Topics tagged with 'Emissions trading'
Coalition candidates want to rid us of ETS
11 Sep 2017
Two of the parties that could be involved in any centre-left coalition after the election want to scrap the Emissions Trading Scheme.
What Morgan would have said ... if he'd had the chance
11 Sep 2017
The refusal by TVNZ to include The Opportunities Party in televised election debates does the public a disservice.
High land prices key blocker to forest planting
7 Sep 2017
New Zealand won’t get more carbon-sequestering forests until land prices fall.
CLIMATE CASE: National happy the way things are
6 Sep 2017
National is taking a business-as-usual approach to climate policy, warning that Labour and the Greens would go too far if they got into government.
NZ backs global carbon markets cooperation
5 Sep 2017
New Zealand has signed a statement calling for renewed co-operation on carbon markets.
THE COUNT: Peters outpaces Ardern
4 Sep 2017
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has pulled ahead of Labour leader Jacinda Ardern in The Count, but the Greens’ James Shaw is looking unassailable.
NZ backs global climate research project
30 Aug 2017
New Zealand is supporting a new $400,000 scholarship programme to build global expertise on climate change and food security.
What the parties say about climate change
29 Aug 2017
Three-and-a-bit weeks out from the general election, what do we know about the parties’ approach to climate change?
IN THEIR OWN WORDS 2: Renewable energy.
25 Aug 2017
What will the political parties vying to run our country do about renewable energy?
Researchers to probe rich options for Maori land
23 Aug 2017
Rising carbon prices mean carbon farming, backed by manuka honey production, is becoming a viable use of Maori land, says the head of a Ruatoria charitable company.
TAXING OR TRADING: Which way should we go?
22 Aug 2017
Is taxing or trading the best way to get New Zealand’s emissions down?
FREE CREDITS: And the winner is NZ Steel
15 Aug 2017
New Zealand Steel is once again the big winner in the Government’s allocation of free carbon credits to industrial emitters.
GASES ARE GO: Our emissions on the rise again
11 Aug 2017
New Zealand’s reported greenhouse gas emissions are on the rise again, new figures show.
Emissions group to probe lack of carbon cap
10 Aug 2017
New Zealand’s lack of a carbon cap is one of the issues on the table for the Productivity Commission.
Nature deserves legal rights, say Greens
10 Aug 2017
A Green government would give nature legal recognition.
Emissions group might branch into ETS
9 Aug 2017
The Productivity Commission could recommend changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme.
MORGAN MESSAGE: Use ETS profits to fix rental homes
7 Aug 2017
Profits from a rejigged Emissions Trading Scheme would be used to insulate and improve heating in rental housing under a Gareth Morgan-influenced government.
PICKY PROBLEM: What makes a carbon forest?
3 Aug 2017
The regeneration of vast areas of carbon-storing native forests is being hampered by “pickiness” over the definition of carbon forests.
Foresters fine, but the ETS has some problems
2 Aug 2017
The forestry sector has behaved rationally in response to the Emissions Trading Scheme - but the scheme itself hasn’t always been rational, a new analysis shows.
ETS changes of little help, say foresters
1 Aug 2017
The Government’s latest changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme will do nothing to get more trees in the ground, the forestry sector says.
THE COUNT: At last, a leader talks climate policy
31 Jul 2017
Seven weeks out from the general election, we’ve finally got a political leader talking climate change policy – and it’s Winston Peters.
ETS CHANGES: Good news and bad news
27 Jul 2017
The latest changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme have met with mixed reactions.
Govt acts on auctioning and international units
26 Jul 2017
The $25 price cap is staying for now, but the importation of international units will be restricted when the New Zealand carbon market opens to the world again, the Government has just announced.
Environment officials quiet on new coal mines
24 Jul 2017
The Ministry for the Environment has given the Government no advice on the climate implications of developing 13 new coal mines.
