Topics tagged with 'Forestry'
No country for farmers? ... what Federated Farmers said on carbon forestry
30 Jul 2010
Twenty per cent of New Zealand's sheep and beef farms could be replaced by oxymoronic 'carbon forestry', if the ambitions of foreign owned carbon foresters and the Government are realised.
Trade light in NZUs
30 Jul 2010
There has been light trade in NZUs this week, with trades occurring in a tight range between $18.20 and $18.55, Westpac reports.
Carbon credits ready to roll for big emitters
16 Jul 2010
Carbon credits allocated to industrial emitters to help them to adjust to the Emissions Trading Scheme could start flowing on to the market in the middle of next month.
Foresters: Farmers can't see wood for the trees
16 Jul 2010
The Emissions Trading Scheme makes farm forestry even more viable – but many farmers just don’t get it yet, says the Farm Forestry Association.
UK firm plants 50,000ha in jatropha
16 Jul 2010
British company VEPower says it has secured 40,000 tonnes of crude biofuel through an exclusivity agreement to finance a 50,000ha jatropha plantation in Ghana.
National 'takes chainsaw' to afforestation grant scheme
16 Jul 2010
Budget documents show that the Government will downscale the Afforestation Grant Scheme by $2m per year over the next three years, before eventually ceasing it, the Labour Party says.
Foresters test carbon sales through Trade Me
9 Jul 2010
Foresters are trying Trade Me as a platform to sell carbon.
NZ carbon market catching buyers' attention
2 Jul 2010
New Zealand’s domestic carbon market is hotting up.
Europeans snap up another big parcel of NZ credits
2 Jul 2010
Another large parcel of New Zealand Kyoto units has been sold to a European Government.
Foresters seek timber imports safeguard
2 Jul 2010
Forest owners want New Zealand to follow the lead of the United States and require government confirmation that imported timber has been legally logged.
We're doing our fair share, says Smith
2 Jul 2010
The entry of transport fuels, electricity and industry into the emissions trading scheme this week marks an important step in New Zealand doing its fair share on climate change, Climate Change Minister Nick Smith says.
We won't dump you in it, minister tells farmers
25 Jun 2010
Agriculture Minister David Carter is promising farmers they will not come into the Emissions Trading Scheme if New Zealand’s trading partners have not moved to cut their carbon emissions.
Taxpayers face $1.1 billion Kyoto liability, say authors
25 Jun 2010
New Zealand’s failure to reduce emissions to its Kyoto Protocol target means the taxpayer still faces a $1.1 billion net liability after all the ETS charges have been paid.
NZ forest credits sell to Danish Government
18 Jun 2010
The sale of a bundle of New Zealand forestry credits to the Danish Government proves there is a premium market for PFSI credits, says the man who brokered the deal.
Bank carbon desk: We're run off our feet
18 Jun 2010
Westpac says it’s trading “significant” volumes of carbon on the New Zealand market.
Report highlights importance of water storage
18 Jun 2010
Federated Farmers says it is pleased to see water storage and infrastructure given high importance in the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's annual Situation and Outlook for New Zealand Agriculture and Forestry report.
You had enough time, MAF tells farmers
11 Jun 2010
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry says it gave as much time as it could for submissions on the rules governing agriculture under the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Carbon forestry can work, say tree growers
11 Jun 2010
Carbon forestry is a viable option for land owners looking to offset farm emissions and for new income streams, say forest owners.
NIWA scientists put better nitrogen management on the farm to the test
11 Jun 2010
New Zealand science is taking a global lead in assessing techniques for the mitigation of pastoral greenhouse gas emissions.
US climate bill key to Pacific carbon market
4 Jun 2010
A former New Zealand Government official who chaired some of the meetings at the Copenhagen climate change talks says that a move by the United States into a cap-and-trade scheme could lead to a Pacific-wide carbon market.
Clued-up investors move on forestry blocks
4 Jun 2010
Investors are moving to buy forestry blocks as interest in farming carbon grows.
Help us make money from carbon, pleads dairyman
4 Jun 2010
A dairy farmer planning on making money from farming carbon says Federated Farmers is failing to provide leadership on the issue.
MAF issues several new ETS guides for forestry and agriculture
4 Jun 2010
MAF has produced several new guides relating to the ETS and forestry and agriculture.
NZ owners sitting pretty, says forest chief
4 Jun 2010
A “perfect storm” may be brewing for the forest sector, says Forest Owners' chief executive David Rhodes.
New site gives latest on local carbon market
28 May 2010
The New Zealand carbon market matured this week with the launch of the first live updates of local carbon.
