Topics tagged with 'Carbon Credits'
Angry iwi to file carbon prices Treaty claim
30 May 2014
A $600-million Treaty of Waitangi claim over the Government’s climate change policies and carbon prices is to go ahead.
Foresters threaten to pull out of ETS
23 May 2014
Participation by forestry in the Emissions Trading Scheme will come to a sudden halt because the Government has shown it will change the rules at the drop of a hat, industry sources say.
Government took easy option on forest credits
23 May 2014
The Government feared that an “arbitrage loophole” allowing forest owners to move in and out of the Emissions Trading Scheme could cost it up to $231 million over the next two years.
Maori unhappy about having to back carbon move
16 May 2014
The Maori Party says it is being forced against its will to support Government moves to stamp out arbitrage by one sector of the carbon market.
Offsets flow from China, Ukraine and Russia
16 May 2014
China, the Ukraine and Russia continue to be the major source of offsets entering the European Emissions Trading Scheme, latest figures show.
Australia expects slow start with emissions fund
16 May 2014
The Australian Government expects that less than half of the $2.55 billion Emissions Reduction Fund will be spent over the next four years.
Market trades 34 million carbon credits
9 May 2014
Nearly 34 million carbon credits were traded on the New Zealand market last month – up 10 million on the previous month but down on the same time last year.
Canberra finds ways to implement emissions plan
9 May 2014
The Australian Government will be able to implement its Emissions Reduction Fund in July - but business may bypass the scheme in year one.
At last, we're moving on wood carbon rules
24 Apr 2014
New Zealand is finally moving to recognise carbon stored in wood products – two years after it could have done so.
March busy month for trading carbon units
4 Apr 2014
TWENTY-THREE million carbon units were traded on the New Zealand market last month.
Carbon price breach of rights, says Maori leader
21 Mar 2014
Maori Party co-leader Tariana Turia has weighed into the row over low carbon prices, describing the loss of value of credits given to Maori in Treaty of Waitangi settlements as a breach of human rights.
Canberra outlines new farm opportunities
21 Mar 2014
The Australian Government says it is making it easier for farmers and landholders to be able to participate in the Emissions Reduction Fund by storing carbon in their soil, improving farm productivity and contributing to action on climate change.
Beehive still silent on demand to lift carbon prices
14 Mar 2014
There’s still no word from the Government on whether it will boost carbon prices to avoid a $600 million Treaty of Waitangi claim.
Farmers remain free of emissions obligations
14 Mar 2014
The Government is all but ruling out making agriculture responsible for its greenhouse gas emissions next year.
Reluctant PM fends off $600m iwi ultimatum
7 Mar 2014
The Prime Minister says he accepts that 50,000 new jobs would be created by Maori following through on a promise to plant one million hectares of new forest if the Government lifts carbon prices.
Carbon credit trading close to 12 million
7 Mar 2014
Nearly 12 million carbon credits were traded on the domestic carbon market last month.
Big emitters cash in on free carbon credits
21 Feb 2014
A loophole allowing heavy industrial emitters to coin it at the expense of taxpayers by selling free carbon credits is likely to be closed under a Labour-Greens government.
Angry Maori take carbon case to UN
21 Feb 2014
Frustrated Maori will take their carbon price grievances to the United Nations next week.
Iwi ultimatum earns support of political parties
21 Feb 2014
Iwi threatening to take a claim to the Waitangi Tribunal over carbon prices have the support of at least two major political parties.
Iwi forest plan key to processing boom
14 Feb 2014
A proposal by iwi to plant a million hectares of new forest over 10 years could provide the economies of scale needed to kick the New Zealand industry into large-scale processing.
Angry Maori table $600,000 carbon ultimatum
7 Feb 2014
Maori say they will lodge a $600 million Treaty of Waitangi claim if the Government doesn’t move fast to shore up carbon prices.
Beehive seems set to block cheap foreign credits
6 Dec 2013
The Government today is expected to announce moves to restrict the flow of cheap foreign carbon credits into New Zealand.
