Topics tagged with 'Carbon News world'
The false promise of carbon capture as a climate solution
28 Feb 2024
Fossil-fuel companies use captured carbon dioxide to extract more fossil fuels, leading to a net increase in atmospheric CO2.
Locals at the mouth of the Amazon River get a salty taste of climate change
28 Feb 2024
Ocean rise and changes in the Amazon River are ruining the way of life in an archipelago close to where the Amazon River runs into the Atlantic.
As power-hungry AI sparks a carbon time bomb, a Google technique may hold the answer
28 Feb 2024
Tech giants are racing to ward off a carbon time bomb caused by the massive data centres they are building around the world.
‘They ain’t seen nothing yet’: UN boss names climate change impacts coming to Australia
27 Feb 2024
Top UN climate official Simon Stiell says Australia will be “front and centre in resettling entire national populations” if climate targets are not met.
EU carbon tariff likely to have limited impact on emissions without global efforts
27 Feb 2024
European Union import charges on carbon-intensive products are expected to have a limited impact on climate change and only a modest negative effect on economies in Asia and the Pacific.
Carbon credit markets are figuring out how to give people money today
27 Feb 2024
Every day that passes means more carbon removal will be needed to meet environmental targets.
One of the world’s biggest cities may be just months away from running out of water
27 Feb 2024
Alejandro Gomez has been without proper running water for more than three months. Sometimes it comes on for an hour or two, but only a small trickle, barely enough to fill a couple of buckets.
A bureaucratic printer jam holds up a major Biden climate rule
27 Feb 2024
A regulation cracking down on oil and gas pollution is finally being published March 8, ending a three-month delay that gave rule watchers heartburn.
Qatar announces new gas field expansion
27 Feb 2024
Qatar has announced new plans to expand output from the world’s biggest natural gas field, saying it will boost capacity to 142 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) before 2030.
Australian Prime Minister vows full support amidst wildfires destroying homes
26 Feb 2024
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese pledges immediate assistance to Victoria amid wildfire crisis, emphasising urgency in addressing climate change.
UK quits treaty that lets oil firms sue government
26 Feb 2024
The UK has withdrawn from an international treaty that lets fossil-fuel companies sue governments pursuing climate policies for billions in compensation for lost profits.
One simple change to reduce your climate impact? swap out beef
26 Feb 2024
Replacing beef with a different protein — even for just one meal — can cut the emissions footprint of a person’s diet that day by as much as half.
Climate change-fueled winter extremes put 90% of this country at 'high risk'
26 Feb 2024
So far this year upward of 2 million livestock animals have died, according to official statistics.
Spain’s plan to ban domestic flights where you can take a train in under two and half hours
26 Feb 2024
Spain is banning some short-haul domestic flights as part of its plan to reduce carbon emissions.
Climate change is throwing the water cycle into chaos across the US
26 Feb 2024
As the planet continues to warm, this cycle is expected to be increasingly stretched, warped and broken.
Record US renewable energy investment not enough to meet climate goals: report
23 Feb 2024
US investment in wind and solar power plants hit record levels last year, but even that dramatic rate of expansion fell short of the level needed to meet the nation's climate change goals, according to an analysis published.
Chicago sues five oil companies, accusing them of climate change destruction, fraud
23 Feb 2024
The suit says BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil and Shell have hurt the city by discrediting science even as their products lead to “catastrophic consequences,” including strong storms, flooding, severe heat and shoreline erosion.
Buried microplastics complicate efforts to define the Anthropocene
23 Feb 2024
Plastic particles in sediments could help to pin down the start of a new geological epoch. But their ability to migrate to older layers is muddying the waters.
Forget carbon offsets. The planet needs carbon removal credits
23 Feb 2024
The carbon removal market is fast growing, with an array of different removal methods available to businesses keen to mitigate their environmental impact.
Regular droughts could become the Mediterranean's ‘new normal’ due to climate change
23 Feb 2024
Earlier this month, Catalonia declared a drought emergency with levels in reservoirs as low as 16 percent of capacity and no rain in some areas for three years.
