Topics tagged with 'Greenhouse Effect'
Climate change will impact mountains on a global scale
16 Dec 2022
According to research, climate change will have a severe effect on mountain landscapes and human activities, increasing the likelihood of avalanches, river floods, landslides, debris flows, and lake outburst floods.
Wellington’s emissions down nearly 10% since 2020
15 Dec 2022
Wellington’s emissions have dropped by 9% since 2020, according to the latest data.
Final July and August extreme weather claims top $123 million
15 Dec 2022
Media release | Final claims data released by the Insurance Council of New Zealand Te Kāhui Inihua o Aotearoa (ICNZ) show that extreme weather-related claims spanning five events across July and August has reached 11,086 claims valued at $123.8 million.
Climate change will fuel humanitarian crises in 2023: study
15 Dec 2022
Climate change will accelerate humanitarian crises around the world in 2023, adding to the issues created by armed conflict and economic downturns, according to a study by the NGO International Rescue Committee (IRC).
G7 sets out terms for global ‘climate club’
14 Dec 2022
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz presented the long-awaited terms for his ‘climate club’, a platform for countries wishing to protect the climate. However, it may be overshadowed by similar initiatives recently announced.
Large wild herbivores may help slow climate change
14 Dec 2022
Large animals, especially herbivores such as elephants, are often seen as being destructive of vegetation, so are not thought of as a nature-based climate solution. Scientists are proving otherwise.
Air travel emissions in Norway are double the global average
14 Dec 2022
Emerging research suggests that greenhouse gas emissions from Norwegian air travel are twice as high as the worldwide average.
Climate change is driving millions to the precipice of a ‘raging food catastrophe’
12 Dec 2022
In the Horn of Africa, a climate change-induced drought is exposing cracks in the global food system and pushing humanitarian aid to a breaking point.
New abnormal: climate disaster damage 'down' to $268 billion'
12 Dec 2022
This past year has seen a horrific flood that submerged one-third of Pakistan, one of the three costliest U.S. hurricanes on record, devastating droughts in Europe and China, a drought-triggered famine in Africa and deadly heat waves all over.
How states are getting tougher on climate protesters
12 Dec 2022
Blocking roads and runways has been divisive, and some countries are taking a hard line against further disruptions.
Climate change stokes new norm of extreme Australia weather
12 Dec 2022
Extreme weather events such as bush fires and flooding are set to become the norm in Australia, a new report shows.
Best by the rest...
9 Dec 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in local media: Stuff's Christmas-themed Forever Project magazine is out, featuring an interactive story on the climate impact of food; NZ farmers' global customers demand more climate action; and a booming Nelson ebike company may soon be sending up to 35,000 bikes a year overseas.
Rising temperatures causing distress to foetuses: study
9 Dec 2022
Rising temperatures driven by climate breakdown are causing distress to the foetuses of pregnant farmers, who are among the worst affected by global heating.
International biodiversity conference must lead to law reform in NZ: expert
8 Dec 2022
New Zealand must do more than simply participate at Montreal’s UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15) taking place this week - any agreements must translate to law and policy reform here, according to a local expert.
New marine research and education facility for Tauranga brings climate into focus
8 Dec 2022
A newly approved marine research and education facility for Tauranga will support study into Aotearoa New Zealand’s marine environment and the effects of climate change.
Egypt’s Great Pyramids and the Sphinx could be lost to climate change: experts
8 Dec 2022
Egypt’s world-famous antiquities, including the Sphinx and the Great Pyramids of Giza, could be lost to climate change by the end of the century, experts warn.
The 30% goal: is bigger always better for biodiversity?
8 Dec 2022
The UN biodiversity conference now meeting in Montreal is considering a proposal to commit to putting 30 percent of land and sea under protection by 2030. Some ecologists warn that focusing too much on the size of protected areas risks missing what most needs saving.
Climate foes push Great Reset conspiracy theory
7 Dec 2022
People being forced to eat bugs. Confiscated cars. Cities going dark as electric lights are turned off. Climate lockdowns. Welcome to the conspiratorial world of the “Great Reset” theory.
The UN says new biodiversity credits can succeed where carbon offsets have failed
6 Dec 2022
The United Nations supports biodiversity credits as a way to boost funding for conservation efforts, but critics warn that the new financial instrument could give companies another tool to burnish green credentials without changing the way they do it do business, change.
Half of Australia’s biggest companies have net-zero emissions plans, but climate action may come too late
6 Dec 2022
About half of Australia’s biggest listed companies have plans to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, new analysis has found.
