Topics tagged with 'Emissions trading'
Labour vows to scrap emitters' one-for-two deal
1 Sep 2014
The one-for-two deal that halves emitters’ carbon liabilities would be scrapped by a Labour government.
Forest owners welcome return of grant scheme
1 Sep 2014
Forest owners are welcoming the reinstatement of the Afforestation Grant Scheme – but say that lifting carbon prices would reverse deforestation overnight.
Foresters like look of climate commission
1 Sep 2014
Forest owners like the Labour Party's plan to set up an independent climate commission.
Aviation a microcosm of the emissions problem
1 Sep 2014
No matter what the aviation industry does to reduce emissions, it will be outweighed by growth in air travel, according to a new analysis.
Labour vows to act on agriculture by 2016
25 Aug 2014
There is bad news for farmers, and good and bad news for industrial emitters under Labour’s climate change policy, released yesterday.
European carbon prices look set to rise
25 Aug 2014
An international energy market watcher is predicting price rises in European carbon.
Experts pinpoint what emissions cost economy
18 Aug 2014
For the first time, economists have put a financial cost on the impact of greenhouse gases released by the industrialisation of developed countries.
Don't waste your money on oil and gas
18 Aug 2014
If you want a safe bet, don’t invest in some of today’s tempting oil and gas projects. That’s the message from a UK-based financial think-tank that aims to align the global energy market with climate reality.
The climate change world according to Piketty
18 Aug 2014
French economist widely debated Thomas Piketty and his book Capital in the Twenty-First Century are a global publishing phenomenon. But while Piketty’s writing on wealth inequality has been widely debated, far fewer people know that he has some useful things to say about climate change and public capital.
Greens have a tempting carbon tax idea
11 Aug 2014
A carbon price is still the best and fairest way to achieve emissions cuts, but as Australia and New Zealand show, it’s not easy to get it right. How could carbon pricing be improved?
NZ gifts Rio Tinto $6m free carbon credits bonus
4 Aug 2014
The company that threatened to leave New Zealand if it introduced the Emissions Trading Scheme has had a $6 million windfall from taxpayers in the form of free carbon credits.
Frustrated forest owners quit trading scheme
4 Aug 2014
More than 750 owners of post-1989 forests left the Emissions Trading Scheme over the past year as New Zealand’s net forestation rate plummeted.
Low surrender shows emitters using foreign units
4 Aug 2014
Just 0.5 per cent of the more than 45 million carbon units surrender for the 2013 emissions year were our home-grown units.
Economist rubbishes Govt's $500 power cost claim
4 Aug 2014
Government claims that lifting carbon prices would cost householders $500 more a year in electricity bills have been debunked.
Foreign foresters might sue over ETS changes
1 Aug 2014
New Zealand might face claims under free-trade agreements for losses caused as a result of changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Carbon axe will boost renewables, says Trustpower
1 Aug 2014
Electricity generator Trustpower believes the repeal of Australia's carbon tax will be great for renewable energy, which is likely to be heavily favoured under the federal government's Renewable Energy Targets scheme.
Shorten pleads for G20 to talk climate crisis
25 Jul 2014
Australian Opposition leader Bill Shorten has taken his battle with Prime Minister Tony Abbott over climate policy to an international stage, saying the issue should be a priority for the G20 leaders' meeting in Brisbane.
Europe lacks courage on energy targets
25 Jul 2014
In proposing a 30 per cent rather than a 40 per cent energy demand reduction target, the European Commission is increasing the risks that European Union member states face from fossil-fuel dependence and slowing the economic and social benefits of better insulated homes and lower energy bills.
Quiet end to week
25 Jul 2014
The week ended quietly, with the overall market unchanged. OMFinancial reports:
It's all eyes on the election
25 Jul 2014
New Zealand has had a quiet week, with the market slowly softening as volumes come to market in small parcels, says Westpac's carbon desk.
Carbon tax repeal could leave businesses marooned
18 Jul 2014
In the short term, the repeal of Australia's carbon tax, passed in the Senate yesterday, may provide some relief for businesses and households as electricity bills fall — although possibly not as much as official estimates.
Study shows Australian emissions cuts were working
18 Jul 2014
Carbon emissions in Australia’s national electricity market would have been 11 to 17 million tonnes higher if Australia had not introduced a carbon price.