Pressure from young people for Anthony Albanese to consider duty of care over climate harm
23 Feb 2024
A group of young Aussies fronted up to demand Anthony Albanese do more to protect them from one issue.
UK government acted unlawfully by approving climate plan, High Court told
22 Feb 2024
The UK government was “not even aware” of the risks involved with implementing its strategy to meet the climate targets, the High Court has been told.
Switching to electric vehicles could prevent millions of illnesses in children by 2050
22 Feb 2024
Hundreds of infants’ lives would be saved across the US if the nation’s power grid depended on clean energy and more drivers made the switch to zero-emission vehicles, according to a new report from the American Lung Association.
Danish farmers must cut production to achieve climate goal, says government advisor
22 Feb 2024
Denmark’s farmers must reduce production by as much as one-fifth by 2030 if the country is to achieve its ambitious climate goals, a government-commissioned group said.
20°C seems the optimal temperature for life on Earth to thrive – what does this mean in a warming world?
22 Feb 2024
Have you ever wondered about the optimal temperature for life on Earth? For humans, 20°C is comfortable.
You’re probably underestimating the willingness of others to take action on climate
22 Feb 2024
Nearly 70% of the global population would give up 1% of their household income to stop climate change, according to a new survey of nearly 130,000 people in 125 countries.
Africa's ice is disappearing: Tropical ice fields demonstrate speed of climate change
22 Feb 2024
The ice on the high summits of the continent is rapidly disappearing, and Africa may lose its white peaks by the middle of our century.
Australia’s best known carbon-neutral farm can no longer offset its emissions
21 Feb 2024
Trees and soil on Jigsaw Farms in western Victoria have now passed peak sequestration – reflecting the challenge for the broader red meat industry.
Climate trial against oil giant Eni opens in Italy
21 Feb 2024
The case coincides with a new Greenpeace Italy and ReCommon report showing Eni’s technical consultants have wide links to climate denier groups.
Another big question about AI: its carbon footprint
21 Feb 2024
It’s “an accelerant for everything,” potentially including climate change.
Could wild horses help fight wildfires?
21 Feb 2024
The controversial animals graze on the grass and brush that fuel blazes. So one California naturalist asks: Why not send them to fire-prone wilderness?
How to reinvent yourself at 50: an IEA guide
21 Feb 2024
Created to secure rich countries access to fossil fuels, the International Energy Agency has found a way to maintain its influence in the fast-changing business of energy and climate change.
Developers in England will be forced to create habitats for wildlife – here’s how it works
21 Feb 2024
Most new developments – everything from a few houses to large solar farms or new roads and railways – will now have to provide a 10% net gain in biodiversity, maintained for at least 30 years.
Study: Top oil and gas majors rake in $281bn in profits since Russia invaded Ukraine
20 Feb 2024
Research lays bare huge scale of profits achieved by just five leading oil and gas majors as a result of the global energy crunch.
Biden vs. Trump: Do young climate voters care?
20 Feb 2024
Biden, who signed the biggest climate law in US history, has angered environmentalists by approving fossil fuel projects.
Climate change, extreme weather and conflict exacerbate global food crisis
20 Feb 2024
Global food insecurity has risen substantially since pre-pandemic times, exacerbated by extreme weather, climate change, war and conflict.
February on course to break unprecedented number of heat records
20 Feb 2024
Rapid ocean warming and unusually hot winter days recorded as human-made global heating combines with El Niño.
Plastics producers lied to the public about recycling being feasible, report reveals
20 Feb 2024
According to a new report from fossil fuel accountability organisation the Center for Climate Integrity (CCI), the plastics industry has known for decades that the widespread recycling of its products was not feasible, but continued to promote it and mislead the public.
Can clean cookstoves ride out the carbon markets storm?
19 Feb 2024
One of the world’s largest, but most overlooked, public health crises comes from an unlikely source: cooking.
