New Zealand: All stories
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
1 Apr 2020
Infrastructure minister Shane Jones says he wants to hear directly from people with ideas for “shovel-ready” infrastructure projects.
Carbon News still coming your way
1 Apr 2020
New Zealand is under a state of emergency, with all non-essential movement and contact banned.
ETS reform still a top job, says minister
31 Mar 2020
Reforming the Emissions Trading Scheme remains a priority for the Government, despite disruption caused by the covid-19 pandemic, says climate minister James Shaw.
Pandemic clears the air
31 Mar 2020
The covid-19 pandemic shutdown is improving New Zealand’s air quality.
Carbon News still coming your way
31 Mar 2020
New Zealand is under a state of emergency, with all non-essential movement and contact banned.
Offshore windfarms have future, say experts
30 Mar 2020
Offshore windfarms could stack up financially in New Zealand from the middle of the century, experts say.
Scientists cut short climate cruise
30 Mar 2020
Research off the east coast of New Zealand into the link between clouds, phytoplankton and climate change has been cut short because of the covid-19 state of emergency.
Carbon News still coming your way
30 Mar 2020
New Zealand is under a state of emergency, with all non-essential movement and contact banned.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
30 Mar 2020
Tomorrow is the last day to file emissions returns or apply for a 20-day extension because of the effect the covid-19 pandemic lockdown is having on businesses.
Stage set for surge in sustainable investing
30 Mar 2020
The coronavirus pandemic and its economic fallout will trigger a skyward surge in sustainable, responsible and impactful investing over the next 12 months, says the CEO of one of the world’s largest independent financial advisory organisations.
Coronavirus hinders climate science
30 Mar 2020
The global response to the coronavirus pandemic is disrupting climate science.
Deadline nears for emissions return extensions
27 Mar 2020
Businesses struggling to complete a 2019 emissions return because of the state of emergency in New Zealand must apply for an extension before Tuesday.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
27 Mar 2020
Submissions on the use of nitrogen inhibitors in agriculture which were due to be with the Ministry of Primary Industries today now close on April 5.
Carbon News still coming your way
27 Mar 2020
New Zealand is under a state of emergency, with all non-essential movement and contact banned.
OPINION: Science makes a comeback
26 Mar 2020
By JIM SALINGER | This has been a strange period and I have been reflecting on the uptake of scientific facts and advice with the covid-19 pandemic.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
26 Mar 2020
The Environment Select Committee’s report-back on proposed changes to the Resource Management Act, scheduled for today, has been postponed until the end of next month.
Carbon News still coming your way
26 Mar 2020
New Zealand is under a state of emergency, with all non-essential movement and contact banned.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
25 Mar 2020
Parliament meets today to pass legislation putting the country into a state of emergency.
It's official, e-cars produce less CO2
25 Mar 2020
Electric vehicles produce less carbon dioxide than petrol cars across the vast majority of the globe – contrary to the claims of some detractors, who have alleged that the CO2 emitted in the production of electricity and their manufacture outweighs the benefits.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
24 Mar 2020
Parliament’s select committees will continue working during the covid-19 shutdown but will be holding virtual instead of physical meetings.
Carbon News in the time of covid
24 Mar 2020
With the world’s attention on the covid-19 pandemic, little attention is being given just now to the urgent need to cut greenhouse gas emissions and prepare ourselves for inevitable levels of global warming.
New carbon trading platform causes a stir
23 Mar 2020
Political questions are being asked about the appropriateness of a State-owned company providing services in the carbon market.
Otaki sets up solar farm to power the town
23 Mar 2020
A new solar farm in Otaki will power the town’s wastewater plant and power the local high school, with profits being used for more community energy projects.
Carbon News in the time of covid
23 Mar 2020
With the world’s attention on the covid-19 pandemic, little attention is being given just now to the urgent need to cut greenhouse gas emissions and prepare ourselves for inevitable levels of global warming.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
23 Mar 2020
A meeting of Greater Wellington Regional Council’s climate committee scheduled for tomorrow has been cancelled because of the coronavirus outbreak.
Poor water systems greater risk than virus, says UN
23 Mar 2020
Decades of chronic underfunding of water infrastructure is putting many countries at worse risk in the coronavirus crisis, experts said as the UN marked World Water Day.
MPs put 1.5 million reasons to stop wasting food
20 Mar 2020
New Zealand could cut 1.5 million tonnes from its annual greenhouse gas emissions if it stopped wasting food, MPs say.