Busy ministry delays work on emissions planning
20 Jul 2017
Planning to cut New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions in line with the country’s Paris Agreement commitments has been delayed because of the Ministry for the Environment’s heavy workload, confidential papers show.
Greens put case for billion-dollar growth fund
17 Jul 2017
A billion-dollar Green Infrastructure Fund and New Zealand at net-zero emissions by 2050 will be priorities for the Green Party in government.
THE COUNT: James Shaw takes Greens into the lead
17 Jul 2017
It’s runs on the board this week for two leaders in The Count, our weekly tally of public statements about climate change by party leaders in the lead-up to the general election.
Wood-for-coal switch would save us millions
14 Jul 2017
Using wood instead of coal to provide industrial heat would cut New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions by 460,000 tonnes and save more than $11 million a year in carbon credits, a new report says.
IT'S OFFICIAL: Ministers get the word on ETS changes
5 Jul 2017
Official advice on changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme has made its way from officials to ministers.
Political uncertainty the enemy of carbon markets
4 Jul 2017
Lack of political certainty is damaging the effectiveness of carbon markets, says new research.
Motu researchers win international praise
30 Jun 2017
New Zealand’s Motu Research has been named one of the 10 best climate policy think-tanks in the world.
Federated Famers warns of consequences
26 Jun 2017
Federated Farmers is warning politicians of “consequences” if agricultural emissions are brought into the Emissions Trading Scheme before other countries put a carbon price on farming.
COUNTRY CALL: Farmers want ETS and water price
21 Jun 2017
Parts of the agricultural sector are calling for farming to be included in the Emissions Trading Scheme and for a price on water.
Government cripples cities' climate campaigns
20 Jun 2017
New Zealand’s two largest cities are failing to cut greenhouse gas emissions because of the Government’s lack of action on climate change, new research shows.
We must do something, dairy industry agrees
15 Jun 2017
The dairy industry is acknowledging it needs to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
We're disappointed, PM will tell Tillerson
6 Jun 2017
Prime Minister Bill English will raise the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris Agreement when he meets with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson today.
UK companies better to stay with European ETS
23 May 2017
An international carbon trading organisation says British companies should stay in the European Emissions Trading Scheme until at least 2020, despite Brexit.
Free credits cost taxpayers almost $1.7 billion
16 May 2017
Free carbon credits for trade-exposed heavy emitters have cost taxpayers nearly $1.7 billion.
Synthetic gases move will cut greenhouse emissions
15 May 2017
The Government is getting ready to enact provisions that will actually cut New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions.
Foresters want carbon price range and ETS promise
11 May 2017
A price range for carbon and a promise that changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme will be backdated would get landowners planting carbon-sequestering trees now, says the Forest Owners’ Association.
MPs out of the loop on farm emissions advice
10 May 2017
Parliament has again been told that the Government is getting advice on bringing agricultural emissions into the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Officials look at pricing of agricultural emissions
4 May 2017
Officials are investigating whether a price should be put on agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, despite the issue being specifically excluded from the current review of the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Coal price of $150 a tonne key to new Coast mine
3 May 2017
The Government is counting on a coking-coal price of $US150 a tonne in estimates about the economic benefits of proposed new mining on the Buller Plateau.
FACE THE FACTS: The Government has done little
28 Apr 2017
Two major reports on climate change – one on the likely impacts on New Zealand, the other on ways the country can cut emissions – were released a year ago by the country’s top scientific body, the Royal Society. Energy expert RALPH SIMS, who chaired the report committee, reflects on progress.
Native forests have potential to earn millions
26 Apr 2017
Landowners with 10,000 hectares of native forest could earn $1.5 million a year in carbon credits, a new report says.
Greens want to up carbon price and cut fossil fuels
20 Apr 2017
Higher carbon prices and a ban on new fossil-fuel electricity generation plants are the cornerstones of the Green Party’s plan to get New Zealand to 100 per cent renewable generation by 2030.
