Topics tagged with 'Aviation'
EDITORIAL: Loss of a leader
6 Mar 2020
By ADELIA HALLETT | Jeanette Fitzsimons, the Green politician and activist who died last night, exemplified the environmentalists’ mantra of thinking globally and acting locally.
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.
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.
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.
Record growth sends Australia's emissions soaring
12 Feb 2020
Emissions from Australia’s largest industrial emitters have surged to 60 per cent above 2005 levels, thanks to record growth in the oil and gas, transport and mining sectors, analysts say.
Expert warns against offshore credits sprees
3 Feb 2020
New Zealand should be buying offshore carbon credits every year instead of going on a buying spree when its carbon bill falls due, says an expert on international carbon policy and markets.
Way now clear for wood, say biomass champions
29 Jan 2020
The Government’s latest move towards getting rid of coal-fired boilers in hospitals and schools shows growing market confidence in the country’s biomass supply, the Bionergy Association says.
EDITORIAL: It's time to scare the horses
28 Jan 2020
By publisher ADELIA HALLETT | It’s 2020 – election year in New Zealand and the year global greenhouse gas emissions should peak if we’re to have a reasonable shot at keeping warming to 1.5deg.
Down the track, our emissions rate will fall
19 Dec 2019
New Zealand’s projected greenhouse gas emissions are falling.
Climate commission gets its body of experts
17 Dec 2019
The names of the experts who will make up the Climate Change Commission have been announced.
Shaw criticises 'handful of countries'
17 Dec 2019
Climate minister James Shaw says a handful of countries are preventing the settling of rules governing global carbon markets.
Why lower emissions mean better business
6 Dec 2019
Companies with high levels of greenhouse gas emissions are worth less than low-emitting companies, says financial analysis and advisory firm Forsyth Barr.
Jump to it, Jacinda, says global carbon watchdog
5 Dec 2019
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is under international pressure to increase New Zealand’s 2030 emissions reduction target in line with the Paris Agreement.
HOT TIMES: This year could be our warmest ever recorded
5 Dec 2019
A hot December could see 2019 become New Zealand’s warmest year on record.
Coffee, tea, or a bite of me?
5 Dec 2019
Air New Zealand has begun trialling edible coffee cups with customers in the air and on the ground.
Climate-impact reporting to be mandatory
4 Dec 2019
The Government is to assess the climate implications of every major decision it makes.
EDITORIAL: Right road, but the slow road
29 Nov 2019
By publisher ADELIA HALLETT | It must be tempting, if you’re in the New Zealand delegation at climate talks in Madrid next week, to rest on your laurels, take the pats on the back, bask in the international limelight.
Young campaigners see nation adopt carbon laws
14 Nov 2019
New Zealand’s zero-carbon legislation becomes law today.
NZ scientists back global climate statement
6 Nov 2019
Leading New Zealand climate scientist Professor James Renwick says an 11,000-strong global statement by scientists warning of “untold suffering” as the climate changes should be taken seriously.
Kiwi company pushes one-click carbon offsetting
5 Nov 2019
CarbonClick plans to be as much of a disrupter for carbon offsetting as Xero has been for accounting.
Government happy with ZCB direction
5 Nov 2019
The Government intends sticking with the recommendations of the select committee when the zero-carbon bill comes back before Parliament this afternoon.
EDITORIAL: A Shaw thing
25 Oct 2019
By publisher ADELIA HALLETT | Climate minister James Shaw, take a bow - you deserve five minutes in the sun for doing what none of your seven predecessors did.
Former Greens leader roasts Shaw's carbon bill
23 Oct 2019
Climate minister James Shaw will let the climate commission control carbon prices if he’s serious about cutting emissions, says the man who preceded him as co-leader of the Green Party.
Zero-carbon bill report pleases minister
22 Oct 2019
A report by the Environment Select Committee has made the zero-carbon bill even stronger, says climate minister James Shaw.