Indonesia agrees to curb commercial deforestation
28 May 2010
Indonesia has declared a two-year moratorium on clearing natural forests as part of a billion-dollar deal aimed at reviving efforts to fight climate change.
Business group wants right to use hot-air AAUs
14 May 2010
Business lobbyists are pushing for the right to use foreign AAUs (assigned amount units) to offset their New Zealand carbon liabilities.
Ministry clears up status of carbon brokers
14 May 2010
It’s a case of buyer – or, in this case, seller – beware.
Forest owner pockets second round of millions
7 May 2010
A New Zealand forest owner has once again netted itself millions of dollars from the sale of New Zealand forestry Kyoto credits.
Westpac move signals carbon is growing up
7 May 2010
Westpac has entered the New Zealand carbon market in a move being welcomed as a sign that carbon is becoming mainstream.
Carbon market wide open to doubtful deals
30 Apr 2010
The Government might be moving to clean up the regulations around the financial markets, but investors in the emerging carbon market lack the same protections.
We'd sue Government, say forest owners
30 Apr 2010
The Government would face big compensation claims from forest owners if it scrapped or delayed the emissions trading scheme.
Information and reputational risk drives big shift in office paper choices
30 Apr 2010
Business and Government got together in Wellington this week to launch a new edition of an influential guide to buying sustainable office papers.
Markit chief slams Kiwis' lack of carbon nous
23 Apr 2010
New Zealand risks missing the chance to reap the rewards of the emerging clean-tech economy because its leaders are fixated on the negatives, warns the head of the world's leading environmental exchange.
ETS delay comes at a cost, warn foresters
9 Apr 2010
Delaying the emissions trading scheme would cost the country more in the long run, say forest owners.
Forest owners flood ministry with returns
9 Apr 2010
The number of forest owners filing carbon emissions returns is up ten-fold on last year.
Govt stays silent over future of ETS
1 Apr 2010
The Government appears to have gone to ground over rumours it is considering postponing the entry of heavy emitters into the emissions trading scheme.
Cleantech investment: the numbers
1 Apr 2010
By Nick Hodge.- If you're a cleantech investor, perhaps the release of 2009 investment and installation data has something to do with your improving sentiment. I know it does mine.
US oil company paid sceptics, says report
1 Apr 2010
A little-known, privately owned US oil company has been named as the paymaster of global warming sceptics in the US and Europe.
Did climate bring about the collapse of Angkor?
1 Apr 2010
Decades of drought, interspersed with intense monsoon rains, might have helped to bring about the fall of Cambodia's ancient Khmer civilization at Angkor nearly 600 years ago, according to a new report.
Land lies idle as foresters fear conversion
26 Mar 2010
Thousands of hectares of recently deforested land is lying fallow because under the emissions trading scheme owners can’t afford to convert it to other uses.
Why Gull is happy to use NZ emissions scheme
26 Mar 2010
Gull Energy says the New Zealand emissions trading scheme is a good dry run for what might happen in Australia.
Insurer backs off forest-damage protection
19 Mar 2010
Insurer NZI has put on hold plans to offer forest owners protection against accidental carbon loss while it waits for the carbon market to bed in.
Obama looks at carbon trading shortcut
19 Mar 2010
The Obama administration is considering a carbon-trading system under existing law if the US Congress doesn't pass cap-and-trade legislation that allows companies to buy and sell the right to pollute, a US Environmental Protection Agency official said.
Broker moving carbon desk to Auckland
12 Mar 2010
OMFinancial is moving its carbon desk to Auckland.
China and India sign, but keep climate stand
12 Mar 2010
China said it will not deviate from its stand on climate change even after it gave qualified approval to the Copenhagen climate accord this week.
Foresters begin to see wood for the trees
5 Mar 2010
Forest owners hope that they will soon have clarity around the way in which carbon credits will be allocated for pre-1990 forests.
Beehive still working through carbon free list
5 Mar 2010
The Government is still working out just which industrial activities will qualify for free carbon credits under the emissions trading scheme.
Australia, Indonesia sign forest carbon agreement
5 Mar 2010
Australia and Indonesia have signed a multi-million dollar pact to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and forest degradation on Sumatra.
Burning southern forest shows up carbon risk
26 Feb 2010
A forest fire burning near Dunedin is highlighting the risk of natural disasters to carbon.
Ardern: 'We must not give up on 1.5'
Today 11:30am
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Former prime minister Dame Jacinda Ardern says the world must not abandon the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C goal, warning that a decade on from COP21 “too many of the debates we thought were settled are still being had.”
'Little to be hopeful about' – NZ scientists caution ahead of COP30
Today 11:30am
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Record heat, worsening climate impacts and global backsliding on emission reduction commitments have left some New Zealand climate experts with little optimism as COP30 approaches.