We're talking to Korea about carbon market links
18 Apr 2017
Talks to establish links between carbon markets in New Zealand and Korea are under way.
Bennett rules out farming and climate commission
18 Apr 2017
Climate minister Paula Bennett says carbon prices need to go higher, but she won’t be putting a price on agricultural emissions and she doesn’t think New Zealand needs a climate commission.
EDITORIAL: Today is D-day for the climate debate
13 Apr 2017
Today could see one of the most important debates Parliament has ever had – a special session on proposals to make New Zealand carbon-neutral by the second half of the century.
Most industrial emitters meet returns deadline
11 Apr 2017
Most industrial emitters got their 2016 returns in on time.
Governments must vote in favour of moratorium on deep sea mining
Tue 29 Jul 2025
Media release - Greenpeace | The 30th session of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) has ended with Greenpeace saying governments are continuing to fall short in protecting the deep sea.
Does NZ need a national incentive scheme for wetlands?
25 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | An expert is calling for a national incentive programme to restore New Zealand’s wetlands and wants to stop schemes to drain these vital carbon-sequestering ecosystems.
NZ Post drops science-based climate target
8 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | NZ Post has dropped its science-based emissions reduction target of 42% by 2030 with no plans to replace it.
Airlines risk legal challenges by advertising jet fuel as “sustainable”, NGO warns
18 Jul 2025
Amid suspected fraud in the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), a new report says the airline industry should stop calling all alternatives to kerosene “sustainable”.
Challenges persist in bid to mine the deep sea, even after boost from Trump
Tue 29 Jul 2025
After years of delay, the deep-sea mining plans of Canadian firm The Metals Company (TMC) now appear to be progressing as it pursues a controversial new path to securing a license to mine in international waters under U.S. jurisdiction.
Sustainability claims questioned as renewable diesel surges
14 May 2025
Critics are sceptical about industry claims of renewable diesel life-cycle greenhouse gas emission cuts and warn renewable diesel carbon releases will surge if sourcing is scaled up, triggering tropical deforestation as producers convert forests to energy crops, such as oil palm and soy.
Carbon prices slide as market awaits ETS decision
Fri 1 Aug 2025
By Liz Kivi | Volatility has returned to the secondary carbon market, with prices sliding again after plateauing in recent weeks, as the market waits for government decisions on Emissions Trading Scheme settings.
The US is sitting out the most consequential climate summit in a decade. It may offer a victory to China
Fri 1 Aug 2025
The Trump administration fired the last of the US climate negotiators earlier this month, helping cement America’s withdrawal from international climate diplomacy. It may also have handed a huge victory to China.
Bearish sentiment lingers for carbon market
11 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | The compliance carbon market could be set for a gradual upward trajectory, however unsold volume from the quarterly Emissions Trading Scheme auctions continues to act as ‘a price ceiling,’ according to an expert.
Coal use drove recent emissions increase
Fri 1 Aug 2025
Increased use of coal for electricity generation was a large driver for an increase in New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions in the last quarter.
Is extending Huntly power station to 2035 in consumers’ best interest?
22 Jul 2025
By Simon Orme | COMMENT: Genesis Energy is proposing a cartel to keep high-emitting Huntly Power Station in business to 2035. If extending Huntly has economic benefits, is a cartel necessary?
What does 'drier' really mean in 'green' homes?
Fri 1 Aug 2025
Media release - Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland | Researchers say green-rating systems could improve clarity and effectiveness by explicitly defining ‘drier’ and using two measures of humidity.
Cuts to climate finance put exports in jeopardy: Lawyers
23 May 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government has halved international climate finance, a move aid organisations describe as “devastating,” and which lawyers say could put our Paris Agreement commitments and export market access at risk.
Bill to restart oil and gas exploration clears final hurdle
Fri 1 Aug 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The government’s Crown Minerals Amendment Bill is set to become law after passing its third reading in parliament last night, with critics calling it humiliating for the climate minister and an embarrassment to New Zealand's international reputation.