Select Committe backs methane status quo
21 Oct 2019
The Environment Select Committee has taken a bob each way on methane targets – recommending the Government’s target stay in place but that the Climate Change Commission should be able to change it.
High carbon price has downside, says gentailer
17 Oct 2019
High carbon prices could hinder electrification of New Zealand’s energy sector, the country’s largest electricity retailer says.
Now's the time to go green, bank tells business
16 Oct 2019
Green financial markets will not develop in New Zealand if companies don’t use them, Westpac says.
Unions put case for 'just transition'
15 Oct 2019
Unions want reform of the tax system and redundancy payments for all laid-off workers as part of a “just transition” to a low-carbon economy.
HEY, JUDE: That's dangerous talk, say 'fanatics'
15 Oct 2019
National MP Judith Collins’ dismissal of the need for urgent action on climate change is being called ill-informed, dangerous and just plain wrong.
Banking academic to head climate commission
8 Oct 2019
Former Reserve Bank chair Dr Rod Carr will head the Climate Change Commission.
It's time to 'pull finger', EDS tells politicians
7 Oct 2019
The organisers of a high-powered business and climate change conference in Auckland this week say it is way past time for politicians to come together.
EDITORIAL: Uncomfortable is coming, ready or not
7 Oct 2019
By ADELIA HALLETT | Protests like the one that has closed off some Wellington streets today and is preventing staff from a major government department from getting to work make some people uncomfortable.
Business slow to take up offsetting airline travel
30 Sep 2019
Most New Zealand businesses are not offsetting greenhouse gas emissions from flights, Air New Zealand says.
Ardern sets up climate-change trade deal
26 Sep 2019
New Zealand is one of five countries bringing climate change into a trade deal.
Emissions spotlight on land use and transport
25 Sep 2019
The committee of experts advising the Government on emissions budgeting has its sights set on our two biggest climate-polluting sectors – land use and transport.
ARDERN'S GLOBAL INVITE: Let's trade strengths
24 Sep 2019
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has told the world New Zealand wants climate change included in trade deals and global co-operation on carbon pricing.
Smarts and skills keys to the future, says Govt
23 Sep 2019
Deeper pools of capital, a smart, skilled and motivated workforce and plentiful clean energy are behind the Government’s plans for the future of the economy.
At last, we're getting a look at climate risks
19 Sep 2019
Progress is being made at last on assessing the risk climate change poses to New Zealand.
OUR ETS: What goes around, comes around
16 Sep 2019
New Zealand had the opportunity a decade ago to adopt the type of agricultural emissions pricing regime for which farmers are now fighting.
Green taxes make business sense, says study
9 Sep 2019
Environmental taxes such as carbon pricing don’t necessarily slow economic development, researchers say.
EDITORIAL: It's a long way from Montreal to Paris
4 Sep 2019
By ADELIA HALLETT | The Montreal Protocol – an international treaty to save the protective ozone layer that covers the Earth – has worked.
You don't have the guts, campaigner tells MPs
2 Sep 2019
A young woman who has dedicated her life so far to the zero-carbon bill says she has so little faith in the country’s leaders to act on climate change that she is afraid to have children.
Climate all-important, economist reminds Govt
27 Aug 2019
Government decisions that don’t take climate change into account should be voided, says an economist who has spent 30 years trying to get governments in New Zealand and Australia to take the issue seriously.
Government said no to official methane advice
15 Aug 2019
The Government went beyond officials’ advice in proposing cuts in methane emissions of up to 47 per cent, briefing papers show.
Changing climate now farmers' biggest worry
12 Aug 2019
Climate change is now the single greatest issue on farmers’ minds, according to the latest Farm Confidence Survey.
Global report hurts farmers' emissions case
9 Aug 2019
Farmers fighting a push for substantial cuts in methane emissions have been dealt a blow by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
New waste action targets makers of goods
9 Aug 2019
Producers and users of electrical and electronic goods, farm chemicals and plastics, tyres, refrigerants and packaging could be about to become legally responsible for their disposal.