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.
Air NZ inks deal for its first internationally verified carbon credits
9 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | Air New Zealand has committed to buying 8000 tonnes of carbon removals by 2030, in partnership with local native forest investment platform My Native Forest.
Celebrities slam mining plans
Tue 28 Oct 2025
Actor Sam Neill has slammed plans for a gold mine in Otago, while Denniston Rose author Jenny Pattrick is backing a petition that would stop a coalmine on the West Coast.
Govt launches strategy backing wood-based heat sector
23 Oct 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Forestry biomass could replace as much as 40% of fossil fuel-generated process heat by 2050, but access to supply, regulatory settings and business cases for converting to wood-based heat sources are required, the Government says in a series of documents released yesterday.
Taxonomy seen as key to shaping NZ’s voluntary nature credit market
Thu 30 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Experts say aligning the New Zealand Sustainable Finance Taxonomy with the development of voluntary nature credit markets could strengthen credibility, streamline investment, and support high-integrity environmental outcomes.
Experts say Bill Gates is not a friend to the planet, following recent call to change focus on climate
Today 11:30am
Ahead of COP30, Gates calls for a shift in focus away from near-term emissions goals. Experts say that’s dangerously misguided.
‘Plain old dull’: NZU market continues to limp sideways
24 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | The NZU market has been “plain old dull” in recent months, with activity driven mainly by credit opportunities or a specific need to raise cash, according to Lizzie Chambers of trading platform Carbon Match.
Genesis doubles down on Huntly as renewables ramp up
24 Oct 2025
Genesis Energy is doubling down on Huntly’s role as New Zealand’s energy backstop while accelerating one of the country’s largest pipelines of new renewable generation.
The merchants of doubt are back
3 Sep 2025
OPINION: If you don’t follow climate policy closely, you might not know that the Trump administration is launching an effort to overturn one of the most fundamental pillars of American climate policy.
$235 billion worth of NZ buildings exposed to flooding
Thu 30 Oct 2025
More than 750,000 New Zealanders live in locations exposed to one-in-100-year floods, according to a nationwide study which shows escalating flood risk.
Carbon Finance Program upscales efforts to close climate investment gap in climate vulnerable nations
22 Oct 2025
Media release | The Climate Vulnerable Forum and its V20 Finance Ministers (CVF-V20) will work with the Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative (VCMI) to upscale the Carbon Finance Program in reach and impact, supporting more climate-vulnerable countries to host high-integrity carbon projects that yield tangible climate, nature, and sustainable development benefits.
All carrot, no stick for farmers on methane
17 Oct 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | COMMENT: The abandonment of methane emissions pricing and the adoption of a weaker target is effectively the last nail in the coffin of the historic cross-parliamentary consensus embedded in the Zero Carbon Act 2019.
Lake Onslow battery project set for revival?
Wed 29 Oct 2025
A newly formed private consortium has emerged with plans to finance and build the massive Lake Onslow pumped-hydro project, despite the coalition government’s decision to abandon the scheme.
From nuisance to crisis: New report on pest wasps In Aotearoa
24 Sep 2025
Media release: Moths and Butterflies NZ Trust | Just published is the Final Report of the Pest Wasps Survey carried out by the Moths and Butterflies of NZ Trust (MBNZT) offering a comprehensive look at New Zealanders’ awareness, experiences, and attitudes toward wasps and the growing ecological, health, and social issues associated with them.
Media round-up
Today 11:30am
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: A controversial seabed mining project could lead to sediment flows knocking over rigs and damaging wind turbines; weather-related insurance claims climb; and is the government playing Russian Roulette with our future over methane targets?
NZ marine heatwaves could double in intensity under high-emissions pathway
16 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New projections show marine heatwaves will grow more intense around the North Island and more frequent around the South Island as the climate warms – raising risks for fisheries, aquaculture, coastal ecosystems and tourism.
Oil firm TotalEnergies made misleading green statements, court rules
Tue 28 Oct 2025
A French oil company engaged in “misleading commercial practices” about the scope of its environmental commitments, a court has ruled.
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.”
Developing countries will need US$310 billion annually for climate adaptation by 2035
Today 11:30am
Media release - UN Environment Programme: Slow climate adaptation is threatening lives and economies.
No major banks have yet committed to stop funding new oil, gas and coal, research finds
24 Oct 2025
‘The objectives of the Paris agreement are slipping further out of reach,’ say researchers.
Look out for these 8 big ag greenwashing terms at COP30
Tue 28 Oct 2025
Food and farming companies will claim agriculture is the solution to the climate crisis at the Brazil summit — even though food drives a third of global warming.