Key orange roughy population on verge of collapse, govt considers closure
9 Jul 2025
Media release - Deep Sea Conservation Coalition | New data reveals that New Zealand’s main orange roughy fishery, accounting for half of the country’s total catch, is on the brink of collapse, with one model showing it may have reached that point already, and the government’s considering closing it.
Warmer than usual weather ahead, wetter in north and east, as La Niña signals strengthen
Fri 1 Aug 2025
Media release – Earth Sciences New Zealand | Seasonal Outlook Climate August to October 2025 suggests warm, damp weather, with La Niña’s possible return.
Latest trawl bycatch numbers 'a grim wake-up call'
24 Jun 2025
Media release – Greenpeace | The latest fisheries bycatch data paints a grim picture, with trawlers hauling up thousands of kilograms of coral and killing hundreds of fur seals and seabirds over a 12 month period.
Wilding pines threaten Molesworth Station
Mon 28 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Without increased support, the unchecked spread of wilding pines will continue to creep across Marlborough’s high country – putting iconic landscapes and one of New Zealand’s top five biodiversity hotspots at serious risk, according to an expert.
Last minute change to oil and gas legislation over cleanup costs
Thu 31 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government is expected to repeal the oil and gas ban today, with a last-minute amendment handing discretionary power to two ministers over the controversial issue of decommissioning.
A modest geothermal strategy
Thu 31 Jul 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | The Government has unveiled a far more modest geothermal energy strategy than its primary backer, Resources Minister Shane Jones, had sought.
European Central Bank to consider 'climate factor' when lending to banks
Thu 31 Jul 2025
The European Central Bank will add climate change considerations to its lending operations from late 2026, raising pressure on banks to channel financing towards greener sectors as the euro zone seeks to reduce its carbon footprint.
NZ part of hidden global deep-sea network beneath the waves
25 Jul 2025
Media release - Earth Sciences New Zealand | A world-first study of marine life, including sea creatures found in New Zealand's dark, cold, pressurised ocean depths, has revealed that deep-sea life is surprisingly more connected than previously thought.
‘Ideological sludge’: How NZ is quiet quitting climate action
17 Jul 2025
New Zealand once stood out as a world leader on climate change. In June it became the first country in the world to abandon a commitment to phase out oil, gas and coal.
Watts talks big on energy reform, but barriers persist
29 May 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Energy and Climate Change minister Simon Watts says the government is doubling down on efforts to boost renewable energy generation, streamline regulation, and drive private sector investment as New Zealand faces mounting energy security and affordability challenges.
Hiringa eyes green methanol plant near Whanganui
Tue 29 Jul 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Green hydrogen pioneer Hiringa Energy is deep in planning to develop an “eight-to-nine figure” methanol plant near Whanganui, using a combination of biomass and hydrogen produced using renewable energy.
Climate catastrophes are creating a ‘new market reality’ for insurance carriers
23 Jul 2025
Raging wildfires and severe storms contributed to record-high global insurance losses — totalling an estimated US$84 billion — for the first six months of the year.
Will NZ walk away from the Paris Agreement?
20 Dec 2024
By Geoff Bertram | COMMENT: Unless the government can find very cheap offshore mitigation, the temptation to walk away from its Paris Agreement obligations may well be too strong to resist for a coalition government focused on fiscal austerity.
Multi-day protest continues at coal mine
Wed 30 Jul 2025
Bathurst Resources has been forced to truck coal from its Stockton mine as climate activists occupy coal buckets at the mine for a third day.
Fund for low emissions transport winds up
Thu 31 Jul 2025
New Zealand’s Low Emission Transport Fund has officially wrapped up, ending a nine-year programme that put hundreds of millions of dollars towards accelerating the country’s shift to cleaner transport.
Urgent action needed to get on track for climate goals - commission
25 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand is making progress on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but more work is needed – urgently – to set up for future reductions, according to the latest report from the Climate Change Commission.
