Topics tagged with 'Carbon News world'
Post-lockdown carbon emissions bound back
12 Jun 2020
Carbon dioxide emissions have rebounded around the world as lockdown conditions have eased, raising fears that the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere could surge higher than ever unless governments take swift action.
LOVE IS BLIND: Germany's affair with the car
12 Jun 2020
A world leader in cutting emissions from electricity production, the German government, in thrall to the auto industry, "overlooked" pollution from cars and trucks.
SHIFTING SANDS: We don't have the full story
12 Jun 2020
Humans see sand as an infinite resource. We are astounded to discover there are more stars in the universe than grains of sand on our beaches.
Sponge-tech sucks carbon from the air
12 Jun 2020
Scientists have set a record for carbon capture and storage using new sponge-like technology that can capture carbon directly from the air.
Humanity finished if it fails to adapt, says Goodall
11 Jun 2020
Humanity will be finished if we fail to drastically change our food systems in response to the coronavirus pandemic and the climate crisis, prominent naturalist Jane Goodall has warned.
‘Final blow’ as EU agrees to weaken aviation rules
11 Jun 2020
The climate plan for aviation is losing its last shred of credibility, after the European Union confirmed it will back an industry proposal to water down the rules.
Minister rejects Queensland wind farm project
11 Jun 2020
Federal environment minister Sussan Ley has rejected a $100m wind farm proposal in central Queensland on the ground it would clear old-growth forest important to vulnerable species, including the koala.
Engineers make syngas out of cement-waste
11 Jun 2020
Chemical engineers have found a new way to turn carbon dioxide emissions from cement-making and other industrial processes into useful products like fuel and plastics.
US backs changes to airline emissions scheme
10 Jun 2020
The US supports changing a landmark aviation emissions scheme now under review by a UN agency, after airlines said the current deal could leave them with higher carbon offsetting costs when air travel recovers from coronavirus.
Forest trees are growing shorter and dying younger
10 Jun 2020
Temperatures could get too high for tropical forests, and forest trees everywhere are changing in response to human action.
Two-faced solar panels follow the sun
10 Jun 2020
Using solar panels with double sides or that can twist to follow the sun can cut the cost of electricity generation.
Climate change threatens mortgage market
9 Jun 2020
US taxpayers could be on the hook for billions of dollars in climate-related property losses as the government backs a growing number of mortgages on homes in the path of floods, fires and extreme weather.
Millions of species face extinction emergency
9 Jun 2020
An extinction emergency unparalleled in the history of life on Earth could soon overtake millions of species – thanks to us.
Talks delays deepen uncertainty over carbon markets
9 Jun 2020
Projects to curb greenhouse emissions in developing countries are in limbo amid another delay for nations to design a new global carbon market.
Coronavirus waste ends up in oceans
9 Jun 2020
Conservationists have warned that the coronavirus pandemic could spark a surge in ocean pollution – adding to a glut of plastic waste that already threatens marine life.
Not even pandemic can flatten the Keeling Curve
8 Jun 2020
As graphs go, the Keeling Curve is simple, but it clearly illustrates the planet's vexing global warming challenge.
Germany unveils plans for €40bn climate splurge
8 Jun 2020
The German government has unveiled plans for a massive €130 billion stimulus package that features at least €40 billion climate-related spending.
Siberia dries out as forests burn
8 Jun 2020
A huge swathe of Arctic Russia is changing rapidly as oil leaks, the climate warms and Siberia dries out.
Car industry pushes for scrappage scheme
8 Jun 2020
The UK car industry has been in confidential talks with the government over a possible £1.5 billion scrappage scheme that it insists should encourage the purchase of diesel and petrol cars on an equal footing with cleaner vehicles.
How science shoots down hydrogen cars
5 Jun 2020
Hydrogen cars won’t overtake electric vehicles because they’re hampered by the laws of science.