Beware of freeloaders, warns Enviro-Mark chief
8 Aug 2019
Without regulations requiring all businesses to cut greenhouse gas emissions, some New Zealand companies will freeload off the efforts of others, the country’s leading emissions auditor is warning.
SCOTT SIMPSON: We want a seat at the table
7 Aug 2019
National's new climate spokesperson says the party has moved a long way on climate change - and he's had a hand in it.
Government rules out carbon market agency
5 Aug 2019
The Government says it will not set up a new agency to set the volume of carbon credits in the market.
NZ part of hidden global deep-sea network beneath the waves
Fri 25 Jul 2025
Media release - Earth Sciences New Zealand | A world-first study of marine life, including sea creatures found in New Zealand's dark, cold, pressurised ocean depths, has revealed that deep-sea life is surprisingly more connected than previously thought.
Does NZ need a national incentive scheme for wetlands?
Fri 25 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | An expert is calling for a national incentive programme to restore New Zealand’s wetlands and wants to stop schemes to drain these vital carbon-sequestering ecosystems.
NZ Post drops science-based climate target
8 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | NZ Post has dropped its science-based emissions reduction target of 42% by 2030 with no plans to replace it.
Tipping points: Window to avoid irreversible climate impacts is ‘rapidly closing’
11 Jul 2025
In the midst of a record-breaking heatwave in Europe, the UK city of Exeter recently played host to the second international conference on “tipping points”.
Sustainability claims questioned as renewable diesel surges
14 May 2025
Critics are sceptical about industry claims of renewable diesel life-cycle greenhouse gas emission cuts and warn renewable diesel carbon releases will surge if sourcing is scaled up, triggering tropical deforestation as producers convert forests to energy crops, such as oil palm and soy.
Is extending Huntly power station to 2035 in consumers’ best interest?
Tue 22 Jul 2025
By Simon Orme | COMMENT: Genesis Energy is proposing a cartel to keep high-emitting Huntly Power Station in business to 2035. If extending Huntly has economic benefits, is a cartel necessary?
Greenpeace hails Italy court ruling allowing climate lawsuit against energy company to go ahead
Fri 25 Jul 2025
Italy’s highest court has ruled that a lawsuit brought by climate activists against Italian energy company ENI and its government shareholders can go ahead.
Bearish sentiment lingers for carbon market
11 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | The compliance carbon market could be set for a gradual upward trajectory, however unsold volume from the quarterly Emissions Trading Scheme auctions continues to act as ‘a price ceiling,’ according to an expert.
EU wants to see China take more ambitious climate action
15 Jul 2025
The world needs China to show more leadership on climate action, highlighting the importance of cutting planet-heating emissions and reducing the Chinese economy's reliance on coal.
Forestry can be a big plus for sheep and beef farmers – but there are caveats
Tue 22 Jul 2025
By Keith Woodford | OPINION: These are good times for sheep and beef farmers with record product prices for meat, which is precisely why now is the time for sheep and beef farmers to be looking again at farm forestry.
Common low-grade clay strengthens low-carbon concrete
5 Jun 2025
Media release | Engineers at RMIT University have converted low-grade clay into a high-performance cement supplement, opening a potential new market in sustainable construction materials.
Cuts to climate finance put exports in jeopardy: Lawyers
23 May 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government has halved international climate finance, a move aid organisations describe as “devastating,” and which lawyers say could put our Paris Agreement commitments and export market access at risk.
NZ voluntary carbon market’s sad state
14 Jul 2025
By John O’Brien | OPINION: A combination of scandals, challenging economic times, and cheaper offshore carbon credits, mean that the domestic voluntary carbon market in New Zealand remains absolutely tiny.
Media round-up
Fri 25 Jul 2025
In our round-up of the climate coverage in local media: Dairy conversions surge; Gore is hit with a drinking water crisis; meanwhile farming lobby groups Groundswell and Federated Farmers are up in arms about a plan to classify environmental impacts in the agriculture and forestry sector.