Switzerland proposes first UN expert group on solar geoengineering
19 Feb 2024
A draft resolution aimed at creating a space for discussion on sun dimming technologies will be debated at the summit of the UN’s environment body this month.
Climate change is forcing Australians to weigh up relocating
19 Feb 2024
Big environmental changes mean ever more Australians will confront the tough choice of whether to move home or risk staying put.
Kazakhstan: Methane mega-leak went on for months
19 Feb 2024
An estimated 127,000 tonnes of methane escaped when a blowout started a fire that raged for over six months last year at a remote well in Kazakhstan.
Ocean-based viruses discovered that trap carbon and combat climate change
19 Feb 2024
In an era where the threat of climate change and carbon emissions loom larger by the day, scientists are delving into the world’s oceans, armed with an extensive catalogue of hundreds of thousands of DNA and RNA virus species.
A container ship just tested a system to capture its own CO2 emissions
19 Feb 2024
Shipping companies are experimenting with onboard carbon capture systems, but they face difficult trade-offs on energy and space for regular cargo.
UN chief warns climate chaos and food crises threaten global peace: ‘Empty bellies fuel unrest’
16 Feb 2024
The United Nations chief warned Tuesday that climate chaos and food crises are increasing threats to global peace, telling a high-level U.N. meeting that climate disasters imperil food production and “empty bellies fuel unrest.”
World risks missing climate targets because of surging Asian gas demand
16 Feb 2024
Global market for LNG to grow until at least 2040 despite Western efforts to hit net zero.
The energy transition would cost 20% more without China, analysis says
16 Feb 2024
Energy consultant Wood Mackenzie estimates that $6 trillion would be needed if Chinese clean tech was shunned.
Veteran economists say a carbon levy would cut emissions, cut inflation and raise billions, but see little prospect of adoption
16 Feb 2024
Two of Australia’s most respected economists have put forward a bold plan to lower global carbon emissions by at least 6 per cent, super-charge a new green export industry, deliver much cheaper power bills and dramatically cut the rate of inflation.
Shell accused of trying to wash hands of Nigerian oil spill mess
16 Feb 2024
Shell’s oil spills have ruined farms and fisheries and locals want compensation before it sells up.
Introducing meat–rice: grain with added muscles beefs up protein
16 Feb 2024
Rice has been used as a scaffold to grow beef muscle and fat cells, resulting in an edible, “nutty” rice–beef combo that can be prepared in the same way as normal rice.
Fifty years of observations, no reversal of glacier climate damage
31 Mar 2026
Media release: Earth Sciences New Zealand | Fifty years on from the first aerial survey of our Southern Alps glaciers, late snow and variable summer weather delivered a temporary reprieve from rapid ice loss, says Earth Sciences New Zealand.
Climate experts say spring is coming earlier. How will that affect agriculture and ecosystems?
Tue 7 Apr 2026
An earlier spring affects when migratory birds arrive, leaves emerge, and fruit ripens — among plants and animals that determine ecosystem health.
$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.
Signs of jet fuel hoarding emerge in Asia on Iran oil shock
26 Mar 2026
Signs are growing that Asian countries are hoarding jet fuel after the Iran war sent oil prices surging, reflecting growing strain on the aviation industry.
Environmental groups launch legal action over Govt's 'tick-box approach' to conservation land
Wed 8 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | Forest & Bird and the Environmental Defence Society are taking the Government to court over decisions about the future of publicly-owned land on Te Tai Poutini/the West Coast.
New alliance wants renewable-led energy – and Govt to press pause on LNG
Thu 9 Apr 2026
A newly formed coalition of business, consumer and energy organisations has unveiled a renewable-led strategy it says will strengthen the country’s energy security, and it’s calling on the Government to pause its plan for an LNG import terminal.
Supply-side pressures and political uncertainty ahead for carbon market
Tue 7 Apr 2026
By Kristen Green | ANALYSIS: With failed auctions, a surge of new forestry registrations, and an election a few months away, the NZ ETS in 2026 will be subject to a mix of supply-side pressures and political uncertainty.