Abbott fund has high price, says analyst
22 Nov 2013
Australia’s Emissions Reduction Fund is likely to cost its government $A20 a tonne, and possibly $40 a tonne, an analyst says.
California approves first forest carbon offsets
22 Nov 2013
The first California forest carbon credits issued under the cap-and-trade offset protocols have been issued by the Air Resources Board.
Why it's important that we do our bit
15 Nov 2013
With COP19 under way in Warsaw, CARBON MARKET SOLUTIONS looks at the background to international climate change agreements:
Doha decision forced hand on setting 5% emissions target, says Groser
1 Nov 2013
New Zealand’s expulsion from international carbon markets was a factor in the Government’s setting of this country’s 2020 emissions reduction target.
NZ turns away Australian carbon units
18 Oct 2013
More than two million Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) issued under that country’s Carbon Farming Initiative will not be eligible for surrender in New Zealand.
Govt still silent on auctioning credits
4 Oct 2013
The Government says it has made no decisions yet on the auctioning of carbon credits.
NZ Steel takes almost $5m in free credits
20 Sep 2013
New Zealand Steel is once again the biggest recipient of free carbon credits, receiving nearly $5 million worth from the Government.
Science sees human waste as weapon in war against climate change
20 Sep 2013
Human waste could be the next weapon in the fight against climate change, according to an Australian academic.
Give carbon farm back to the cattle, says Govt
6 Sep 2013
The Northern Territory Government says it is determined to see a cattle station bought with Australian Government funding two years ago for the purposes of carbon farming returned to cattle production, now that it is back on the market.
Forest figures meaningless, say growers
16 Aug 2013
One hundred and seventy owners of post-1989 forests left the Emissions Trading Scheme last year.
Carbon budget essential, says council
9 Aug 2013
The Sustainability Council is launching a new push to get New Zealand into carbon budgeting.
California shuns linking emissions schemes
9 Aug 2013
The head of the Californian emissions trading scheme – which will ultimately become the world’s third largest – says the US state has no plans to link with Australia’s carbon price.
Trading seen as answer to South Africa’s energy crisis
26 Jul 2013
Balancing the climate change issue with sustainable energy and the threat of carbon shortage is no easy task for South Africa but carbon trading might just help.
Is there something we haven't been told?
14 Jun 2013
Carbon Market Solutions asks as to consider a situation now confronting many forest owners who opted into the Emissions Trading Scheme:
Carbon price cancels out CCS potential
7 Jun 2013
A potentially lucrative industry in the underground storage of carbon dioxide is being stymied by almost negligible carbon prices.
Scrap carbon price cap, OECD tells NZ
7 Jun 2013
The carbon price cap and free carbon credits for trade-exposed emitters should be scrapped, the OECD is telling New Zealand.
Airlines act to prevent emissions talks collapse
7 Jun 2013
A proposal agreed to this week by major airlines could rescue United Nations efforts for a deal to cut greenhouse gas emissions in the aviation sector, observers say.
Free credit cash takes a cut
17 May 2013
The Government has almost halved the amount of money it sets aside to pay for free carbon credits it gives to industry.
Yes, NZ is in the carbon trading club
17 May 2013
New Zealand is contributing to the development of international carbon-trading markets, the Government says.
Interesting price action overnight
3 May 2013
December 2013 EUAs rallied €0.18 cents to settle at €3.09 overnight, in spite of German power hitting an eight-year low and other energy markets like oil weaker, OMFiancial reports.
Private sector looms as key funder of forests
19 Apr 2013
The private sector is emerging as a key source of financing the sustainable management of forests that, if tapped properly, could result in benefits for the environment and for businesses.
Spot NZUs steadying in $2 zone
12 Apr 2013
After dipping into the $1.50 range earlier this year, the domestic carbon credits have held above the $2 mark for a month.
Farmers get $30m to help them to adapt
5 Apr 2013
The Australian Government has pumped $30 million into a project that will look at how farm practices can be adapted to reduce carbon emissions and earn farmers a second income stream by generating and selling carbon credits.