ETS pay-off puts millions into climate projects
18 Jul 2014
The sale of carbon credits for the first time will finance projects that help to tackle climate change.
Billions in money pot could unlock clean energy deal
11 Jul 2014
Europe’s structural funding cash pool for energy efficiency and renewables projects has soared by 40 per cent to an estimated $NZ46 billion and could be used to broker a 2030 clean energy targets deal with cost-concerned east European states, EurActiv reports.
Australian farmers led astray on carbon farming
11 Jul 2014
Australian farmers and rural land owners are being told that they will be given powerful and direct incentives to store carbon in the land under the federal government’s new climate policy.
Scientists accuse Shell of climate doublethink
11 Jul 2014
The world’s biggest oil company has been accused of ‘doublethink’ in claiming that its fossil fuel assets will continue to be highly profitable and in demand, while recognising the need for decisive action on climate change.
NORMAN: The longer we wait the more it will cost
11 Jul 2014
By RUSSEL NORMAN, Green Party co-leader.- Thanks to Federated Farmers’ incoming president William Rolleston for taking the time to write about the Green Party’s Climate Tax Cut in last week’s Carbon News.
Why carbon tax proposal won't work
4 Jul 2014
Newly elected Federated Farmers' president Dr William Rolleston explains why he thinks the Green Party's carbon tax proposal is not a runner:
Foresters leave scheme
27 Jun 2014
Forty-seven participants left the Emissions Trading Scheme over the past year.
Millionaire miner rocks Canberra carbon camp
27 Jun 2014
Australia’s emissions trading scheme is on again. Maybe.
No worries, says Bridges, the world loves us
27 Jun 2014
Associate Climate Change Minister Simon Bridges says New Zealand’s is respected internationally for its action on climate change.
Carbon tax won't fix troubled ETS, says report
27 Jun 2014
New Zealand's emissions price beacon is "obscured in the fog of policy uncertainty", but dumping it in favour of a carbon tax isn't the only way to fix it, say Motu Research's Catherine Leining and Suzi Kerr.
Australian Senate likely to pass carbon tax repeal
27 Jun 2014
The bill to repeal Australia’s carbon tax is poised to pass the Senate, potentially leaving Australia without a working price on carbon.
Market watchdog welcomes Palmer move
27 Jun 2014
An international carbon market watchdog is welcoming Australian politician Clive Palmer's shift on climate change.
Carbon tax call is all about playing politics
20 Jun 2014
By CHARLES ETHERINGTON, Warren Forestry Ltd.- The Greens are giving the impression of being ahead on the topic of a carbon tax versus the Emissions Trading Scheme, but, as usual, they are actually behind and just playing politics.
Abbott climate call gets cool reception here
13 Jun 2014
New Zealand appears unenthusiastic about our Tasman neighbour’s plans to form a conservative alliance on climate change.
China becomes world No2 carbon trader
13 Jun 2014
China is the world's second-largest carbon trading market following the European Union according to data released this week.
Why we need clear emissions-reduction reporting
13 Jun 2014
STEPHEN KNIGHT-LENIHAN, JULIA HARKER and PRUE TAYLOR argue for transparent emissions-reduction reporting, in the same way that we report on the share market and exchange rates.
Let's get back to ETS basics, says Internet leader
6 Jun 2014
New Internet Party leader Laila Harre is no fan of the Emissions Trading Scheme
How China changes could leave coal a stranded asset
6 Jun 2014
By ALEX KIRBY.- Analysts believe that China − the world’s largest producer and consumer of coal, accounting for almost half of global consumption − could be close to making an abrupt and drastic change of tack.
EU members abandon new-energy plans
6 Jun 2014
Most EU member states are virtually abandoning plans to develop new energy and fuel saving policies that could save the public money and reduce dependency on Russian gas, thanks to weak European climate targets that are likely to be overshot, according to new analysis.
Carbon world roundup
6 Jun 2014
Westpac's carbon desk takes a look over events in the world of international carbon.
ETS more workable than carbon tax, says Labour
3 Jun 2014
Labour says that it will be easier to lift carbon prices under the Emissions Trading Scheme than under a carbon tax, as proposed by the Greens.
