Topics tagged with 'Carbon News world'
Ban private jets to address climate crisis, says Thomas Piketty
23 Nov 2023
French economist says class inequality must be at centre of climate response and calls for progressive carbon taxes.
The Galapagos are going green
23 Nov 2023
In recent years, there has been a growing movement to transform the archipelago into a beacon of sustainability.
Richest 1% account for more carbon emissions than poorest 66%, report says
22 Nov 2023
‘Polluter elite’ are plundering the planet to point of destruction, says Oxfam after comprehensive study of climate inequality.
Earth is hurtling toward nearly 3°C of warming
22 Nov 2023
The globe is headed for nearly 3°C (5.4°F) of warming compared with preindustrial levels through 2100, new data finds, even if current policies to cut planet-warming emissions are met.
Does the Amazon’s drought mean the forest is at a tipping point?
22 Nov 2023
Scientists say deforestation is compounding the effects of climate change, threatening to turn parts of the forest into savannah.
UK government plans radical shake-up of foreign aid for climate change disasters
22 Nov 2023
The UK government is to spend millions of pounds helping countries prepare for future humanitarian disasters in a radical shake-up of its development policy.
US plans to push for curbs on methane emissions worldwide at key UN meet
22 Nov 2023
Curbing methane is the fastest and cheapest way to keep average temperature rise under 1.5 degrees Celsius, a US state department official said.
COP28 must not repeat the mistakes of the Africa Climate Summit
22 Nov 2023
Lobbyists for big emitters in the Global North must not be allowed to push false solutions on COP28.
Anti-green backlash hovers over COP climate talks
21 Nov 2023
War, a fossil fuel boom and populist revolts are sapping the optimism from the fight against climate change. And then there’s Trump.
Oil and gas companies are digging in. That’s why COP28 must force a phase-down of fossil fuels
21 Nov 2023
COP28 is just a few weeks away, and if we are to have any hope of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees and a positive outcome at the conference, we must see the oil and gas sector start to move the needle.
Warming of 2C would trigger ‘catastrophic’ loss of world’s ice, new report says
21 Nov 2023
Global warming of 2C would see “extensive, long-term and essentially irreversible” losses from the Earth’s ice sheets and glaciers, warns a new report.
Gaza at risk from climate crisis: conflict compounds looming environmental disaster
21 Nov 2023
On November 18 2023, the planet’s temperature went past the 2.0 degree Celsius barrier for the first time. It’s temporary—but it’s a terrible reminder that we’re now in the desperate end game for global warming.
Record-breaking heat set to hit southern hemisphere as summer begins
21 Nov 2023
The northern hemisphere experienced a sweltering summer due to climate and meteorological patters. Scientists say the south will not escape.
To meet climate goals, Gulf countries will have to overhaul everything
21 Nov 2023
When Dubai hosts the COP28 climate conference, the tension between Gulf countries’ net-zero targets and reliance on fossil fuels will be front and center.
What happens when you put a fossil fuel exec in charge of solving climate change?
20 Nov 2023
For a taste of the United Arab Emirates, try the cappuccino at Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Palace hotel. At around $25, it’s a quality cup of coffee, but the gold flakes that come sprinkled on top are its primary selling point.
Neighbourhoods submerged following flash floods in the Horn of Africa
20 Nov 2023
More than 100 people, including 16 children, have died and over 700,000 been forced out of their homes in the Horn of Africa due to flash flooding.
Plants are likely to absorb more CO₂ in a changing climate than we thought
20 Nov 2023
The world’s vegetation has a remarkable ability to absorb carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the air and store it as biomass.
Report: Climate change impacts on water are profound and unequal
20 Nov 2023
Climate change is intensifying rainfall and floods, deepening droughts, and shifting weather patterns across the globe, threatening terrestrial freshwater supplies and water quality, according to the Fifth National Climate Assessment.
One solution to fight climate change? Fewer parking spaces.
20 Nov 2023
Less parking could pave the way for denser housing and more accessible public transportation.
Is ocean iron fertilisation back from the dead as a CO₂ removal tool?
20 Nov 2023
Scientists are saying the controversial geoengineering approach to ocean iron fertilisation has the potential to remove “gigatons per year” of carbon dioxide from Earth’s atmosphere.
Global efforts to limit global warming to 1.5°C are failing in every way
17 Nov 2023
The world is lagging significantly behind the pace and scale that’s needed to address the climate crisis, according to a new report.
EU greenhouse gas emissions drop 5% in the second quarter
17 Nov 2023
Greenhouse gas emissions in the EU fell by more than 5% in the second quarter of 2023, with the biggest decline recorded in electricity and gas supply.
Eight ways Asia is using nature to adapt to the climate crisis
17 Nov 2023
In just the last few months, Asia has endured droughts, record-breaking heat, and multiple super typhoons, a bout of extreme weather that experts say will only get worse as the planet warms.
Climate change to impact brain function too: study
17 Nov 2023
Scientists are concerned that climate change may not only lead to increased flooding and wildfires, but also have an impact on people’s brains.
Siemens energy suffers $4.9b annual loss, will review wind portfolio
17 Nov 2023
Siemens Energy posted an annual loss of $4.9 billion US in its earnings report, which the company attributed primarily to its beleaguered wind turbine unit.