NZ's latest climate target 'weak' – Climate Action Tracker
24 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand's new international climate target to 2035 is weak, and could even allow for higher emissions than the 2030 target, according to a global scientific project that tracks government climate action.
Toxic algae are turning South Australia’s coral reefs into underwater graveyards
Tue 29 Jul 2025
Since March, a harmful algal bloom, fueled by a marine heat wave, has been choking South Australia’s coastline.
NZ govt’s fossil fuel plans could break international law
24 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government could be breaching international law with its plans to subsidise and expand fossil fuel extraction, following a ruling overnight from the world’s highest court.
Tipping points: Window to avoid irreversible climate impacts is ‘rapidly closing’
11 Jul 2025
In the midst of a record-breaking heatwave in Europe, the UK city of Exeter recently played host to the second international conference on “tipping points”.
‘Total infiltration’: How plastics industry swamped vital global treaty talks
Mon 28 Jul 2025
Petrostates and well-funded lobbyists at UN-hosted talks are derailing a deal to cut plastic production and protect people and the planet.
Activists sue US development bank over $4.6bn loan to massive Mozambique gas project
18 Jul 2025
Environmental groups claim loan is ‘unlawful’ in legal filing.
Straterra has a new name: the New Zealand Minerals Council
16 Apr 2025
Media release | Straterra has been renamed as New Zealand Minerals Council, says chief executive Josie Vidal.
Tilting at windmills? Trump’s claims about turbines fact-checked
Thu 31 Jul 2025
The US president has taken a swipe at wind power as the blades visible from his Turnberry golf course turn.
Ocean heatwaves may signal climate tipping point
25 Jul 2025
A recent study that tapped into satellite data has revealed that 2023 marked an unprecedented year for marine heatwaves, with record-breaking levels of duration, reach and intensity across the world's oceans.
Climate groups want UK wealth tax to make super-rich fund sustainable economy
17 Jul 2025
Growing number of campaigners urge government to ensure green investment is not done ‘on backs of the poor’.
Can robot taxis solve NZ's transport woes?
23 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Ministry of Transport has tested the idea of driverless taxis as a futuristic fix. But while new modelling explores how "robotaxis" could ease congestion and reduce car ownership, critics say it misses a crucial point – the country’s worsening transport emissions.
United Nations carbon market rules agreed but concerns remain
25 Nov 2024
New carbon market rules agreed at the fractious UN climate summit will be a relief to New Zealand and Singapore, who were leading the negotiations, but concerns about greenwashing and disadvantaging nature-based solutions remain.
EV sales fall, but it’s complicated
Tue 29 Jul 2025
Imports of fully electric vehicles fell over 50% in value during the 12 months to June 2025, compared with the year ended June 2024, according to Stats NZ.
The ICJ’s ruling means Australia and other major polluters face a new era of climate reparations
25 Jul 2025
By Harj Narulla | OPINION: Australia has found itself on the wrong side of history.
Waste Levy risks becoming ‘slush fund’ under proposed changes – Commissioner
5 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Proposed changes to New Zealand's waste legislation risk undermining public trust in the waste levy scheme, according to Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Simon Upton.
The struggle for control of the Arctic is accelerating - and it's riskier than ever
11 Jul 2025
As the battle for one of the world’s coldest places heats up, an increasingly fragile security balance may be breaking down, leading to an escalating arms race.
NZ voluntary carbon market’s sad state
14 Jul 2025
By John O’Brien | OPINION: A combination of scandals, challenging economic times, and cheaper offshore carbon credits, mean that the domestic voluntary carbon market in New Zealand remains absolutely tiny.
For the first time, China invests more in wind and solar than coal overseas
29 May 2025
China’s Belt and Road Initiative, long derided for its heavy carbon footprint, was dominated by wind and solar power projects for the first time from 2022 to 2023, according to a new analysis. But coal plants financed in earlier years are still coming online.