Greens: Climate change biggest issue world has faced
3 Jun 2014
"They used to call climate change the biggest issue of our time; more recently, I've heard it described as the biggest issue of all time." Green Party co-leader RUSSEL NORMAN on why his party will replace the Emissions Trading Scheme with a carbon tax:
Angry iwi to file carbon prices Treaty claim
30 May 2014
A $600-million Treaty of Waitangi claim over the Government’s climate change policies and carbon prices is to go ahead.
Foresters could have arbitrage case, says expert
30 May 2014
A litigator turned forest manager says that the Government’s surprise move to close an arbitrage loophole for forest owners could be legally challenged.
Foresters threaten to pull out of ETS
23 May 2014
Participation by forestry in the Emissions Trading Scheme will come to a sudden halt because the Government has shown it will change the rules at the drop of a hat, industry sources say.
Government took easy option on forest credits
23 May 2014
The Government feared that an “arbitrage loophole” allowing forest owners to move in and out of the Emissions Trading Scheme could cost it up to $231 million over the next two years.
New Zealanders losing ambition on climate change: Ipsos
Wed 20 May 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | New Zealanders’ belief that their government has a plan to combat climate change has taken another serious hit in the latest poll of 31 countries by global research firm Ipsos.
Six NZ climate solutions up for 2026 Earthshot prize
Today 11:30am
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Six New Zealand climate and sustainability initiatives have been nominated for the 2026 Earthshot Prize, with the shortlist showcasing Kiwi-led solutions tackling emissions, plastic waste and ocean restoration.
$30m airline fund risks ‘burning public money’ without lasting benefit – expert
20 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | A $30 million government package to support regional air routes risks delivering poor value for money while increasing emissions, according to transport strategist Tim Adriaansen.
Europe has 'maybe six weeks of jet fuel left', energy boss warns
20 Apr 2026
Stocks would reach a tipping point in June if Europe was unable to replace at least half of its imports from the Middle East, the organisation said in a report this week.
Govt unveils long-awaited voluntary carbon market guidance
Fri 15 May 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government has released long-awaited guidance for New Zealand’s voluntary carbon and nature markets, as questions continue for the sector despite ministers signalling support for its growth.
Biomass sector asks: where did the love go?
Mon 18 May 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | New Zealand has sufficient biomass in its plantation forests to replace natural gas for industrial process heat at lower costs than electrification, but is failing to get the attention it deserves, sector leaders say.
Carbon News updates forward curve
13 May 2026
Carbon News has updated its ten-year NZU forward curve, following a recent rise in spot market prices, with NZUs rallying from about $34 in January to nearly $54 in early May.
UN members reinforce nations' climate change obligations
Today 11:30am
The United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday adopted a resolution reinforcing states' obligations to combat climate change, a long-awaited move toned down under pressure from major greenhouse gas emitters.
Drop in ETS forestry registrations
5 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | ETS forestry registrations have dropped off this year, with the new mandatory emissions return period, new land-use rules, and carbon price volatility all meaning participants aren’t rushing to register forestry in the emissions trading scheme.
Hipkins pans LNG plan as ‘massive step backwards’
Tue 19 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | Labour leader Chris Hipkins has told a Queenstown audience that a Government he leads would not proceed with a planned LNG import terminal, if elected at November’s election.
Tairāwhiti deserves better than weakened forestry rules
5 May 2026
OPINION: The government's proposed amendments to forestry standards, released yesterday, ignore the hard lessons learned in our region and ignore the voices that have fought hardest to protect it, writes Manu Caddie.
Green building council calls for clean energy policies
Mon 18 May 2026
The New Zealand Green Building Council has released its 2026 election manifesto calling for policies to reduce energy waste in buildings, lower household and business energy costs, and improve New Zealand’s energy security.
What Magyar’s defeat of Orbán in Hungary means for climate and energy
21 Apr 2026
Hungary has played a disproportionate role in EU climate and energy policy in recent years, by repeatedly vetoing climate action and by delaying the phaseout of Russian fossil-fuel imports.
New solar farm to boost West Coast energy security
Today 11:30am
Construction has begun on a new 13.5MW solar farm in Reefton, with developer Lightyears saying the project will help strengthen electricity security on the West Coast and support future regional growth.
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.
Are hailstones getting bigger due to climate change?
Today 11:30am
Scientific studies suggest that a warmer climate does not necessarily lead to more frequent hail, but rather to more severe hailstorms with larger hailstones.