POLITICS: Sorry, we're a bit busy
20 Mar 2020
CLIMATE change received only the briefest of attention in Parliament this week.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
20 Mar 2020
Covid-19-related cancellations continue, with the Agricultural Climate Change Conference scheduled for Palmerston North on April 1 and 2 the latest casualty.
General Motors wants to go big on EVs
20 Mar 2020
General Motors' Bolt and Volt models never sold well, but now the company is touting a battery that has more range than Tesla’s.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
19 Mar 2020
Parliament’s Environment Select Committee is hearing submissions on the Urban Development Bill today.
Scientists back soil sequestration
18 Mar 2020
Soil sequestration could remove billions of tonnes of carbon dioxide a year from the atmosphere, scientists say.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
18 Mar 2020
Workshops with businesses affected by changes to the way in which the allocation of free credits to heavy emitters is calculated are being cancelled.
Big emitters get pandemic warning
17 Mar 2020
Allowing emitters to use the Covid-19 pandemic as an excuse to slow action on climate change would be a mistake, environmental organisations are warning.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
17 Mar 2020
Restrictions on travel and public gatherings as a result of the spread of the Covid-19 virus are affecting climate-change events.
Global heat closing in on Paris Agreement target
16 Mar 2020
Global average temperatures so far this year are 1.4deg above pre-Industrial levels – just 0.1deg below the Paris Agreement target.
Super fund dumps big emitters - and fills pockets
16 Mar 2020
New Zealand’s national superannuation fund is hundreds of millions of dollars off because it has shed high-carbon investments, says chief executive Matt Whineray.
ClimCom opens doors to carbon-budget ideas
16 Mar 2020
Energy, transport, farming and forestry businesses are the first sectors to put their vision of a carbon-neutral New Zealand to the body charged with developing the country’s carbon budgets.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
16 Mar 2020
This week’s energy sector conference in Wellington is going ahead, although the coronavirus pandemic means not everyone will be there in person.
We're not doing enough climate science
13 Mar 2020
New Zealand and Australia face a critical shortage of the climate-science capacity needed to prepare the countries for dealing with climate change.
Emissions increase in some energy sectors
13 Mar 2020
New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions from electricity generation and burning fossil fuels rose at the end of last year.
POLITICS: The mood is all very GFC
13 Mar 2020
The coronavirus Covid-19 and the impact it could have on the economy dominated the attention of politicians this week, but they did manage to squeeze in a mention of climate change.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
13 Mar 2020
Auckland Council says it is preparing the city for warming of up to 3.5deg.
Green movement mourns loss of Rob Fenwick
12 Mar 2020
Sustainable business pioneer and environmental activist Sir Rob Fenwick has died.
Councils all talk and little action, says GBC
12 Mar 2020
Most local authorities are talking big on climate action but failing to cut emissions in their own operations, the Green Building Council says.
Experts to probe farm emissions tool
12 Mar 2020
A panel has been appointed to review the functioning of Overseer, the farm environmental modelling tool that could help farmers to measure their greenhouse gas emissions.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
12 Mar 2020
Parliament sits today and the Environment Select Committee meets to discuss the Urban Development Bill, changes to the Resource Management Act, and the issue of food waste.
New rules will hurt refinery and small shippers
11 Mar 2020
New clean-air rules for shipping will hit the Marsden Point oil refinery and some shipping operators in the pocket, the Ministry of Transport says.
EDS pours cold water on RMA 'bonfire'
11 Mar 2020
National’s planned “bonfire” of regulations will be pyrotechnics if the Resource Management Act is thrown on the flames, the Environmental Defence Society says.
'Atrocious' and 'bizarre': experts slam Act Party's climate policy
Wed 3 Sep 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Act Party is promising to challenge New Zealand’s Paris Agreement climate target, while the coalition Government’s other minor partner, NZ First, also says it wants to reevaluate the country’s commitment to the international treaty.
Meridian reports worst earnings in a decade
Wed 3 Sep 2025
Meridian Energy has posted its weakest result in 10 years, with earnings hit by a combination of droughts, low wind and declining gas supply.
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
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
Air NZ declares surprisingly low SAF prices
Wed 3 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Air New Zealand is able to source sustainable aviation fuel at between 1.5 and 2.5 times the price of conventional fossil fuels used for flying, all sourced from the US.
Forest carbon stores massive blind spot - study
Thu 4 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Aotearoa New Zealand’s planted forests hold significant deep soil organic carbon — with over half of it stored below 30 cm, and much of it over 1,000 years old.
XRB consults on delaying climate reporting requirements
Thu 4 Sep 2025
The External Reporting Board is proposing a further two years relief for companies to adopt anticipated financial impacts reporting and scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions reporting and assurance.