Our chance to reset global economy, says Charles
5 Jun 2020
The Prince of Wales has unveiled a five-point plan to stimulate sustainable economic growth.
Virus could cause $25tn fossil fuel industry collapse
5 Jun 2020
The coronavirus outbreak could trigger a $25 trillion collapse in the fossil fuel industry by accelerating a terminal decline for the world’s most polluting companies.
Hunt for the superconductors
5 Jun 2020
Physicists are on the lookout for room-temperature superconductors that could revolutionize the world’s energy system.
Japan to launch ‘green recovery’ platform
4 Jun 2020
Japan wants to bolster global momentum for climate action by hosting an online platform and high-level political event on greening the post-coronavirus economic recovery.
European Green Deal needs strong methane rules
4 Jun 2020
Oil and gas companies throughout the supply chain need to do much more to bring down methane emissions immediately, says Shell's new-energies director Maarten Wetselaar.
Climate change the most important mission for unis
4 Jun 2020
The future of universities will involve articulating their unique role as embedded, ethical generators of crucial knowledge and skills, well-equipped to handle coming contingencies and helping others to do the same - and that means climate change.
Weeds on march put food on defensive
3 Jun 2020
Climate-change-induced weed invasions threaten food production in many countries, including Europe, the United States and Australia, scientists say.
How the super-rich conquered London
2 Jun 2020
Over cups of tea in his ramshackle London home I chatted with a novelist. Talk inevitably turned to its expanding population of wealthy residents.
Why is there so much furore over China’s Belt and Road?
2 Jun 2020
There were certainly questions asked when Victoria first signed a memorandum of understanding to join China’s Belt and Road Initiative in 2018, but it wasn’t until the past week that the criticism reached a fever pitch.
'Zombie fires’ are erupting in Alaska
2 Jun 2020
The bitterly cold Arctic winter typically snuffs out the seasonal wildfires that erupt in this region. But every once in a while, a wildfire comes along that refuses to die.
US renewables take the 2019 top spot
2 Jun 2020
Renewable energy consumption in the US topped coal consumption in 2019, the first time this has occurred in more than 130 years.
South Asia’s twin threat: extreme heat and foul air
2 Jun 2020
Climate change means many health risks. Any one of them raises the danger. What happens when extreme heat meets bad air?
Green bailouts will let airlines off the hook
29 May 2020
The coronavirus pandemic has grounded thousands of aircraft, contributing to the largest-ever annual fall in CO2 emissions. But at some point the planes will fly again and with them, global emissions.
How a contrarian scientist helped Trump's EPA
29 May 2020
In March 2017, a scientist named James Enstrom rattled many public health experts by publishing a study concluding that there was no link between fine soot air pollution and premature death.
There's plenty of room for carbon storage underground
29 May 2020
There's plenty of room for more of the main greenhouse gas on this planet – as long as it’s caught and trapped in carbon storage underground.
Clean energy cracker thing in a crisis
29 May 2020
Clean-energy companies are doing better in the covid-19 crisis than their fossil-fuel counterparts, says analytics company GlobalData.
One project exposes Morrison's gas plan as folly
28 May 2020
Every few years, the idea that gas will help Australia transition to a zero-emissions economy seems to re-emerge, as if no one had thought of it before.
EU recovery fund has green strings attached
28 May 2020
It’s now official: the EU’s updated seven-year €1 trillion budget proposal and €750 billion recovery plan will both be geared towards the green and digital transitions.
We're sitting on remains of a giant volcanic plume
28 May 2020
Back in the 1970s, scientists came up with a revolutionary idea about how Earth’s deep interior works.
It’s time to let the ‘fire people’ care for the land
28 May 2020
Since last summer’s bushfire crisis, there’s been a quantum shift in public awareness of Aboriginal fire management.
COP26 likely to be delayed again
27 May 2020
Vital international climate talks due to be hosted by the United Kingdom are expected to be delayed until late next year because of the coronavirus crisis, it has emerged, dashing hopes they could be reconvened sooner.