Key orange roughy population on verge of collapse, govt considers closure
9 Jul 2025
Media release - Deep Sea Conservation Coalition | New data reveals that New Zealand’s main orange roughy fishery, accounting for half of the country’s total catch, is on the brink of collapse, with one model showing it may have reached that point already, and the government’s considering closing it.
Extreme weather events are the new frontline of online climate denial – report
Thu 24 Jul 2025
Climate science deniers are flooding social media with false claims during extreme weather events, drowning out reliable information and putting lives at risk.
Latest trawl bycatch numbers 'a grim wake-up call'
24 Jun 2025
Media release – Greenpeace | The latest fisheries bycatch data paints a grim picture, with trawlers hauling up thousands of kilograms of coral and killing hundreds of fur seals and seabirds over a 12 month period.
‘Ideological sludge’: How NZ is quiet quitting climate action
17 Jul 2025
New Zealand once stood out as a world leader on climate change. In June it became the first country in the world to abandon a commitment to phase out oil, gas and coal.
NZ govt’s fossil fuel plans could break international law
Thu 24 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government could be breaching international law with its plans to subsidise and expand fossil fuel extraction, following a ruling overnight from the world’s highest court.
Watts talks big on energy reform, but barriers persist
29 May 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Energy and Climate Change minister Simon Watts says the government is doubling down on efforts to boost renewable energy generation, streamline regulation, and drive private sector investment as New Zealand faces mounting energy security and affordability challenges.
SBTi releases Net Zero Standard for banks, investors
Thu 24 Jul 2025
The Science Based Targets initiative announced the release of its finalised Financial Institutions Net-Zero Standard, aimed at enabling banks and investors to set net zero-aligned targets for their lending, investing, insurance and capital markets activities.
Local govt bill 'completely misses the point,' passes first reading
18 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The government’s bill making changes to the Local Government Act to "refocus" councils on their core functions passed its first reading in Parliament last night, with critics saying it will set back climate resilience.
Airlines risk legal challenges by advertising jet fuel as “sustainable”, NGO warns
18 Jul 2025
Amid suspected fraud in the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), a new report says the airline industry should stop calling all alternatives to kerosene “sustainable”.
Methanex closure comes early this year
14 May 2025
The almost-now-annual closure of Methanex has come earlier this year, giving more confidence that the electricity system will get through the winter without a fuel shortfall.
Electric firebricks: decarbonising high-temperature industrial heat
13 Jun 2025
By Ian Mason | A new technology could offer a more cost-effective solution than hydrogen to decarbonise one ‘hard-to-abate’ sector of New Zealand’s economy, as well as having ample potential for demand response as the electricity grid becomes more renewable.
Climate catastrophes are creating a ‘new market reality’ for insurance carriers
Wed 23 Jul 2025
Raging wildfires and severe storms contributed to record-high global insurance losses — totalling an estimated US$84 billion — for the first six months of the year.
Will NZ walk away from the Paris Agreement?
20 Dec 2024
By Geoff Bertram | COMMENT: Unless the government can find very cheap offshore mitigation, the temptation to walk away from its Paris Agreement obligations may well be too strong to resist for a coalition government focused on fiscal austerity.
The ICJ’s ruling means Australia and other major polluters face a new era of climate reparations
Fri 25 Jul 2025
By Harj Narulla | OPINION: Australia has found itself on the wrong side of history.
Clear-sighted view to trade-offs crucial to reimagining our relationship with the land
7 Jul 2025
By Nick Swallow | COMMENT: New Zealand could see a 70% drop in the value of dairy land if we pursue our emissions targets for agriculture, according to a new report.
Elation as Whanganui gets voice in fast-track seabed mining decision
Thu 24 Jul 2025
By Moana Ellis, Local Democracy Reporter | A Whanganui District councillor is “elated” her council has been named a relevant authority in the fast-track application process for a seabed mining project off South Taranaki.
Urgent action needed to get on track for climate goals - commission
Fri 25 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand is making progress on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but more work is needed – urgently – to set up for future reductions, according to the latest report from the Climate Change Commission.