Japan might re-open carbon discussion
15 Mar 2013
Japan might revive discussions regarding a carbon market to effectively reduce pollution levels after elections for the Upper House of parliament in July.
Expense puts farmers off, says expert
8 Mar 2013
Many current livestock emission reduction technologies would not be adopted by farmers at the current price for carbon without a significant reduction in their cost, an Australian conference has been told.
Steel mill, smelter top free credits list
1 Mar 2013
The Glenbrook steel mill and the Bluff aluminium smelter were the big winners in last year’s hand-out of free carbon credits to industrial emitters.
California credits surpass reserve price
1 Mar 2013
All of the nearly 13 million 2013 carbon credits sold at auction in California this week at above-reserve prices.
New Zealanders losing ambition on climate change: Ipsos
Wed 20 May 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | New Zealanders’ belief that their government has a plan to combat climate change has taken another serious hit in the latest poll of 31 countries by global research firm Ipsos.
NZ Govt’s move to halt climate litigation under international scrutiny
Tue 19 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | Local and international NGOs have signed an open letter calling on the Government to reconsider its decision to shield major emitters from legal liability for climate-related harm.
$30m airline fund risks ‘burning public money’ without lasting benefit – expert
20 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | A $30 million government package to support regional air routes risks delivering poor value for money while increasing emissions, according to transport strategist Tim Adriaansen.
Europe has 'maybe six weeks of jet fuel left', energy boss warns
20 Apr 2026
Stocks would reach a tipping point in June if Europe was unable to replace at least half of its imports from the Middle East, the organisation said in a report this week.
Govt unveils long-awaited voluntary carbon market guidance
Fri 15 May 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government has released long-awaited guidance for New Zealand’s voluntary carbon and nature markets, as questions continue for the sector despite ministers signalling support for its growth.
Biomass sector asks: where did the love go?
Mon 18 May 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | New Zealand has sufficient biomass in its plantation forests to replace natural gas for industrial process heat at lower costs than electrification, but is failing to get the attention it deserves, sector leaders say.
Māori climate risk worsened by colonisation, report finds
Wed 20 May 2026
A sweeping national climate assessment argues that exclusion from decision-making has amplified Indigenous vulnerability to floods, storms, and erosion.
Carbon News updates forward curve
13 May 2026
Carbon News has updated its ten-year NZU forward curve, following a recent rise in spot market prices, with NZUs rallying from about $34 in January to nearly $54 in early May.
Hipkins pans LNG plan as ‘massive step backwards’
Tue 19 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | Labour leader Chris Hipkins has told a Queenstown audience that a Government he leads would not proceed with a planned LNG import terminal, if elected at November’s election.
Tairāwhiti deserves better than weakened forestry rules
5 May 2026
OPINION: The government's proposed amendments to forestry standards, released yesterday, ignore the hard lessons learned in our region and ignore the voices that have fought hardest to protect it, writes Manu Caddie.
Green building council calls for clean energy policies
Mon 18 May 2026
The New Zealand Green Building Council has released its 2026 election manifesto calling for policies to reduce energy waste in buildings, lower household and business energy costs, and improve New Zealand’s energy security.
What Magyar’s defeat of Orbán in Hungary means for climate and energy
21 Apr 2026
Hungary has played a disproportionate role in EU climate and energy policy in recent years, by repeatedly vetoing climate action and by delaying the phaseout of Russian fossil-fuel imports.
Conservation land open for voluntary carbon market schemes
12 May 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | The government is to open up the Crown-owned conservation estate to private investment in voluntary carbon market projects.
NZ energy leaders heading to Hawke’s Bay for business energy summit
Wed 20 May 2026
Media release: Hawkes Bay Chamber of Commerce | Some of New Zealand’s most senior energy sector leaders are heading to Hawke’s Bay next month for a business summit focused on the energy transition and what it means for regional industry.
