Topics tagged with 'Agriculture'
China launches large-scale renewable energy plan
9 Sep 2008
China has released an ambitious plan to develop renewable energy to cut its surging carbon dioxide emissions.
Japan eyes home greenhouse gas savings in emission trading system
9 Sep 2008
The Japanese government is considering including greenhouse gas emissions from homes, farms and public facilities in the carbon emission trading system scheduled to launch on a trial basis next month.
Carbon forum helps Africa profit from greenhouse gas offset scheme
9 Sep 2008
Three days of deal-making and networking has wrapped up at the United Nations-backed Africa Carbon Forum in Senegal, aimed at improving the continent’s standing in the global carbon marketplace.
Energy expert welcomes investment guidelines
9 Sep 2008
The release of new draft guidelines around New Zealand investment in projects under the Kyoto Project has been welcomed by an energy sector expert.
Govt: ETS forestry compo benefits large number of iwi
5 Sep 2008
The Government claims a large number of iwi believe the compensation package under the emissions trading scheme gives them a net benefit rather than a net cost.
Rare glimpse of National's post-election ETS policy detail
5 Sep 2008
National may have pointed to its possible course on emissions trading law if it forms the government after this year’s election.
Climate forecasts crucial to water resources, say weather watchers
5 Sep 2008
The chief of the UN meteorological agency has called for weather forecasts to play a greater role in planning for economic development and poverty reduction because of the impact climate change has on water resources.
Crown submission on Meridian wind farm proposal
5 Sep 2008
The Crown has made a submission on Meridian Energy's wind farm proposal in the Central North Island, Environment Minister Trevor Mallard said.
Solar energy can bring clean energy to over 4 billion people by 2030
5 Sep 2008
Solar electricity can contribute largely to the energy needs of two-thirds of the world's population - including those in remote areas - by 2030.
Tough challenges to livestock agriculture
5 Sep 2008
The world's livestock industries will face a tough future as they come to grips with climate change.
We've done the hard yards, say frustrated farmers
2 Sep 2008
A new non-binding emissions reduction target for agriculture shows there is little official understanding of hard work farmers have already done to reduce their emissions, says Federated Farmers.
Contact files consent application for Waitahora wind farm
2 Sep 2008
Contact Energy yesterday filed resource consent applications with the Tararua District Council for its 177 megawatt Waitahora wind farm south-east of Dannevirke.
Call for funding for trials of alternative fertilisers on farms around lakes
2 Sep 2008
The time bomb of chemical leaching threatening Rotorua lakes and waterways can be worked through with alternative farming practices that not only maintain production but look after the environment according to fertiliser company Agrissentials.
PGG Wrightson moves into fuel distribution
2 Sep 2008
Clients of nationwide rural business specialist PGG Wrightson now have the opportunity to buy fuel through the company.
Wind energy developers keep keen eye on new approvals process
29 Aug 2008
The wind energy sector is waiting with bated breath to see how the new “calling in” approvals process works.
Council sees reluctance to accept change to water usage system
29 Aug 2008
New Zealand’s current water allocation system plays favourites for some and they are unlikely to want it to change, says Business Council for Sustainable Development chief Peter Neilson.
ETS DEALS: What the Greens and NZ First got changed
29 Aug 2008
Changes to the ETS bill, negotiated in return for the support of the Green and New Zealand First parties, are:
MAF excited at finding cellulose perennial solution to biofuels
29 Aug 2008
A MAF report indicates that using 12 per cent of the nation’s pastoral land to grow herbaceous feed-stocks for bioethanol production would provide equivalent energy to that “derived from current total petrol usage.”
Film-makers get chance to tell climate change stories
29 Aug 2008
The World Bank has launched a world-wide documentary competition that will highlight the social aspects of climate change as experienced by the film-makers.
Biofuels sustainability review puts forests ahead of food crops
29 Aug 2008
A scientific review of options for the production of bioenergy in New Zealand, their economic viability and sustainability, provides further weight to the argument that energy from forests is one of New Zealand's best option for producing its own biofuels.
Progressive Party supports ETS
29 Aug 2008
The Progressive Party will vote to support the Government’s Emissions Trading Scheme, leader Jim Anderton said today.