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.
Ocean heatwaves may signal climate tipping point
Fri 25 Jul 2025
A recent study that tapped into satellite data has revealed that 2023 marked an unprecedented year for marine heatwaves, with record-breaking levels of duration, reach and intensity across the world's oceans.
Markets aren't going to save us – Carr
9 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Consumerism is reaching its ecological and economic limits, and only systemic change - not market tweaks - can steer us away from climate catastrophe, according to former Climate Change Commission chair Rod Carr.
Millions of tons of tiny plastic particles are polluting the ocean, study finds
15 Jul 2025
At least 27 million tonnes of nanoplastics are estimated to be floating in the North Atlantic Ocean, weighing more than all wild land mammals combined.
Another offensive launched in the government’s war on nature
Thu 24 Jul 2025
Media release - Environmental Defence Society | Last week the Minister for Resource Management Reform, Chris Bishop, announced that the government would be intervening, yet again, to prevent councils from progressing environmental protections under the Resource Management Act.
Activists sue US development bank over $4.6bn loan to massive Mozambique gas project
18 Jul 2025
Environmental groups claim loan is ‘unlawful’ in legal filing.
Straterra has a new name: the New Zealand Minerals Council
16 Apr 2025
Media release | Straterra has been renamed as New Zealand Minerals Council, says chief executive Josie Vidal.
Switching to renewables is ‘smart economics’ - Guterres
Thu 24 Jul 2025
The global energy transition is now “unstoppable” due to “smart economics”, UN secretary-general António Guterres has said in an online speech titled: “A moment of opportunity.”
Root intelligence: How old trees learn to suck more CO2 from the air
Thu 24 Jul 2025
New research finds that centuries-old oaks can dynamically rewire how they absorb nutrients—suggesting forests may be more resilient allies in the climate fight than once believed.
Climate groups want UK wealth tax to make super-rich fund sustainable economy
17 Jul 2025
Growing number of campaigners urge government to ensure green investment is not done ‘on backs of the poor’.
Can robot taxis solve NZ's transport woes?
Wed 23 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Ministry of Transport has tested the idea of driverless taxis as a futuristic fix. But while new modelling explores how "robotaxis" could ease congestion and reduce car ownership, critics say it misses a crucial point – the country’s worsening transport emissions.
United Nations carbon market rules agreed but concerns remain
25 Nov 2024
New carbon market rules agreed at the fractious UN climate summit will be a relief to New Zealand and Singapore, who were leading the negotiations, but concerns about greenwashing and disadvantaging nature-based solutions remain.
Fast, sustained phase-out of fossil fuels: best-performing countries in coal and transport sectors
10 Jul 2025
By Robert McLachlan | It’s true that climate change is getting worse – it will continue to get worse until emissions fall to near zero. But is action on phasing out fossil fuels really stalling?
UN court's decision could reshape approach to climate commitments
Tue 22 Jul 2025
The International Court of Justice will this week deliver its advisory opinion on what obligations countries have to address the impacts of climate change. It will be a vital step toward climate justice and equity, according to one local expert.
Waste Levy risks becoming ‘slush fund’ under proposed changes – Commissioner
5 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Proposed changes to New Zealand's waste legislation risk undermining public trust in the waste levy scheme, according to Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Simon Upton.
The struggle for control of the Arctic is accelerating - and it's riskier than ever
11 Jul 2025
As the battle for one of the world’s coldest places heats up, an increasingly fragile security balance may be breaking down, leading to an escalating arms race.
UN University report warns against carbon credits from REDD, tree planting, and improved forest management
13 Jun 2025
But the report stops short of recommending banning the trade in carbon temporarily stored in trees.
For the first time, China invests more in wind and solar than coal overseas
29 May 2025
China’s Belt and Road Initiative, long derided for its heavy carbon footprint, was dominated by wind and solar power projects for the first time from 2022 to 2023, according to a new analysis. But coal plants financed in earlier years are still coming online.