Marine heatwave developing
5 Dec 2022
Media release - Coastal waters around Aotearoa New Zealand became unusually warm last month, say NIWA.
Climate change amplifies risk of ‘insect apocalypse’
2 Dec 2022
For most of us, the world’s insects are doubly vital to our well-being, a growing body of research is finding. But warnings by scientists of a probable insect apocalypse are steadily growing more frequent and urgent.
Earth Is “unequivocally” in midst of climate emergency: scientists
1 Dec 2022
The Earth’s vital signs have deteriorated to the point that “humanity is unequivocally facing a climate emergency,” according to a study recently released by a worldwide coalition of scientists.
How an early oil industry study became key in climate lawsuits
1 Dec 2022
For decades, 1960s research for the American Petroleum Institute warning of the risks of burning fossil fuels had been forgotten. But two papers discovered in libraries are now playing a key role in lawsuits aimed at holding oil companies accountable for climate change.
An ecological rule breaker shows the effects of climate change on body size
30 Nov 2022
The Northern Treeshrew, a small, bushy-tailed mammal native to South and Southeast Asia, defies two of the most widely tested ecological “rules” of body size variation within species, according to a new study coauthored by Yale anthropologist Eric J. Sargis.
More flash floods set to hit Greater Wellington due to climate change
29 Nov 2022
A new report paints an alarming picture of climate impacts for Greater Wellington, with damaging downpours and potential floods becoming increasingly frequent, and seasonal rainfall likely to increase by up to 16% in some areas.
New game to help Kiwis adapt to sea level rise
28 Nov 2022
Media release: NIWA | A new online game is being used to help New Zealanders think about how they might adapt to rising sea levels.
Civil disobedience only way to protest climate change: French activists
28 Nov 2022
While some climate activists have been throwing food at famous paintings, a French group has been shutting down roads. Their acts of civil disobedience have drawn anger and criticism, but they say it is the only way to get people to pay attention to what they see as an existential threat.
New Zealand’s climate goals “highly insufficient”
25 Nov 2022
New Zealand’s climate goals have rated poorly again in comparison with other G20 countries, with international organisation Climate Action Tracker rating the country’s emissions reduction efforts "highly insufficient".
Climate extremes hitting Australia, more intense weather to come
25 Nov 2022
Global warming is leading to more extreme weather in Australia, like the ongoing flooding in the southeast — and these extremes are happening at an increased pace across the country, per a new climate report.
7 in 10 young people are worried about the climate crisis - but they also want to make a difference
25 Nov 2022
More than two thirds of children between the ages of seven and twelve are worried about climate change, a new survey reveals.
Kāpiti residents campaign to restore peat wetlands
24 Nov 2022
Kāpiti residents are campaigning to restore a 28 hectare site to wetlands, saying it has the potential to prevent tonnes of CO2 entering the atmosphere.
Court finds Climate Change Commission was correct in its NDC calculations
23 Nov 2022
In a long-awaited decision, the High Court has ruled against a claim by Lawyers for Climate Action NZ (LCANZ) that the Climate Change Commission made a mathematical error leading it to over-estimate the amount of C02 New Zealand could emit in its Nationally Determined Contribution.
How to move a country: Fiji’s radical plan to escape rising sea levels
22 Nov 2022
The government of Fiji makes a daunting plan to move communities in villages that have been gravely affected by the harsh impacts of the climate crisis even though many are hesitant to leave their homes.
Best by the rest...
18 Nov 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in local media: Dairy land is being converted to other uses at a rate of 1% a year; more of our last remaining wetlands are at risk of wildfire due to climate change; and forestry is once again at the heart of discussions surrounding New Zealand's future.
Experts blame climate change for West Africa flooding
18 Nov 2022
An international team of scientists believe severe flooding in Nigeria and surrounds was considerably worsened by climate change and believe the trend could continue.
Turkey’s climate plan points to 32% rise in emissions by 2030
17 Nov 2022
Turkey pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 41% in 2030, compared with its business-as-usual scenario, according to a new climate plan submitted to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Climate activist blasts leaders holding onto fossil projects
16 Nov 2022
Ugandan climate activist Vanessa Nakate slammed world leaders Tuesday who persist in backing new fossil fuel projects despite science warnings that this will push temperatures across the planet to dangerous highs.
Is population growth fuelling climate change? It’s not that simple: experts
16 Nov 2022
Climate change and population crowding might seem like two issues that are strongly linked - and they are, but not quite as much as people might think, experts say.
Consultation on reducing the environmental impact of fluorinated gases
15 Nov 2022
The Ministry for the Environment is consulting on steps to reduce emissions caused by potent greenhouse gases found in heating and cooling products.