EDS urges MPs to scrap the Fisheries Amendment Bill
5 May 2026
Media release | The Environmental Defence Society today lodged a substantive submission on the Fisheries Amendment Bill.
Govt presses ahead with forestry rule changes despite opposition
14 May 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government is pushing ahead with changes to commercial forestry rules despite most submitters opposing the proposals, with critics warning the reforms will weaken councils’ ability to manage erosion and forestry slash risks in vulnerable regions such as Tairāwhiti.
Iran war pushes Portugal to halve fossil fuel use over next 10 years
Wed 20 May 2026
Lisbon fast-tracks plans after the Iran war caused oil and gas costs to soar, Energy Minister Maria da Graça Carvalho tells POLITICO.
RMA to speed up fossil fuel consents
18 Aug 2025
By Liz Kivi | An energy lobby group has welcomed a last-minute amendment to the RMA that puts fossil fuels on the same footing as renewables, however a sustainable energy expert says the move “beggars belief.”
New funding for low methane farming uptake
29 Apr 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | The government will co-fund projects under an Early Adoption Accelerator scheme announced today to accelerate the uptake of low emissions farming technologies emerging from the AgriZero public-private partnership.
NZ Govt’s move to halt climate litigation under international scrutiny
Tue 19 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | Local and international NGOs have signed an open letter calling on the Government to reconsider its decision to shield major emitters from legal liability for climate-related harm.
Why ‘greenhushing’ signals deeper issues with NZ’s climate risk reporting regime
Fri 15 May 2026
By Hang Pham, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington | Most of us are familiar with the concept of greenwashing: organisations exaggerating or overstating their environmental credentials. But in New Zealand, there are signs the country’s climate disclosure regime may inadvertently be driving a very different trend: not saying much at all.
‘Formidable’ El Niño expected this winter
29 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | Meteorologists are anticipating a significant El Niño influence on weather patterns across the country from winter onwards, with predicted lower rainfall for some areas and heavier rain for others likely to impact multiple sectors of the economy as well as the carbon market.
Victorian Hydrogen announces Southland urea fertiliser project using coal
22 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | Australian-based Victorian Hydrogen has announced it is developing a new 1.5 million-tonne-a-year urea fertiliser operation in Southland, which it will apply for under fast-track legislation.
Media round-up
24 Apr 2026
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: What is the real cost of storm-hit infrastructure? Urgency is needed over climate adaptation funding; and a community conservation group has won a legal victory against multinational mining company OceanaGold.
Climate law change spanner in the works for Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry
19 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s controversial changes to New Zealand’s legal framework for climate policy have thrown a spanner in the works for a long-running Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry into climate change.
Labour condemns Govt plan to stop climate litigation
Fri 15 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Labour Party has slammed the Government’s move to block climate lawsuits against big emitters but won’t say if they would repeal the legislation if elected in November.
GIDI-style help cheaper than LNG: MBIE
11 May 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | Officials advised ministers last July that the lowest-cost way to free up gas for use during dry winters was to assist industrial gas users to switch to electricity.
Govt missing tricks to save fuel in crisis
30 Apr 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government is being urged to shift its response to the fuel crisis away from short-term relief and towards measures that reduce demand, with public health experts warning it is missing an opportunity to boost energy security and lower household costs.
Climate risks could reshape business finances, new guidance warns
15 Apr 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New guidance warns climate change is set to fundamentally reshape financial outcomes for businesses, including difficult-to-model climate “tipping points” – irreversible changes such as ice sheet collapse or ocean circulation shifts – which threaten severe and sudden financial impacts.
Move to block lawsuits could strengthen climate case against Govt
14 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s plan to block climate lawsuits – while potentially fatal for one groundbreaking climate case – could actually bolster claims in another live climate case underway against the Government.
‘Utterly elated’ – controversial Sams Creek gold mine application declined
Today 11:30am
By Max Frethey, Local Democracy Reporter | Campaigners are elated after the controversial gold mining application for Sams Creek in Golden Bay was declined.
Conservation land open for voluntary carbon market schemes
12 May 2026
By Pattrick Smellie | The government is to open up the Crown-owned conservation estate to private investment in voluntary carbon market projects.
NZ's latest climate target 'weak' – Climate Action Tracker
24 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand's new international climate target to 2035 is weak, and could even allow for higher emissions than the 2030 target, according to a global scientific project that tracks government climate action.