Coal imports up 650%
12 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams and Liz Kivi | Coal imports are up 650% as generators stockpile the most polluting fossil fuel ahead of next winter.
Hiringa eyes green methanol plant near Whanganui
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.
Vero warns losses to rise 26% by 2050 over extreme weather
Wed 29 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Extreme weather could drive a 19–26% spike in annual insurance losses by 2050, fuelled by rising seas and more intense flooding, according to Vero’s latest Climate-Related Disclosures Report.
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.
Judge says Greenpeace must pay $345 million in pipeline lawsuit, cutting jury amount nearly in half
Today 11:30am
A North Dakota judge has ordered Greenpeace to pay damages of $345 million, reducing an earlier jury award after it found the environmental group and related entities liable for defamation and other claims in connection with protests of an oil pipeline nearly a decade ago.
Nelson commuters urged to ditch car once a week
22 Oct 2025
By Max Frethey, Local Democracy Reporter | Nelson has a bold carbon emission reduction target and residents are being encouraged to leave the car at home one day a week to help meet it.
Global oil demand won't peak until 2032, Wood Mackenzie report says
Today 11:30am
“Global oil demand will not peak until 2032, two years later than earlier thought, consultancy Wood Mackenzie said in a report on Wednesday that blames continued momentum in the use of hydrocarbons for transport and petrochemicals.”
Govt ‘captured by industry’ on methane – Carr
21 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | Former Climate Change Commission chair Rod Carr says that recent moves to weaken methane targets and halt plans for agricultural emissions pricing show the Government has been captured by industry.
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.
Climate impacts hit NZ with increasing wild weather
23 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand is facing a triple whammy of climate impacts today, with severe winds and rainfall predicted for much of the country while some areas are still dealing with wildfires ignited earlier in the week.
‘Weird and sad’ – Tuvalu Climate Minister condemns NZ halving methane target
15 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | Dr Maina Talia, Tuvalu’s Minister for Home Affairs, Climate Change, and Environment, says he’s surprised at New Zealand’s decision to weaken its target for reducing methane emissions – and is planning to take up the issue with his counterpart Climate Minister Simon Watts this week.
Lobby group launches ‘blueprint’ for ocean management reform
18 Sep 2025
The Environmental Defence Society yesterday released its plan to tackle widespread ecological decline in our oceans.
FMA grants temporary 'no action' relief for for firms set to exit climate reporting regime
Wed 29 Oct 2025
The Financial Markets Authority has announced it won't take action against companies expecting to fall out of mandatory climate reporting obligations, if they fail to lodge climate statements while the law changes are pending.
Judge dismisses suit by young climate activists against Trump’s pro-fossil fuel policies
17 Oct 2025
Plaintiffs had ‘overwhelming evidence’ of climate crisis but a court injunction would be ‘unworkable’, ruling says.
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.
The Yangtze River is becoming the world’s largest electrified trade corridor
Thu 30 Oct 2025
The Gezhouba, a new 13,000-ton all-electric bulk carrier launched in Yichang, is more than a technical milestone. It is a sign that the electrification of inland shipping is moving from concept to inevitability.
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.
Climate scientists and republican lawyers are taking aim at Big Tech’s emissions
17 Oct 2025
Technology companies have long been one of the biggest investors in clean energy, but new accounting rules could upend that.
Last minute change to oil and gas legislation over cleanup costs
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.
How ‘vehicle-to-grid’ technology could boost China’s electricity system
Today 11:30am
China’s surging electric vehicles ownership – now exceeding 25.5m – is opening the door to a new technology that can help to enhance the flexibility of electricity supply.
Fix it, don't ditch it: University of Auckland hosts first Repair Cafe
9 Oct 2025
Media release - Auckland University | The University's first-ever Repair Cafe is bringing students and staff together to give broken items a new lease on life, while promoting a culture of repair and reuse.
Council buys dairy farm to help clean up Lake Rotorua
21 Oct 2025
Bay of Plenty Regional Council has bought a 266-hectare dairy farm in the Lake Rotorua catchment and plans to retire it from production to reduce nitrogen entering the lake.
Adaptation plan at odds with public sentiment: survey
21 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s position on climate adaptation buyouts shows a disconnect with public opinion, according to survey findings from insurer Suncorp NZ.
‘Damp squib’ – Govt energy plan slammed for locking in fossil fuels
2 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Critics across business, climate groups and the opposition say the Government’s electricity reforms duck structural change, double down on LNG and gas, and offer little relief for soaring power prices – warning of an “expensive white elephant", deeper energy poverty and a missed chance to scale renewables.