Global carbon emissions at record levels with no signs of shrinking, new data shows
14 Nov 2022
Global carbon dioxide emissions from all human activities remain at record highs in 2022, and fossil fuel emissions have risen above pre-pandemic levels, according to a new analysis by an international body of scientists.
Belching lakes, mystery craters, ‘zombie fires’: How the climate crisis is transforming the Arctic permafrost
14 Nov 2022
Four years ago, Morris J. Alexie had to move out of the house his father built in Alaska in 1969 because it was sinking into the ground and water was beginning to seep into his home.
Best by the rest...
11 Nov 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in local media: The National Party say they will repeal the offshore oil and gas exploration ban if elected next year; concerns raised on environmental impacts of international productions filmed in New Zealand; and should Australia be hosting UN climate talks with Pacific Nations in 2026?
Climate mitigation expert pessimistic about COP27
8 Nov 2022
A leading New Zealand sustainable energy and climate mitigation expert is pessimistic about COP27, fearing that delegates will not make enough progress on crucial issues where urgent action is already long overdue.
NZ risks losing its standing in the Pacific due to lack of ambition at COP27: expert
7 Nov 2022
A climate diplomacy historian is disappointed with Aotearoa New Zealand’s lack of ambition for COP27, which started in Egypt yesterday, and says the country risks losing its standing in the Pacific.
Climate change much deadlier than cancer in some places, UNDP data shows
7 Nov 2022
Media release: UN News | The impact of climate change on health if carbon emissions remain high, could be up to twice as deadly as cancer in some parts of the world, according to new data released on Friday by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the Climate Impact Lab.
Best by the rest...
4 Nov 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in local media: Climate Change Minister James Shaw blames court delay for inaction on tougher climate pledge; could fermentation replace conventional farming to reduce NZ's emissions? and journalist Marc Daalder argues we shouldn't give up on limiting global heating to 1.5C.
COP27: What have global leaders done on climate change in 2022?
4 Nov 2022
Last November global leaders met at the UN climate summit COP26 in Glasgow to agree next steps to tackle climate change. But climate experts have told the BBC that progress in 2022 has been slow - with governments around the world distracted by global energy and financial crises.
Australia’s carbon report card smeared in red ink as climate action goes backwards
4 Nov 2022
A global report card has marked Australia’s climate action with swathes of red ink, saying the country has not only increased fossil fuel subsidies but gone backwards on climate-risk disclosure policies.
Environmental ruling hits Europe’s largest carbon sequestration scheme
4 Nov 2022
The Netherlands’ highest administrative court yesterday ruled that construction projects will in future have to take into account the amount of nitrogen they emit.
Farm-level emissions cuts possible, but almost everything stands in the way
Thu 18 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Progress to slash farming emissions is being blocked by limited farmer confidence in mitigation tools, inconsistent engagement, misinformation and a lack of clear policy signals, according to a new report.
State-owned farmer drives profit growth with emissions reductions
Fri 19 Dec 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Government-owned Landcorp, trading as Pāmu, is one-third of the way to meeting its 2031 emissions reduction targets, with five years left to run to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 30.3% against 2021 emissions.
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.
‘Cali Fund’ aiming to raise billions for nature receives first donation – of just $1,000
Tue 16 Dec 2025
A major biodiversity fund – which could, in theory, generate billions of dollars annually for conservation – received its first donation of just $1,000 in November.
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.
Climate law change spanner in the works for Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry
Fri 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.
Seven quiet wins for climate and nature in 2025
Fri 19 Dec 2025
This year's environmental backdrop is familiar: emissions are rising and nature is continuing to decline. But there have nevertheless been bright spots in 2025.
Govt unveils plans for carbon storage regulations – and ETS rewards
Thu 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.
Global coal demand hit record high this year but is set to decline by 2030
Thu 18 Dec 2025
Global coal demand reached a record high in 2025 but is expected to decline by 2030 as renewables, nuclear power and abundant natural gas squeeze its dominance in power generation.
Investors must support positive climate-tech
28 Nov 2025
OPINION: We need better leadership than the current ‘climate opportunism’ that is rife in the Beehive, and we need to back a marketplace that will make it happen, writes Rob Campbell.
RMA’s successors hinge on two untested bets
Wed 17 Dec 2025
Two ideas sit at the heart of the Government’s replacement for the Resource Management Act: regulatory relief and spatial planning.
India at COP30: A mismatch between grandstanding and climate action
11 Dec 2025
Despite India’s attempt to anoint itself as the leader of the developing world, at the COP30 summit, New Delhi’s track record remains contradictory.
