New Zealand: All stories
OPINION: Why natural gas won't do the job
19 Mar 2018
Climate and energy expert Professor RALPH SIMS explains why natural gas is not a “bridging” fuel between dirtier fossil fuels and low-carbon energy. Searching for it and using it, he says, will delay New Zealand reaching its Paris Agreement emissions reduction target.
It happened 10 years ago ...
19 Mar 2018
… the Government was getting ready to plead New Zealand’s case to allow the owners of pre-1990 forests to clear them without facing a carbon penalty, BP was warning against introducing a compulsory biofuels component into the nation’s petrol and diesel supplies, Trustpower was finding a ready market for credits from its Tararua windfarm, Orcon founder Seeby Woodhouse was moving into carbon, and businesses wanted to be allowed to use credits from nuclear power plants.
Norway’s electric car demand outstrips supply
19 Mar 2018
One out of every five new cars sold in Norway is electric, and more than 50 per cent of new cars sold in 2017 were electric or plug-in hybrids.
Business leaders like the look of minister Shaw
16 Mar 2018
Climate minister James Shaw appears to be convincing business he knows what he’s doing.
NUCLEAR FUSION: Don't hold your breath
16 Mar 2018
One of the cliches of nuclear power research is that a commercial fusion reactor is only ever a few decades away – and always will be.
Seeding clouds is common ... but does it work?
16 Mar 2018
Cloud seeding has been used to influence weather conditions in in more than 50 countries worldwide. But we still don’t know whether it works.
Here's a road to zero carbon, say officials
15 Mar 2018
Meeting New Zealand’s Paris Agreement pledge from domestic emissions cuts alone would put the country on a straight line to carbon-neutrality by 2050, officials have told the Government.
RAIN OR SHINE: New solar cell captures energy from raindrops
15 Mar 2018
A solar panel that can generate electricity from falling raindrops has been invented, enabling power to flow even when skies cloud over or the sun has set.
Renault-Nissan battery aims to leapfrog competition
15 Mar 2018
The Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance is aiming to take the lead in new solid-state battery technology.
Shaw hints at end to oil and gas exploration
14 Mar 2018
Climate minister James Shaw has just given the strongest hint yet that the Government might end oil and gas exploration.
Did burning coalfields cause Earth’s worst mass extinction?
14 Mar 2018
Earth has gone through five mass extinction events – scientists are worried we’re on course to trigger a sixth – and the deadliest one happened 252 million years ago.
How protons can power our future energy needs
14 Mar 2018
As the world embraces inherently variable renewable energy sources to tackle climate change, we will need a truly gargantuan amount of electrical energy storage.
Plastic pollution has now spread to rivers
13 Mar 2018
Microplastics are contaminating rivers as well as the ocean, say scientists.
Government backs circular economy with funding
13 Mar 2018
The Government is looking to fund projects that boost the circular economy.
New-look Nats put skids under green jobs
12 Mar 2018
Climate change and the environment have failed to make new Opposition leader Simon Bridges’ front bench.
Science body pressures Commonwealth leaders
12 Mar 2018
New Zealand’s top science body is joining 21 others calling on Commonwealth countries to show “bold leadership” on climate change.
Nuclear fusion on brink of being realised, say scientists
12 Mar 2018
The dream of nuclear fusion is on the brink of being realised, according to a major new US initiative that says it will put fusion power on the grid within 15 years.
How stock market could help fight climate change
12 Mar 2018
Finance experts are trying to figure out how to integrate environment, social and governance factors into investment planning by comparing returns of carbon-efficient and carbon-inefficient portfolios.
TPP ignores climate health threats, say medicos
9 Mar 2018
The just-signed Trans Pacific Partnership trade deal ignores the threat climate change poses to human health and should be urgently reviewed before New Zealand ratifies it, warns the New Zealand Medical Journal.
Climate commission's job to advise, says Upton
7 Mar 2018
The climate commission should make recommendations on the Emissions Trading Scheme and the number of international credits used to meet New Zealand’s targets, but control should stay firmly in the hands of the Government, says new Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Simon Upton.
Is sustainable investing a better way to go?
7 Mar 2018
Sustainable investing might be a better way to tackle climate change than switching to renewable energy.
DYING DIESEL: Can makers woo back customers?
7 Mar 2018
Amid fears about pollution, penalties and bans, UK buyers are abandoning diesel cars in droves.
Minister aware of risk in delaying price cap rise
6 Mar 2018
The Government knows delaying lifting the carbon price cap could cost taxpayers money, but says it is unlikely to move until next year.
Ministry eyes emissions deals with businesses
5 Mar 2018
The Ministry for the Environment is looking to form direct partnerships with businesses to cut emissions out of the New Zealand economy.
Climate change passion rides a bike
2 Mar 2018
By publisher ADELIA HALLETT | Yesterday, a young woman told an audience that included two Cabinet ministers that she was suffering from depression because of climate change.
What's next for getting energy from the sun?
2 Mar 2018
The fall in costs that has driven solar’s rapid growth is slowing - but scientists are exploring the next generation of materials that can harness more energy from the sun.
Battered ecosystems almost never recover
2 Mar 2018
Ecosystems almost never recover completely from large-scale destruction — even when they're actively restored, says a team of international researchers.