Act now, says former fossil fuel company exec
26 May 2020
Ian Dunlop - the former head of the Australian Coal Association - worries about his grandchildren. He worries time is running out.
Why a bullet train could increase greenhouse gas emissions
26 May 2020
Bullet trains are back on Australia's political agenda. As the major parties look for ways to stimulate the economy after the COVID-19 crisis, Labor is again spruiking its vision of linking Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra and Brisbane with high-speed trains similar to the Eurostar, France’s TGV or Japan’s Shinkansen.
Recyclable bricks and concrete the way of the future
26 May 2020
Bricks, concrete and other construction materials could one day be made from recycled PVC, waste plant-fibre or sand, thanks to a remarkable new kind of rubber polymer.
United push for Australia to target emissions in covid recovery
25 May 2020
Australian businesses, unions, investors and environmentalists are joining forces in a call for a covid-19 pandemic economic recovery programme based on energy efficiency.
Green New Deal turns South Korea from climate villain to model
25 May 2020
The country’s youngest MP is on a mission, inspired by Greta Thunberg, as climate moves up political agenda.
German coal generator fights Dutch coal phase-out
25 May 2020
Uniper is threatening to sue the Dutch government over a plan to phase out coal power by 2030, in a case experts warn could have a chilling effect on climate ambition internationally.
Electric bikes could halve transport emissions
25 May 2020
Replacing just 20 per cent of car miles travelled with e-bike travel could cut Britain's greenhouse gas emissions from transport by up to eight million tonnes a year, new research shows.
Fires and pandemic a sign of things to come, letter warns
25 May 2020
Leading health professionals, including a Nobel laureate and a former Australian of the Year, say the Australian Government must put human health “front and centre” in a new generation of environment laws in the aftermath of the Covid-19 and bushfire crises.
It's up to us by how much sea levels will rise
22 May 2020
It’s a racing certainty that sea levels everywhere will go on climbing. Unless the world’s nations act to contain global warming, by 2100 the tides around the world will be one metre higher. And by 2300, they could be five metres higher.
Environmental groups call for ETS reform
Fri 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.
Media round-up
Fri 20 Feb 2026
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: 'Every tonne matters': The climate scientist who wants to give you hope; Minister says managed retreat is an option; and climate change is here – is New Zealand ready?
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.
Singapore sets first ever sustainable aviation fuel levy, as Southeast Asia’s fuel industry grows
Tue 17 Feb 2026
Flying in and out of Singapore, home to Southeast Asia’s busiest airport, will get slightly more expensive this year as the city state begins imposing a levy of between 75 cents to $32 per ticket to fund sustainable aviation fuel.
Greens slam move to disband Environment Ministry
Fri 20 Feb 2026
The Green Party has joined climate and health advocates in condemning the Government's decision to disestablish the Ministry for the Environment as part of a multi-ministry merger.
Govt’s own modelling shows LNG leads to higher electricity prices than other solutions
Thu 19 Feb 2026
By Christina Hood | COMMENT: According to modelling conducted by Concept Consulting for MBIE, either developing the Tariki gas storage facility or managing electricity demand would deliver lower wholesale electricity prices than the Government’s preferred solution of an LNG import terminal.
New study looks to nature markets to accelerate climate response
Wed 18 Feb 2026
The Nature Conservancy is teaming up with local groups to study the most affordable and effective ways of restoring native habitats at the top of the South Island, including ways to fund the work using international voluntary carbon markets and biodiversity credits.
Carbon price drops as volatility continues
Tue 17 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | The carbon market is still displaying extreme volatility, with prices dropping back to below $40 yesterday, after trading as high as $46.25 last week.
Flawed decision-making around taxing electricity to fund LNG import terminal
Mon 16 Feb 2026
By Simon Orme | COMMENT: The Government's decision to back an LNG import terminal exemplifies an egregious failure in public policy and energy sector governance.