Economic contraction will impact carbon market
1 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | While higher fossil fuel prices strengthen the long-run economics of decarbonisation, the current fuel crisis won’t inspire near-term confidence in the carbon market, according to Lizzie Chambers of Carbon Match.
Genesis fires up pellet study with Nature’s Flame
Wed 8 Apr 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | Genesis Energy is extending its quest for locally produced torrefied wood pellets to supplement coal and gas to fuel its Huntly power station, announcing it is investigating plant construction with established local solid fuels player Nature’s Flame.
Death toll in Afghanistan flooding increases to 28, authorities say
1 Apr 2026
Afghan authorities said Monday that the death toll from severe weather that has struck swathes of the country over the past four days has increased to 28, with 49 people injured. Dozens of people have died from extreme weather in the country so far this year.
Sustainable retail-office project breaks ground under new Green Star framework
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 price: Ups and downs amid geopolitical uncertainty
26 Mar 2026
By Liz Kivi | After ups and downs in recent weeks, the carbon market again broke above the $40 mark this week, with questions around how the Middle East conflict will play out weighing on market confidence.
EA entrenches 10kW export limit for residential solar
Wed 8 Apr 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | The Electricity Authority intends to require all electricity networks to offer at least a 10 kilowatt (kW) export capacity for residential rooftop and other small-scale distributed generation.
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.
Severe tropical cyclones Maila And Vaianu threaten communities in Solomon Islands, PNG and Fiji
Wed 8 Apr 2026
Media release: 350.org |Two Category 3 Tropical Cyclones are currently moving through the Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and Fiji, while experts watch a third system potentially developing in the North Pacific.
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.
Wellington planting nears one million trees
30 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Greater Wellington’s parks restoration programme will hit one million native trees this year, with the first dams to rewet peat wetlands in Queen Elizabeth Park now completed after a years-long effort to bring these ecosystems – and their carbon sequestering superpowers – back to life.
Renewable build-out runs into grid and firming limits
Wed 8 Apr 2026
New Zealand's electricity market entered 2026 with renewable generation at record levels and a substantial build pipeline finally moving from paper to construction. The harder question is whether the wider system can absorb and firm that capacity fast enough.
A matter of strategy
Tue 7 Apr 2026
COMMENT: Even on the brink of a global commodities crisis, the possibilities for climate action aren't hopelessly foreclosed. Strategy can turn our fortunes around, writes David Hall.
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.”
FMA to ease conditions for green bond issues
31 Mar 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | Green, social and sustainability-linked bonds will face lower disclosure requirements and regulatory costs under a class exemption newly granted by the Financial Markets Authority.
New protections for NZ migratory species under UN convention
2 Apr 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New international protections for migratory species, including several found in New Zealand, are a positive step – but global protections won’t halt the decline of migratory species on their own, experts say.
Fonterra admits ‘100% grass-fed’ claim breached law in greenwashing row
2 Apr 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Fonterra has admitted its “100% New Zealand grass-fed” claims on Anchor butter were misleading and breached the law, settling a case brought by Greenpeace Aotearoa over packaging used between December 2023 and April 2025.
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.
NZ prepares to join ‘gold rush’ for white hydrogen
25 Mar 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | New Zealand may be close to commercialising the capture and use of naturally occurring ‘white’ hydrogen, with investment plans for developments in the Wairarapa region picking up pace in response to spiralling oil prices.
Media round-up
20 Mar 2026
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Crown lawyers agree High Court could quash emissions plan if found unlawful; NZ is locked in 'disaster inertia'; and climate change is notably absent from new development laws.
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.
Lawyers complain to ombudsman over Govt failure to release LNG modelling
1 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | Lawyers for Climate Action has made a formal complaint to the Ombudsman over the Government’s failure to release information about its controversial decision to build a LNG import terminal.