Environmental groups call for ETS reform
20 Feb 2026
Several environmental organisations are calling on political parties to make climate and biodiversity central to the 2026 election campaign, with reforming the Emissions Trading Scheme seen as a key priority.
Future big droughts may be worse than we think – NZ’s past shows why
Mon 18 May 2026
By Adam Brown, University of Waikato; Dave Frame, University of Canterbury, and Luke Harrington, University of Waikato | For an agricultural nation like New Zealand, severe drought is one of the most ominous consequences of a warming planet.
EDS urges MPs to scrap the Fisheries Amendment Bill
5 May 2026
Media release | The Environmental Defence Society today lodged a substantive submission on the Fisheries Amendment Bill.
Govt presses ahead with forestry rule changes despite opposition
14 May 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government is pushing ahead with changes to commercial forestry rules despite most submitters opposing the proposals, with critics warning the reforms will weaken councils’ ability to manage erosion and forestry slash risks in vulnerable regions such as Tairāwhiti.
Iran war pushes Portugal to halve fossil fuel use over next 10 years
Wed 20 May 2026
Lisbon fast-tracks plans after the Iran war caused oil and gas costs to soar, Energy Minister Maria da Graça Carvalho tells POLITICO.
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.”
New funding for low methane farming uptake
29 Apr 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | The government will co-fund projects under an Early Adoption Accelerator scheme announced today to accelerate the uptake of low emissions farming technologies emerging from the AgriZero public-private partnership.
A real ‘intergenerational equity’ budget would address Australia’s unceasing environmental decline
Fri 15 May 2026
Labor has unveiled a budget designed to tackle intergenerational equity in Australia through bold tax reform.
Why ‘greenhushing’ signals deeper issues with NZ’s climate risk reporting regime
Fri 15 May 2026
By Hang Pham, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington | Most of us are familiar with the concept of greenwashing: organisations exaggerating or overstating their environmental credentials. But in New Zealand, there are signs the country’s climate disclosure regime may inadvertently be driving a very different trend: not saying much at all.
‘Formidable’ El Niño expected this winter
29 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | Meteorologists are anticipating a significant El Niño influence on weather patterns across the country from winter onwards, with predicted lower rainfall for some areas and heavier rain for others likely to impact multiple sectors of the economy as well as the carbon market.
Victorian Hydrogen announces Southland urea fertiliser project using coal
22 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | Australian-based Victorian Hydrogen has announced it is developing a new 1.5 million-tonne-a-year urea fertiliser operation in Southland, which it will apply for under fast-track legislation.
Media round-up
24 Apr 2026
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: What is the real cost of storm-hit infrastructure? Urgency is needed over climate adaptation funding; and a community conservation group has won a legal victory against multinational mining company OceanaGold.
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.
Labour condemns Govt plan to stop climate litigation
Fri 15 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Labour Party has slammed the Government’s move to block climate lawsuits against big emitters but won’t say if they would repeal the legislation if elected in November.
GIDI-style help cheaper than LNG: MBIE
11 May 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | Officials advised ministers last July that the lowest-cost way to free up gas for use during dry winters was to assist industrial gas users to switch to electricity.
Govt missing tricks to save fuel in crisis
30 Apr 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government is being urged to shift its response to the fuel crisis away from short-term relief and towards measures that reduce demand, with public health experts warning it is missing an opportunity to boost energy security and lower household costs.
Climate risks could reshape business finances, new guidance warns
15 Apr 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New guidance warns climate change is set to fundamentally reshape financial outcomes for businesses, including difficult-to-model climate “tipping points” – irreversible changes such as ice sheet collapse or ocean circulation shifts – which threaten severe and sudden financial impacts.
Move to block lawsuits could strengthen climate case against Govt
14 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s plan to block climate lawsuits – while potentially fatal for one groundbreaking climate case – could actually bolster claims in another live climate case underway against the Government.
Coal mine challenge reaches Aus High Court
13 May 2026
What climate change impacts should a planning authority have to take into account when assessing a mining project?
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.