BREAKING NEWS: ETS bill has the numbers
27 Aug 2008
The Government has got the numbers to pass the emissions trading scheme.
Statement from New Zealand First
27 Aug 2008
New Zealand First has decided to support the amended Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) after several months of consideration and negotiations with the Government.
REACTION: Greenpeace welcomes Greens' decision
26 Aug 2008
Greenpeace has welcomed the Green's support for the emissions trading scheme (ETS), saying the party has secured some positive measures.
Heavy emitters stand to lose credits under deal with Greens
26 Aug 2008
New Zealand’s heaviest emitters of greenhouse gases will have to relinquish some of their free carbon credits to smaller companies under a deal won by the Green Party.
Report spells out future for precious water resources
26 Aug 2008
A major report into the management of one of New Zealand’s most precious commodities – fresh water - will be released tomorrow.
Climate change will deplete fisheries production, warns FAO
26 Aug 2008
Global warming and the consequent changes in climatic patterns will have strong impact on fisheries with far-reaching consequences for food and livelihood security of a sizeable section of the population, a UN agency warns.
Kyoto Forest owners say they need ETS passed
26 Aug 2008
The thousands of New Zealanders who invested their own savings to plant trees in the 1990s need the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) legislation to be passed in order to secure the estimated $1.6 billion of carbon credits promised to them by all parties in Parliament, the Kyoto Forestry Association (KFA) has told the Green Party.
Bamboo can be a lucrative friend, pioneer tells Kiwis
22 Aug 2008
Environmentally friendly bamboo could be a winning crop for New Zealand if people didn’t have such a negative view of it, says an industry pioneer.
Niwa scientists take serious look at algae for biofuel
22 Aug 2008
The sudden falling-from-grace of biofuels because of links to food shortages and food-price rises has intensified research into local algae sources by the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research.
Fonterra trialling new eco-friendly tanker
22 Aug 2008
Fonterra is trialling a new eco-friendly tanker in its milk collection operations that could significantly cut emissions in the company’s 427 strong fleet which covers about 75 million km every year.
ETS must pass despite weaknesses, says Greenpeace
22 Aug 2008
Despite shortcomings, it is imperative that New Zealand's emissions trading scheme (ETS) is passed into law this parliamentary term, says Greenpeace
Car-racing series gives nod to ethanol-mix biofuels
19 Aug 2008
Cars in the Toyota Racing Series will be allowed to run on ethanol-based biofuels, after Motorsport New Zealand modified the rules to allow it.
Carbon sequestration has its problems, warns report
15 Aug 2008
Burying carbon dioxide from coal-fired plants could increase other pollutants, warns a new study.
Aussies vote $1 million to boost small wind-turbines
15 Aug 2008
The Australian Government is sinking more than $1 million into developing a stronger small wind-turbine industry.
NZ in the box seat on emissions trading, says economist
12 Aug 2008
New Zealand risks squandering the huge natural advantages it will have in a carbon economy if it delays bringing in an emissions trading scheme, warns Karo Group principal Simon Young.
Greenair: Forestry carbon opportunities are real
12 Aug 2008
Greenair Group has entered the Wairarapa-Manawatu debate over get-rich-quick interests seeking to take advantage of regional farmers and foresters through carbon credit schemes.
New report paints bright future for second-generation biofuels
12 Aug 2008
Australia could develop a sustainable biofuels industry without forcing up food prices, according to a new report.
New $27 million project will protect the birds and the bees
12 Aug 2008
A new project worth $26.45 million has been launched by the Global Environment Facility to better protect bees, bats and birds that are essential to the world’s crop production.
Flower growers face threat from EU emissions scheme
12 Aug 2008
Kenya’s horticulture industry is facing a new market access threat as the European Parliament prepares to vote on a new law that would see aviation included in the continental emissions trading scheme.
Polluters gain control of water
12 Aug 2008
Reports in the 82,000-circulation Rural News newspaper that agricultural polluters gained control of the Government’s Water Programme of Action should be a cause of concern for all other New Zealanders, says Green Party Co-Leader Russel Norman.
TrustPower saves power at home
12 Aug 2008
An energy saving exercise carried out by TrustPower shows that even a well-informed electricity company, in a 15-year old energy-efficient building, can reduce its energy consumption and lock in that reduction to deliver long term cost savings.