NZ First targets regional share of mining royalties
30 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand First has proposed returning 50% of mining royalties to regional communities, saying that too much of the value from resource extraction is currently flowing to Wellington.
Tuvalu prioritises climate change in agreement with NZ
27 Mar 2026
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand has pledged an additional $20 million to climate resilience work in Tuvalu, more than doubling Aotearoa's aid to the tiny island nation in the current financial year.
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.
Worst in a generation: Environmentalists slam fisheries reform bill
25 Mar 2026
Media release: Greenpeace | The Fisheries Amendment Bill, which will likely have its first reading in parliament this week, is being labelled the worst fisheries policy in a generation by environmental groups who are calling for it to be rejected to protect ocean health.
Free fares call as fuel crisis impacts school attendance
Wed 8 Apr 2026
An open letter is urging the Government to make public transport free for all school children and subsidised for students under 25, as rising fuel costs begin to impact attendance and access to education across the country.
Kiwis overly optimistic about state of environment
27 Feb 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New research suggests many New Zealanders believe the environment is in better shape than it really is, with public perceptions often out of step with scientific evidence.
‘They pushed so many lies about recycling’: the fight to stop big oil pumping billions more into plastics
24 Feb 2026
Plastic production has doubled over the last 20 years – and will likely double again. For author Beth Gardiner, metal water bottles and canvas tote bags are not the solution. So what is?
Activists occupy controversial gold drilling site
25 Mar 2026
By Max Frethey, Local Democracy Reporter | Opposition in Golden Bay to a controversial gold mine at Sams Creek has flared up over the weekend after several activists briefly occupied a drilling site.
China has a new competitor? Kazakhstan reveals huge rare Earth deposit that could power the next tech boom
25 Feb 2026
China’s grip on rare earths might finally see some competition, and the world is already taking notice.
Solar energy, cheap battery storage can meet 90% of India’s power demand at affordable costs: Ember report
Thu 9 Apr 2026
Battery storage is now cheap enough in India that solar power can meet 90% of the country’s power demand at lower lifetime costs than current average purchase rates in most states, a new study has found, a finding that could potentially point to a future buffer against global energy shocks.
Sci-tech prioritisation report is a joke that could cost NZ dearly, says NZ Association of Scientists
2 Apr 2026
Media release: New Zealand Association of Scientists | The Prioritisation Report released yesterday by the Prime Minister’s Science Innovation and Technology Council makes a poor case for further cuts and changes to our research system.
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.
AI’s arrival complicates Big Tech climate goals, and some worry it’s locking in more fossil fuels
2 Apr 2026
Six years ago, Google was confident that by 2030 it would power all operations with electricity generated from clean sources, including wind and solar power, and remove as much pollution as it produced. Today it calls those goals a “moonshot.” Microsoft says it’s still aiming to remove more carbon than it creates by 2030 but now describes the effort as “a marathon, not a sprint.”
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.
Fuel crisis powers surge in EV interest in Asia-Pacific region
Tue 7 Apr 2026
Motorists across the Asia-Pacific region are switching to electric vehicles at a rapid pace, as rising fuel costs due to the Middle East war force consumers and companies to reconsider their reliance on petrol and diesel vehicles.
Infrastructure plan calls for ‘predictable approach’ to electrifying economy
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.
Dairy farmers' lack of climate action 'even bleaker' than water inaction – Upton
1 Apr 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Government projections for cutting agricultural emissions are being undermined by low farmer uptake, with the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment warning the country is relying on “heroic” assumptions to meet its methane targets.
AI tool predicts wildfire danger faster than current systems
26 Mar 2026
Media release | A wildfire forecasting system powered by artificial intelligence could help detect dangerous fire conditions earlier and reduce the cost of wildfire response, according to new research from Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury.
Fast-track approved project could deliver NZ’s largest wind farm
Tue 7 Apr 2026
Media release: New Zealand Government |Fast-track approval has been granted for New Zealand’s largest wind farm project.