Nuclear waste mountains just keep on growing
2 Mar 2018
Some politicians still claim atomic energy is the answer to climate change while leaving the problem of nuclear waste to our descendants.
Z aims for A-plus in transition to new energy
28 Feb 2018
Mike Bennetts is determined his company, Z Energy, will not have a Kodak moment.
Fiat-Chrysler intends to ditch diesel cars
28 Feb 2018
Car maker Fiat-Chrysler has signalled that it is getting ready to stop making diesel cars.
Energy storage leap could slash e-car charging times
28 Feb 2018
Researchers have claimed a breakthrough in energy storage technology that could enable electric cars to be driven as far as petrol and diesel vehicles, and recharge in minutes rather than hours.
Green accounts point finger at primary industries
27 Feb 2018
Primary industries contribute nearly two-thirds of the country’s greenhouse gases but account for less than 8 per cent of economic production, new figures show.
Biofuels need backing of the nation, says Scion
27 Feb 2018
New Zealand could run its heavy vehicles on locally produced low-carbon biofuels – but only if the country decides collectively to act.
OPINION: Biofuels not easy, but worth the effort
27 Feb 2018
Biofuels, liquid and gaseous, will have a role to play in moving towards net zero greenhouse gas emissions by around mid-century in both New Zealand and globally, says Professor Ralph Sims.
Energy minister to get the word on biofuels
26 Feb 2018
Energy minister Megan Woods today will be told how the country can use biofuels to cut its burgeoning transport emissions.
Foresters like the look of Billion Trees scheme
26 Feb 2018
Forest owners say they are starting to think the Government is serious about forestry.
Science being denied swamp kauri secrets
26 Feb 2018
Scientists fear secret excavation of ancient kauri logs from swamps is hampering their ability to predict future climate change.
What Day Zero means to Cape Town
26 Feb 2018
Day Zero in Cape Town is when most of the city’s water taps will be switched off.
Porsche stops production of diesel cars
26 Feb 2018
Porsche has announced that it is putting an end to diesel engines in its cars.
Minister mum on future of electric trains
23 Feb 2018
There’s no word yet on whether KiwiRail’s plans to replace electric engines with diesel will go ahead.
Summer hottest on record
23 Feb 2018
This summer is about to become New Zealand's hottest in history - despite a sub-tropical storm and two ex-tropical cyclones.
We might need a new storm scale of category six
23 Feb 2018
The increasing strength, intensity and duration of tropical cyclones has climate scientists asking whether a new classification needs to be created: a category six storm.
Floating windfarms are proving a smash hit
23 Feb 2018
Floating windfarms are likely to be the next large-scale development in renewable energy.
Dodgy rainfall becoming big worry in grazing regions
23 Feb 2018
Nearly half of the world's pastureland is experiencing notable changes in precipitation, driving up the risk to grazing and herding communities.
We'll soon know what the environment is worth
22 Feb 2018
New Zealand’s environment is about to have a monetary value put on it, in a new report examining the trade-offs between the environment and the economy.
OPINION: We should adopt the 'easy win' way
22 Feb 2018
Government officials appear to be putting more effort into working out how to purchase international carbon credits than into reducing the country’s greenhouse gas emissions, says Bioenergy Association chief executive Brian Cox.
Mazda gets busy phasing-in fossil fuels
22 Feb 2018
Mazda is saying what everyone knows: the internal combustion engine is going to power the vast majority of cars for the next 50 years.
Plastic bans will dent oil demand growth, says BP
22 Feb 2018
International bans on single-use plastic items such as carrier bags will dent growth in oil demand over the next two decades, according to BP.
Minister offers money for good emissions moves
21 Feb 2018
Got a good idea to cut greenhouse gas emissions in your business or in the transport sector? The Government wants to give you money.
Climate change brings turbulent times to air travel
21 Feb 2018
From rising temperatures preventing take-off to rising seas flooding runways, aviation needs to adapt to changes already grounding flights around the world.
Watts full-throated in National’s support for Paris
Wed 10 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts came to this week’s Climate Change and Business Conference with nothing to announce.
Milestone for NZ Steel electrification
Wed 10 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | NZ Steel has passed an installation milestone for its new electric arc furnace, which will reduce emissions from the Glenbrook steel mill site by as much as one megatonne (1Mt) a year.
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
Vector hits emissions reduction goal five years early
Fri 5 Sep 2025
By Liz Kivi | Auckland lines company Vector has met its 2030 emissions reduction reduction target five years early, more than halving its direct emissions, and crediting innovation and a laser-focus for its success in a hard-to-abate sector.
NZ needs to be part of a regional SAF strategy: Z, Air NZ
Tue 9 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | New Zealand needs to be part of a regional strategic approach to sourcing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), with domestic production less the aim than ensuring access to the fuel from one of a number of strategically positioned bio-refineries around the world.
Kawerau's new hope: Plan to replace coal with pine ramps up
Mon 8 Sep 2025
By Diane McCarthy, Local Democracy Reporter | Construction on a $300 million wood pellet plant in the Eastern Bay of Plenty is expected to start next month, with hopes it could cut the use of coal in New Zealand.
XRB consults on delaying climate reporting requirements
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.