New UN report suggests how to boost cities’ resiliency to climate change
8 Aug 2008
With eight of the world’s 10 most populous cities situated near rivers or seas and already being exposed to such hazards as flooding, earthquakes and typhoons, a United Nations-backed report just released offers suggestions on how to enhance resiliency to threats emanating from climate change
A good news story ... they’re using our trees over there
8 Aug 2008
The effort in attracting one of Japan’s leading paper producers to invest in forestry in Southland is paying off.
Forester warns farmers of get-rich-quick carbon hucksters
5 Aug 2008
A forester is warning landowners to beware of “hucksters” pushing get-rich-quick schemes based on carbon trading.
Stop the plough and save the world, says prairie professor
5 Aug 2008
Farmers could cut their greenhouse-gas emissions by switching to zero-tillage, says a visiting expert.
Eco-efficiency cuts waste by 20 per cent, says Fonterra
5 Aug 2008
Fonterra's New Zealand manufacturing sites and offices have recycled more than 5000 tonnes of plastic, cardboard and paper and cut total waste by 20 per cent over the past year, the dairy co-operative says.
NZX will use TZ1 to throw off the shackles and go global
1 Aug 2008
Mark Franklin, the former head of Vector who now heads the NZ Stock Exchange’s thrust into the carbon-trading sphere, knows that simplicity instead of complexity carries the day.
TrustPower rides rocky RMA road to win Mahinerangi approval
1 Aug 2008
The Environment Court’s interim decision to approve TrustPower’s proposed Mahinerangi windfarm in Otago brings the first stage of building one step closer - but the company remains frustrated by RMA snarl-ups.
NZ art focussing on climate on display at Beijing Biennale
Thu 12 Feb 2026
An artist responding to the consequences of climate disruption is the first New Zealander in six years to feature at the prestigious Beijing Art Biennale.
NZ’s government wants tourism to drive economic growth – but how will it deal with aviation emissions?
22 Oct 2025
By Robert McLachlan, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa – Massey University | Following a brief dip during the COVID pandemic, aviation is back in a growth phase.
Why Trump might be onboard with a UN carbon-offset programme for airlines
Thu 12 Feb 2026
The president’s team has backed the rollout of an initiative that calls for the use of sustainable aviation fuel and carbon credits, even as Trump has pulled back from other international emissions-reduction efforts.
World fight against invasive species comes to Auckland
Tue 10 Feb 2026
Media release: University of Auckland | From countering invasive pink salmon in Norway to controlling feral cats in the Cayman Islands, knowledge on eradicating invasive species will be shared by international experts in New Zealand.
Govt launches strategy backing wood-based heat sector
23 Oct 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Forestry biomass could replace as much as 40% of fossil fuel-generated process heat by 2050, but access to supply, regulatory settings and business cases for converting to wood-based heat sources are required, the Government says in a series of documents released yesterday.
Carbon market rallies but auction floor still out of reach
Fri 13 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | The carbon market has rallied, with secondary market prices up more than 25% in the past two weeks, although current prices in the mid-$40s are still far below this year’s $71 auction floor, with the first auction of 2026 less than three weeks away.
Point of no return: a hellish ‘hothouse Earth’ getting closer, scientists say
Fri 13 Feb 2026
The world is closer than thought to a “point of no return” after which runaway global heating cannot be stopped, scientists have said.
Minister’s letters: Mildly positive or just virtue signalling?
5 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | The carbon market was buoyed slightly yesterday, after letters between the Government and the Climate Change Commission were proactively released.
NZ still lacking coherent energy strategy
Fri 13 Feb 2026
By Rod Carr | COMMENT: The government’s levy-funded foreign gas proposal for an LNG terminal shows New Zealand’s politicians being outmanoeuvred yet again by the multi-trillion dollar energy industry.
LNG: a rational choice compared to unpalatable alternatives
Tue 10 Feb 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | COMMENT: By deciding to underwrite the private construction of a liquefied natural gas import facility in Taranaki, the Government has made a rational choice in favour of energy security and affordability.