Pacific voice on climate at the UN
Wed 20 May 2026
A New Zealand-based researcher has told a United Nations forum that rising sea levels are already reshaping life across the Pacific and climate change is causing irreversible impacts on water supplies, food security and cultural identity.
Environmental groups sue Trump administration over approval of new ultra deep-water drilling project
23 Apr 2026
Environmental groups sued the Trump administration on Monday over its approval last month of oil company BP’s ultra deep-water drilling project in the Gulf of Mexico.
Opposition slams environment ministry merger
13 May 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Opposition MPs accused the Government of downgrading climate and environmental protections as legislation to abolish the Ministry for the Environment and merge it into a new mega-ministry passed its second reading in Parliament.
Commission urges Govt action on climate risks
7 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | Climate change currently poses major risks to our water infrastructure with “significant gaps” in readiness to manage risks and increasing hazards, according to the Climate Change Commission.
ESG funds include petrochemical companies, report finds
5 May 2026
Global banks have invested US$133bn into US petrochemical expansion, even as the industry is linked to climate change.
NZTA rejects covering $145m of Wellington public transport projects
Wed 20 May 2026
By Justin Wong, Local Democracy Reporter | More than $145 million of Wellington public transport projects - including new bus spines along the harbour quays and the redevelopment of ageing Waterloo station - never made it into the Government’s $32.9 billion national land transport plan.
Thousands protest in Germany urging faster shift to renewable energy, amid Iran war
20 Apr 2026
Thousands of people demonstrated across Germany on April 18, urging a faster shift to renewable energy and accusing conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s coalition of putting the brakes on the transition.
Green Party calls for national electrification plan
20 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Green Party is calling for a national plan to electrify homes, transport and industry using renewable energy, to reduce fossil fuel dependence in response to the Middle East crisis.
China widens its clean energy lead
Mon 18 May 2026
Chinese companies account for more than half of global investments in clean energy manufacturing since 2019, while new U.S. investments declined last year.
‘Landmark’ conservation reform bill – boost or bust for nature?
8 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Government has announced an overhaul of the country’s conservation system, which environmental organisation Forest & Bird says will undo the work of many generations of Kiwis to protect public conservation land.
Combined climate extremes may prompt carbon budget rethink
14 May 2026
Media release: Springer Nature | Combined extreme climate events are likely to become more common in the future if carbon emissions continue to rise, a paper in Nature suggests.
Media round-up
Fri 15 May 2026
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: The government's move to change climate law removes a key protection for NZ citizens, farmers should be paid to use methane-busting tools, and it's one step forward, three steps back on environment policy.
Carbon trading schemes cut more emissions than carbon taxes, according to global study
20 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Carbon trading schemes are more effective than carbon taxes at reducing emissions, cutting fossil fuel use, and accelerating the shift to renewable energy, a global study has found.
Why both trees and technology are important in the race to mitigate carbon emissions
4 May 2026
Different carbon‑removal approaches solve different problems, and pitting these technologies against each other could slow progress.
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.
UN members prepare for pivotal vote on landmark ICJ climate justice ruling
Fri 15 May 2026
If the resolution is passed, governments will recognise their legal responsibility to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
NZ First moves to revive container return scheme
4 May 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | NZ First is aiming to launch a national container return scheme, which could recycle over a billion wasted containers each year, reviving a policy shelved by the previous Labour-led Government in 2023.
Greens condemn planned coal mine next to protected wetland
4 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Green Party says a new plan for a coal mine and fertiliser plant next to an internationally significant wetland is “ecological vandalism and climate denial.”
Why is Northern Ireland facing a growing threat from wildfires?
7 May 2026
Figures show that spring drought events are happening more often while there has been a sharp rise in "fire weather" - a mix of warmth, dryness, and wind that allows fires to ignite and spread rapidly. Experts warn this combination, along with climate change, is creating a longer and more volatile wildfire season.
Trump has hindered offshore wind while China and other countries invest heavily
Mon 18 May 2026
President Donald Trump is stopping offshore wind projects in the United States, just as the industry was poised to grow significantly.
