be carbon-neutral by 2040 and “welcoming” the country’s review of its 2030 emissions target.
Dry run: the wet farming experiment that could sow seeds for the future
13 Nov 2020
A project trialling plants that thrive in more extreme whether, including sphagnum moss and bulrushes, could offer farmers a future.
Greek island ditches fossil-fuel cars
13 Nov 2020
For one Greek island the future is green - it's switching from internal combustion-driven transport to electric vehicles.
Shaw talking tough on carbon budgets
12 Nov 2020
The Climate Change Commission could be given the ability to manage carbon prices if its carbon budget recommendations are not followed by politicians, the climate minister says.
Meridian looking good to carbon-averse Blackrock
12 Nov 2020
Blackrock has increased its stake in Meridian as part of its carbon-divestment strategy.
Climate protest is legit, says business
12 Nov 2020
Business leaders are, apparently, ready to embrace non-violent protest as a legitimate form of climate action.
New fund helps businesses ditch coal and gas
12 Nov 2020
Businesses wanting to stop using coal and gas for heat can tap into a new $70 million fund.
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.