LNG: a rational choice compared to unpalatable alternatives
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.
Sustainable retail-office project breaks ground under new Green Star framework
Thu 19 Feb 2026
Construction is set to begin on a new retail-office development in central Auckland, which is targeting a 40% reduction in embodied carbon and 25% lower energy.
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.
Carbon market rallies but auction floor still out of reach
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.
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.
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.
Slash for cash turns storm debris into jobs and climate resilience
Thu 19 Feb 2026
A community-led initiative in Tairāwhiti is transforming storm-damaged forestry slash into jobs, soil regeneration and long-term climate resilience.
Calls for action to reduce emissions as extreme weather bites
Tue 17 Feb 2026
By Liz Kivi | Renewable energy advocates and environmental groups are calling for more action to reduce emissions and increase resilience as severe weather wreaks havoc across the country.
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?
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’
9 Feb 2026
The Green Party wants to give whales legal rights, including the right to sue.
Claims that AI can help fix climate dismissed as greenwashing
Wed 18 Feb 2026
Tech companies are conflating traditional artificial intelligence with generative AI when claiming the energy-hungry technology could help avert climate breakdown, according to a report.
Govt missing opportunity to slash electricity prices, says expert
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.
Media round-up
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?
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.
Australian gas producer Santos wins court fight over net zero claims
Wed 18 Feb 2026
An Australian court on Tuesday threw out a lawsuit against gas producer Santos that alleged the company misled the public on its plans to achieve net zero carbon emissions.
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.
Seabed miners quit South Taranaki fast-track bid
Fri 20 Feb 2026
By Craig Ashworth, Local Democracy Reporter | Would-be seabed miners have abandoned their fast-track bid to mine in South Taranaki waters, saying they can’t change the minds of the panel that rejected their application.
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.
Partnership to advance Pacific science and environmental leadership
Thu 19 Feb 2026
Media release | Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland, and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen collaboration in Pacific-led science, research and capacity-building, with a strong focus on environmental sustainability and ocean stewardship.
Lawyers seek answers on climate impacts of LNG import facility
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.
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.
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.
78% of NZers want bottom trawling banned as Govt pushes to catch more coral in South Pacific
Tue 17 Feb 2026
Media release | New polling shows overwhelming support from New Zealanders for a ban on bottom trawling in the South Pacific high seas, says Greenpeace.
Critical minerals talks with US questioned in Waitangi Tribunal climate inquiry
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.
IEA Declaration strengthens international co-operation on critical minerals
Fri 20 Feb 2026
Media release – NZ Government | New Zealand has joined international leaders at the 2026 International Energy Agency Ministerial meeting in committing to strengthen global co-operation on critical minerals to strengthen long‑term energy security.
Antarctic sediment core reveals past ice sheet retreat during warmer climates
Wed 18 Feb 2026
A record-breaking sediment core drilled from beneath the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is giving scientists new insight into how the ice sheet responded to warmer climates in the past — and what that could mean for future sea-level rise.
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
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.
Infrastructure plan calls for ‘predictable approach’ to electrifying economy
Wed 18 Feb 2026
Aotearoa’s first National Infrastructure Plan, introduced to Parliament yesterday, calls for "a predictable approach to electrifying the economy" as one of ten priorities for the next decade.
Climate ambassador moves on
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.
EU to ban destruction of unsold clothes and shoes
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.
New research on climate adaptation as severe weather hits
Mon 16 Feb 2026
As extreme weather batters the country yet again, researchers have published the first ever empirical study of climate adaptation justice in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Study finds warming world increases days when weather is prone to fires around the globe
Fri 20 Feb 2026
The number of days when the weather gets hot, dry and windy — ideal to spark extreme wildfires — has nearly tripled in the past 45 years across the globe, with the trend increasing even higher in the Americas, a new study shows.
Hydrogen plant to start construction
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.