RMA’s successors hinge on two untested bets
17 Dec 2025
Two ideas sit at the heart of the Government’s replacement for the Resource Management Act: regulatory relief and spatial planning.
Opposition attacks Govt over fossil fuel phaseout backdown
2 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | Revelations that Resources Minister Shane Jones ruled out New Zealand signing up to a 'road map' away from fossil fuels at last year’s global climate summit show the National Party’s minor coalition partners’ undue influence over the Government, according to Labour leader Chris Hipkins.
EU weighing options to support industry in carbon market overhaul
Mon 9 Feb 2026
The European Commission is looking at various ways to support industries in an upcoming overhaul of the EU carbon market to prevent them moving to areas with lower pollution standards, the head of the Commission’s climate department said late on Wednesday.
Lawyers seek answers on climate impacts of LNG import facility
Fri 13 Feb 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Lawyers for Climate Action has written to Climate Change and Energy Minister Simon Watts warning that the Government's plan for an LNG import terminal could be in conflict with New Zealand’s climate obligations and emissions reduction targets.
DOC trims costs and winds down jobs for nature
10 Nov 2025
The Department of Conservation (DOC) is entering a new phase of tighter budgets and structural change as it winds down the pandemic-era Jobs for Nature programme and reshapes its operations to absorb long-term cost pressures.
Media round-up
Fri 13 Feb 2026
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Senior UK ministers have asked their New Zealand counterparts to explain new climate policies, National’s LNG blunders are a warning ahead of election campaign, and what are the lessons New Zealand should take from another summer of weather disasters?
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.
'Damning' report challenges forestry’s role in Tairāwhiti as sector rejects conclusions
4 Feb 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New independent analysis commissioned by Mana Taiao Tairāwhiti challenges long-standing claims that industrial forestry underpins the Tairāwhiti economy.
LNG plan risks fossil fuel dependency: Environment Commissioner
Wed 11 Feb 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | Importing liquefied natural gas risks creating a “new path dependency on fossil fuel” unless LNG is ring-fenced for use only in the electricity system and only during extended periods of hydro-electricity water shortages, says the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, Simon Upton.
RMA to speed up fossil fuel consents
18 Aug 2025
By Liz Kivi | An energy lobby group has welcomed a last-minute amendment to the RMA that puts fossil fuels on the same footing as renewables, however a sustainable energy expert says the move “beggars belief.”
European Central Bank's green supervision grows teeth, but will banks avoid being bitten?
Fri 13 Feb 2026
After several years of issuing guidance and repeatedly calling on banks to take climate and environmental risk management seriously, the European Central Bank is moving from guidance and expectations to enforcement.
Green Member’s Bill aims to give whales legal ‘personhood’
Mon 9 Feb 2026
The Green Party wants to give whales legal rights, including the right to sue.
Kiwi startup takes on global plastic pollution
Thu 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.
Govt missing opportunity to slash electricity prices, says expert
Wed 11 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s fixation on eliminating the "dry-year risk margin" as a lever to reduce costs misses a much bigger opportunity to lower electricity prices, according to Christina Hood, head of Compass Climate.
Hydrogen emissions are ‘supercharging’ the warming impact of methane
19 Dec 2025
The warming impact of hydrogen has been “overlooked” in projections of climate change, according to authors of the latest “global hydrogen budget”.
Wales council to buy and demolish homes prone to flooding
4 Feb 2026
A row of homes in a village in south Wales is to be bought by a local authority and demolished as they can no longer be protected from flooding caused by the climate crisis.
Climate law change spanner in the works for Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry
19 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s controversial changes to New Zealand’s legal framework for climate policy have thrown a spanner in the works for a long-running Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry into climate change.
Greenpeace set to take UK Government to court over deep-sea mining licences
5 Feb 2026
Environmental NGO Greenpeace has kick-started a legal challenge against the UK Government’s decision to approve the transfer of two seabed exploration licences to a newly-formed mining company with US links.
Govt unveils plans for carbon storage regulations – and ETS rewards
18 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government has released plans to regulate carbon capture and storage in natural geological formations, which include Emissions Trading Scheme incentives, with the aim of introducing related legislation in 2026.
