New Zealand: All stories
SMELTER SMOOCH: Tiwai wants to work with taxpayer
26 Feb 2020
An industrial heavyweight that last year received $12 million worth of free carbon credits from taxpayers says it wants to work with the Government and community to create a low-carbon world.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
26 Feb 2020
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s visit to Fiji continues today, where discussion on climate change is on the agenda.
Not in five years, but holy grail of energy on its way
26 Feb 2020
Recent reports from scientists pursuing a new kind of nuclear fusion technology are encouraging, but we are still some distance away from the “holy grail of clean energy”.
Old batteries can be source of new energy
26 Feb 2020
Driving an electric-powered vehicle rather than one reliant on fossil fuels is a key way to tackle climate change and improve air quality − but it does leave the old batteries behind as a nasty residue.
Solar power booms just miles from the Arctic Circle
26 Feb 2020
For years after northern Finland's largest printing plant blanketed its facility's eight roofs with solar panels, the curious beat a path to the extraordinary spectacle.
NZ risks missing biofuels chance, says industry
25 Feb 2020
New Zealand risks missing the chance to use biofuels to develop fuel independence and avoid buying costly international carbon credits, officials are being told.
Taxpayers give smelter credits worth $12m
25 Feb 2020
Taxpayer-funded carbon credits were worth $12.1 million last year to Tiwai Point aluminium smelter operator Pacific Aluminium.
Air NZ joins space agency in climate watch
25 Feb 2020
Air New Zealand is working with the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration to monitor climate change in New Zealand.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
25 Feb 2020
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is in Fiji today and tomorrow, talking with Fiji PM Frank Bainimarama about climate change.
Fertiliser could power ocean-going ships
25 Feb 2020
Ocean-going ships could be powered by ammonia within the decade as the shipping industry takes action to curb carbon emissions.
Billions are pouring into mobility technology
25 Feb 2020
Over the past decade, almost $US200 billion has been invested globally in mobility technology that promises to improve our ability to get around.
Bots produce quarter of climate tweets
25 Feb 2020
The social media conversation over the climate crisis is being reshaped by an army of automated Twitter bots, with a new analysis finding that a quarter of all tweets about climate on an average day are produced by bots.
Z Energy worries about access to units
24 Feb 2020
One of the country’s largest emitters fears there might not be enough carbon credits available for surrender in 2021.
Methane revelations might benefit our farmers
24 Feb 2020
Revelations that fossil fuels are responsible for a greater percentage of methane in the atmosphere than was thought could be good news for New Zealand farmers – but only if the rest of the world is prompted to cut fossil-fuel extraction more quickly.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
24 Feb 2020
Auckland Council’s audit and risk committee meets today and says climate change mitigation and adaption continue to be top risks for the council, leading to potential environmental degradation, economic inequality, social vulnerability and financial and reputational damage.
FRIDAY POLITICS: Ready, willing, and Abel
21 Feb 2020
By ADELIA HALLETT | A largely unheralded candidate selection in Auckland this week could prove pivotal in New Zealand’s climate politics.
Wellington again plugs electric buses
21 Feb 2020
Wellington will get more electric buses as part of a drive to slash emissions.
Aucklanders take to public transport
21 Feb 2020
Auckland’s public transport system is finally as popular as it was in the 1950s – albeit with five times the population.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
21 Feb 2020
You’ve got one week left to get in submissions on changes to the settings of the Emissions Trading Scheme and on the Government’s plans to accelerate the use of renewable energy.
Researchers claim solar efficiency breakthrough
21 Feb 2020
A flexible solar “skin” that could be used to generate power on homes, cars and phones is a step closer to development after the technology was used to break a world record for electricity conversion, researchers say.
Tesla creeps closer to 640-mile mark
21 Feb 2020
Tesla has announced an increased range as a step toward bringing electric vehicles — and their contribution to combating climate change — into the mainstream.
Free carbon credits might get early overhaul
20 Feb 2020
The entire formula used to calculate how free many free carbon credits heavy emitters receive might be overhauled before the end of the year.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
20 Feb 2020
Parliament’s Environment Committee is discussing changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme today, as well as the annual reports of the Environmental Protection Authority and Predator Free 2050.
Some aerosol emissions might have an up-side
20 Feb 2020
Human aerosol emissions might have partially offset global economic inequality by reducing warming.
Z Energy offers free deal on offsetting
19 Feb 2020
Z Energy is moving into the offsetting business – for free.
Funds back 110 more EV-charging stations
19 Feb 2020
Money towards another 110 electric-vehicle-charging stations has been announced this morning, bringing the number of Government-funded stations to more than 1000.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
19 Feb 2020
Applications for the Government’s Low-Emission Vehicles Contestable Fund open today, with secure parking for electric bikes eligible for the first time.
Climate research struggles to find funding
19 Feb 2020
Climate research is the poor relation of the academic world. Since 1990 it has won less than five per cent of the research funds available.
Air NZ emissions climbing, says global report
18 Feb 2020
Air New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions are rising faster than its emissions-reduction schemes are coping with, a new paper shows.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
18 Feb 2020
Greater Wellington Regional Council’s environment committee meets today to set environmental priorities.