Heat-related deaths could increase fivefold by middle of 21st century
16 Nov 2023
Heat-related deaths could increase almost fivefold by the middle of the century, according to an international WHO co-authored report by more than 100 researchers.
New study highlights need to address risk of continued global warming after net zero
16 Nov 2023
From scorching heat waves to torrential downpours and devastating storms, the disastrous effects of global warming are sweeping across the world.
Forests could absorb much more carbon, but does it matter?
16 Nov 2023
Protecting forests globally could vastly increase the amount of carbon they sequester, a new study finds, but given our current emissions track, does it really matter?
Amsterdam marchers demand climate action as Dutch election nears
16 Nov 2023
Tens of thousands of protesters marched through Amsterdam on Sunday demanding immediate action against climate change, 10 days before the country holds a general election.
New US climate report: land theft and colonisation amplify the climate crisis for Indigenous peoples
16 Nov 2023
The report concludes that Indigenous self-determination is a key climate solution — if the federal government can get behind it.
Documents reveal the gas industry’s use of tobacco tactics over gas stove emissions
16 Nov 2023
A new investigation illuminates the gas industry’s 50-year PR campaign weaponizing science to promote doubt over the health effects of gas stoves and obstruct regulation.
Countries’ emissions plans put the world ‘wildly off track’ to contain global heating, UN assessment shows
15 Nov 2023
The UN has found that even if countries enact all of their current climate pledges, planet-heating pollution in 2030 will still be 9% higher than it was in 2010.
World’s biggest carbon storage project off WA coast burying only a third of what it promised
15 Nov 2023
After seven years of operation US giant Chevron is burying just a third of the carbon pollution it committed to burying at its Gorgon gas export project.
Study: Forests with multiple tree species 70% more effective carbon sinks than monoculture forests
15 Nov 2023
To slow the effects of climate change, conserve biodiversity, and meet the sustainable development goals, replanting trees is vital.
Italy's extreme drought mirrors climate in Ethiopia as climate change creates 'whiplash' of extremes
15 Nov 2023
Climate change is creating a "whiplash effect", with drought-prone areas flooding and wet areas drying out. Researchers say it is having a devastating effect on millions living in poverty.
Why polar bears are no longer the poster image of climate change
15 Nov 2023
For decades distressed polar bears on distant ice caps were an emblem for climate change – until experts began to doubt the effectiveness of these visuals.
The reappearing forests of West Bengal
15 Nov 2023
The trees in this corner of India vanished decades ago, leaving heat waves and drought. What happened when they returned proves the healing power of reforestation.
Defrosting US-China relationship offers tantalising hope for climate action
14 Nov 2023
Even though we now have the Paris agreement, cooperation between the world’s two biggest emitters, US and China, is still crucial.
Oil companies attending climate talks have minimal green energy transition plans, analysis finds
14 Nov 2023
In 2022, a Brazilian oil and gas company had 68 places staked out for oil exploration off the South American coast, searching for new reserves while spending $6.9 billion in oil development projects.
UK manufacturers call for EU-aligned carbon border tax
14 Nov 2023
A new poll of UK businesses has found that almost three-quarters would support the introduction of a carbon border adjustment mechanism that mirrors the one coming into force across Europe.
Continued rise in CO2: "This insanity cannot continue"
14 Nov 2023
OPINION: The cryosphere — Earth’s ice sheets, sea ice, permafrost, polar oceans, glaciers and snow — is ground zero for climate change, and it pays no attention to rhetoric, only to our actions.
China’s emissions set to fall in 2024 after record growth in clean energy
14 Nov 2023
China’s carbon dioxide emissions are set to fall in 2024 and could be facing structural decline, due to record growth in the installation of new low-carbon energy sources.
Does the world have enough minerals for low-carbon electricity?
14 Nov 2023
Total reserves are not the issue – mine construction and geopolitical risks are likely to be larger barriers to progress.
Australia boosts regional security influence with Tuvalu accord
13 Nov 2023
Australia has signed a security, climate change and migration accord with Tuvalu, which analysts say also highlights Canberra’s attempts to counter China’s growing influence in the region.
Countries meet in Kenya to thrash out global plastic pollution treaty
13 Nov 2023
Delegates in Nairobi for talks in what experts say could be most important multilateral treaty since Paris accord.
‘Take it or leave it’: Acrimony flares amid tenuous agreement on climate aid
13 Nov 2023
The U.S. pushed for voluntary payments in a high-stakes negotiation over a global fund for climate disasters.
France moves into action with new climate plan, green industry makeover
13 Nov 2023
France has unveiled a new strategy for climate action with a view to slashing its carbon emissions by 55 percent compared to 1990 levels by the end of this decade.
China on alert for extreme winter weather as El Nino adds to global warming mix
13 Nov 2023
Each part of the country should prepare for its own combination of extreme weather risks this winter, the China Meteorological Administration said.
Which islands will become uninhabitable first due to climate change?
13 Nov 2023
Climate change is raising sea levels, and many low-lying islands are at risk. But determining which communities will be first to leave is impossible to answer.
Extreme heat: 2023 set to be warmest on record
10 Nov 2023
It is now "virtually certain" that 2023 - a year of deadly heatwaves, floods and fires - will be the warmest on record, new data suggests.
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.