Ministers celebrate fast-track milestone amid criticism
Tue 10 Feb 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The government is marking the first anniversary of its fast-track approvals regime, saying it is helping “build New Zealand’s future”, despite continued criticism from environmental groups, opposition parties, and industry voices following several controversial project decisions.
Govt looks to Commission for ways to shore up carbon price
4 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Government has asked the Climate Change Commission to look at lower auction volumes and an increase in the auction floor price as options to revive the Emissions Trading Scheme, as carbon prices remain weak.
NZ's latest climate target 'weak' – Climate Action Tracker
24 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand's new international climate target to 2035 is weak, and could even allow for higher emissions than the 2030 target, according to a global scientific project that tracks government climate action.
Climate change linked to decline in southern right whale
Thu 12 Feb 2026
Scientists in Australia are warning southern right whales are showing signs of climate-related stress, just days after a Green Party Member’s Bill was introduced in New Zealand proposing legal personhood for whales.
Climate ambassador moves on
Fri 13 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Government is on the hunt for a new top climate diplomat, with previous climate ambassador Stu Horne moving on to a posting in Honolulu as New Zealand’s Consul General to Hawai’i.
Commentators slam Govt inaction in aftermath of climate change-fuelled storms
30 Jan 2026
By Liz Kivi | Climate action - or inaction - is shaping up to be an election issue, with multiple commentators drawing a line between the Coalition Government’s backsliding on climate targets and the deadly extreme weather events of the past week.
Major health risks linked to plastics emissions set to soar by 2040
28 Jan 2026
The adverse health consequences stemming from the global plastics system are projected to more than double by 2040, driven by greenhouse gases, air pollutants and toxic chemicals released throughout its lifecycle.
Three Greenpeace activists removed by police from Fonterra
17 Dec 2025
Media release | Three Greenpeace activists were removed by police from Fonterra’s downtown Auckland offices, following a protest on Monday at the Shareholders’ Fund meeting over the corporation’s role in the contamination of rural communities’ drinking water.
Critical minerals talks with US questioned in Waitangi Tribunal climate inquiry
Mon 9 Feb 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand and the United States' negotiations over critical minerals have raised questions for the Waitangi Tribunal’s long-running inquiry into climate change.
January floods driven by tropical systems and La Niña conditions
Thu 12 Feb 2026
Record-breaking rainfall across parts of Aotearoa in January was fuelled by tropical moisture and persistent low-pressure systems, with some regions recording more than five times their normal monthly rainfall, Earth Sciences New Zealand says.
Solar households to get little-noticed tax break
23 Sep 2025
A provision in the government’s latest tax bill would exempt households from paying tax on income they earn by selling excess electricity back to the grid.
NZ-UAE partnership boosts advanced tech
Mon 9 Feb 2026
Media release | A new Antarctic science partnership with a leading UAE university will grow New Zealand’s advanced engineering and modelling capability, supporting high-value jobs, encouraging economic growth, and enabling smarter climate risk management, Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Dr Shane Reti says.
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.
China maximises battery recycling to shore up critical mineral supplies
Wed 11 Feb 2026
Beijing is bracing for a tsunami of spent EV batteries by taking steps to boost recycling – a strategy that could also cut its reliance on imports of clean energy minerals.
EU to ban destruction of unsold clothes and shoes
Thu 12 Feb 2026
The European Commission has adopted new measures that will require medium and large companies to stop discarding unsold clothing and footwear, in the bloc’s latest move to target textile waste.
Heatwaves, downpours and droughts – Auckland on track for more extreme weather
1 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New projections show Auckland will face more heatwaves, heavier downpours, worsening droughts and growing coastal threats as climate extremes intensify, according to a new report from Earth Sciences New Zealand.
Argentina fires ravage pristine Patagonia forests, fueling criticism of Milei’s austerity
4 Feb 2026
The wildfires, among the worst to hit the drought-stricken Patagonia region in decades, have devastated more than 45,000 hectares (174 square miles) of Argentina’s forests in the last month and a half, forcing the evacuation of thousands of residents and tourists.
Hydrogen plant to start construction
Tue 10 Feb 2026
Construction is set to start this month on Hiringa Energy’s long delayed green hydrogen project in South Taranaki, after years of consenting fights that culminated in the Court of Appeal rejecting Greenpeace’s challenge in late 2023.