CROSSING THE LINE: A scientist’s road from neutrality
18 Feb 2020
American scientist Nathan Phillips, who has just ended a 14-day hunger strike, said he was compelled to action by dissatisfaction with academia’s passivity and the fervor of his students.
There's more to it than just trucks, says Volvo
18 Feb 2020
Shifting the heavy transport sector from diesel to electricity will take more than just the availability of trucks, says Swedish auto maker Volvo.
ETS deal cuts oil refinery gas emissions
17 Feb 2020
Greenhouse gas emissions from the Marsden Point oil refinery have fallen 20 per cent as a result of a deal exempting the refinery from the Emissions Trading Scheme, the company says.
Climate change low on Nats' question list
17 Feb 2020
Fewer than five per cent of the written questions to Government ministers lodged this year are about climate change.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
17 Feb 2020
Cambridge University economist Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta will give a public talk in Wellington tomorrow on the economics of biodiversity (5.30pm-7pm, Lecture Theatre 1, Rutherford House, 23 Lambton Quay).
Row brews over free credits to heavy emitters
14 Feb 2020
Tension is building over the allocation of free carbon credits to trade-exposed heavy emitters.
Leaders (well, some of them) are talking climate change
14 Feb 2020
Climate change was on the lips of the leaders of two of the five parties in Parliament when it resumed this week.
Government eyes new rules for inhibitors
14 Feb 2020
The Government is considering introducing new rules to govern the use of inhibitors in agriculture to avoid a repeat of the 2013 DCD trade disaster.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
14 Feb 2020
Submissions close today on the Urban Development Bill, allowing what the Government calls better co-ordination of land, infrastructure and public assets in complex urban development projects.
Climate crisis looms as major election issue
13 Feb 2020
Climate change will be a major factor for more than a quarter of voters in this year’s general election, a new poll suggests.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
13 Feb 2020
Parliament sits today, with MPs from the Environment Select Committee continuing hearing oral submissions on proposed changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Green transport set to rule cities by 2030
13 Feb 2020
From public transport to cycling, sustainable transport is on course to overtake driving in the world’s biggest cities within a decade, according to a new study.
Fresh water from sunshine keeps thirst at bay
13 Feb 2020
An international team of scientists has developed a cheap way to provide fresh water to thirsty communities by making seawater drinkable without using electricity.
Energy producers cut CO2 emissions
12 Feb 2020
Carbon dioxide emissions from energy production in the developed world has finally fallen to the level it was at in 1990, the Kyoto Protocol baseline year.
Busy mast years can damage our forests
12 Feb 2020
Repeated mast years induced by climate change are damaging forests as pest numbers explode, new research shows.
This key MP favours change to RMA law
12 Feb 2020
At least one member of the select committee investigating changes to the Resource Management Act thinks the planning law should include climate change.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
12 Feb 2020
Parliament sits today and tomorrow, and the Environment Select Committee continues hearing submissions on changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme and the Resource Management Act tomorrow.
We must have certainty with ETS, says Ballance
11 Feb 2020
Investment in emissions-cutting new technology like hydrogen could be jeopardised by uncertainty over the Emissions Trading Scheme, fertiliser manufacturer Ballance Agri-Nutrients says.
Government pumps $14m into forest water study
11 Feb 2020
A $14 million Government-funded project is under way to figure out how climate change will affect the amount of water and nutrients flowing through New Zealand forests.
Local govt shake-up risks weakened environmental outcomes – Commissioner
Fri 27 Feb 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government’s push to simplify local government is "deeply flawed" and has been launched without a clear understanding of which functions must remain regional, according to the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.
Govt plan to encourage new energy investment won’t cut costs for ordinary Kiwis
Thu 26 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | While gentailers and major energy users have welcomed the Government’s plan to leverage public sector demand to drive new energy projects, an expert says it is unlikely to reduce prices for ordinary people.
Govt's solar on farms initiative to cut costs, boost resilience
17 Feb 2026
Farms across Aotearoa will begin installing solar panels and battery systems as part of a government-backed demonstration programme designed to test whether on-farm renewable energy can reduce electricity costs and improve energy security for the food and fibre sector.
Annual emissions fell to lowest in 15 years in Sept 2025
5 Feb 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions fell to their lowest annual total in the year to September 2025 since records began 2010, according to Statistics New Zealand data published this morning.
NZ’s EV uptake decelerates
23 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand’s EV uptake is lagging behind other countries, with a huge drop in EV sales since 2023 bucking international trends, at the same time the Government contemplates abolishing its standard for clean cars entirely.
Tairāwhiti needs proper Govt support to heal the land – not empty announcements for political optics
Tue 24 Feb 2026
OPINION: The Government’s answer to Tairāwhiti’s severe erosion crisis – that the region apply for modest, contestable funding rounds – while rejecting the region's own land transition business case, leaves our long-term resilience hanging in the balance, writes Manu Caddie.
Kiwi startup takes on global plastic pollution
12 Feb 2026
A New Zealand startup is launching what it says is the world’s first plastic-free effervescent drink tablet, with the ambitious aim of eliminating bottled beverages to reduce global plastic pollution.