Pacific voice on climate at the UN
Wed 20 May 2026
A New Zealand-based researcher has told a United Nations forum that rising sea levels are already reshaping life across the Pacific and climate change is causing irreversible impacts on water supplies, food security and cultural identity.
Environmental groups sue Trump administration over approval of new ultra deep-water drilling project
23 Apr 2026
Environmental groups sued the Trump administration on Monday over its approval last month of oil company BP’s ultra deep-water drilling project in the Gulf of Mexico.
Opposition slams environment ministry merger
13 May 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Opposition MPs accused the Government of downgrading climate and environmental protections as legislation to abolish the Ministry for the Environment and merge it into a new mega-ministry passed its second reading in Parliament.
A real ‘intergenerational equity’ budget would address Australia’s unceasing environmental decline
Fri 15 May 2026
Labor has unveiled a budget designed to tackle intergenerational equity in Australia through bold tax reform.
ESG funds include petrochemical companies, report finds
5 May 2026
Global banks have invested US$133bn into US petrochemical expansion, even as the industry is linked to climate change.
NZTA rejects covering $145m of Wellington public transport projects
Wed 20 May 2026
By Justin Wong, Local Democracy Reporter | More than $145 million of Wellington public transport projects - including new bus spines along the harbour quays and the redevelopment of ageing Waterloo station - never made it into the Government’s $32.9 billion national land transport plan.
Thousands protest in Germany urging faster shift to renewable energy, amid Iran war
20 Apr 2026
Thousands of people demonstrated across Germany on April 18, urging a faster shift to renewable energy and accusing conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s coalition of putting the brakes on the transition.
Green Party calls for national electrification plan
20 Apr 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Green Party is calling for a national plan to electrify homes, transport and industry using renewable energy, to reduce fossil fuel dependence in response to the Middle East crisis.
China widens its clean energy lead
Mon 18 May 2026
Chinese companies account for more than half of global investments in clean energy manufacturing since 2019, while new U.S. investments declined last year.
‘Landmark’ conservation reform bill – boost or bust for nature?
8 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | The Government has announced an overhaul of the country’s conservation system, which environmental organisation Forest & Bird says will undo the work of many generations of Kiwis to protect public conservation land.
Combined climate extremes may prompt carbon budget rethink
14 May 2026
Media release: Springer Nature | Combined extreme climate events are likely to become more common in the future if carbon emissions continue to rise, a paper in Nature suggests.
Media round-up
Fri 15 May 2026
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: The government's move to change climate law removes a key protection for NZ citizens, farmers should be paid to use methane-busting tools, and it's one step forward, three steps back on environment policy.
Carbon trading schemes cut more emissions than carbon taxes, according to global study
20 Mar 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Carbon trading schemes are more effective than carbon taxes at reducing emissions, cutting fossil fuel use, and accelerating the shift to renewable energy, a global study has found.
Why both trees and technology are important in the race to mitigate carbon emissions
4 May 2026
Different carbon‑removal approaches solve different problems, and pitting these technologies against each other could slow progress.
Pacific climate response in question as NZ finance remains unclear
19 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | With New Zealand's $1.3 billion international climate finance commitment set to end with no clarity on what follows, the Auditor-General says oversight of that funding remains patchy and long-term outcomes are unclear.
UN members prepare for pivotal vote on landmark ICJ climate justice ruling
Fri 15 May 2026
If the resolution is passed, governments will recognise their legal responsibility to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
NZ First moves to revive container return scheme
4 May 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | NZ First is aiming to launch a national container return scheme, which could recycle over a billion wasted containers each year, reviving a policy shelved by the previous Labour-led Government in 2023.
Commission urges Govt action on climate risks
7 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | Climate change currently poses major risks to our water infrastructure with “significant gaps” in readiness to manage risks and increasing hazards, according to the Climate Change Commission.
Why is Northern Ireland facing a growing threat from wildfires?
7 May 2026
Figures show that spring drought events are happening more often while there has been a sharp rise in "fire weather" - a mix of warmth, dryness, and wind that allows fires to ignite and spread rapidly. Experts warn this combination, along with climate change, is creating a longer and more volatile wildfire season.
Human health appears unaffected by living near wind turbines
Today 11:30am
Media release: PNAS | High-resolution data collected across the United States show negligible evidence of adverse health outcomes tied to wind turbine exposure, a study finds.