Govt warned that scrapping ag emission pricing comes with risks
11 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s move to halt plans for agricultural emissions pricing without replacing it with any other action will leave New Zealand facing a bigger gap to meet its third emissions budget, Environment ministry officials have warned.
NZ hydrogen regulation to catch up with the world
Thu 18 Dec 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | The government has announced a regulatory reset for New Zealand’s emerging clean tech hydrogen sector.
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.
Pacific climate response in question as NZ finance remains unclear
Fri 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.
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.
Hydrogen emissions are ‘supercharging’ the warming impact of methane
Fri 19 Dec 2025
The warming impact of hydrogen has been “overlooked” in projections of climate change, according to authors of the latest “global hydrogen budget”.
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.”
Westpac NZ announces partnership to form Blue Economy hub in Nelson
Wed 17 Dec 2025
Media release | Westpac NZ has announced a new three-year partnership with the Nelson Regional Development Agency and Kernohan Engineering to help accelerate the development of a sustainable marine economy – also known as the blue economy.
Govt slammed for weakening methane target
Mon 15 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams The Government has pushed through legislation under urgency to almost halve New Zealand’s 2050 methane target – a move Opposition parties say disregards scientific advice, breaks the country’s hard-won political consensus on climate action, and shifts the burden of higher warming and higher future costs onto the next generation.
COP30 microcosm of difficult geopolitics, says Vanuatu's Climate Minister
Mon 15 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | Despite ‘intransigent’ states blocking multilateralism and a disappointing official outcome, Vanuatu’s Climate Change Minister Ralph Regenvanu says he left the COP30 climate summit feeling more positive than after previous UN climate conferences.
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.
Insurers welcome govt decision to keep NHC levy unchanged
21 Nov 2025
Media release |The Insurance Council of New Zealand | Te Kāhui Inihua o Aotearoa (ICNZ) has welcomed the Government’s decision to leave the Natural Hazards Commission levy unchanged, amid ongoing concerns around the cost-of-living.
Why I’m not outraged at the Govt’s latest climate backsliding
7 Nov 2025
COMMENT: The Government’s latest climate rollbacks underline New Zealand’s long history of a lack of genuine desire to cut emissions, writes Geoff Bertram.
Three Greenpeace activists removed by police from Fonterra
Wed 17 Dec 2025
Media release | Three Greenpeace activists were removed by police from Fonterra’s downtown Auckland offices, following a protest on Monday at the Shareholders’ Fund meeting over the corporation’s role in the contamination of rural communities’ drinking water.
NZ ‘clearly’ breaching international law on climate – Vanuatu Climate Change Minister
12 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | Vanuatu’s Climate Change Minister, Ralph Regenvanu, says New Zealand restarting fossil fuel exploration and subsidies is an obvious breach of international law, exposing the country to international and domestic litigation.
Wetlands and biodiversity at risk as mining rules loosen: Greenpeace
Fri 19 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Greenpeace says Government changes to national direction instruments under the RMA paves the way for mining in wetlands and biodiversity hotspots and will expose some of Aotearoa’s most fragile ecosystems to irreversible damage.
NZ could become ‘dumping ground’ for dirty vehicles: Commissioner
Tue 16 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | Simon Upton, Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, has warned the Government that its changes to the clean car standard could turn the country into a dumping ground for high emitting cars, making future emissions budgets harder to achieve.
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.
Offshore windfarms enhance function of coastal waters and diversity of aquatic life
Fri 19 Dec 2025
Media release | A study conducted by researchers from Murdoch University in Australia and Dalian Ocean University in China has found that offshore windfarms can improve marine ecosystems and diversify aquatic food chains.
‘A shift no country can ignore’: where global emissions stand, 10 years after the Paris climate agreement
Tue 16 Dec 2025
The watershed summit in 2015 was far from perfect, but its impact so far has been significant and measurable.
Govt consulting on Pacific Resilience Facility
12 Dec 2025
The Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee is calling for submissions on its international treaty examination of the Agreement to Establish the Pacific Resilience Facility.
Govt green lights rural recycling scheme
4 Dec 2025
The Government has approved new regulations to bring rural waste schemes under one unified framework.
KiwiRail pauses coal trains amid rising climate protests
9 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Climate activists are ramping up actions this week, with a Christchurch protest leading to KiwiRail pausing some coal train operations on Saturday, and another protest against the Fast-Track Amendment Bill planned for parliament today.
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.
Could tidal energy one day power NZ?
Thu 18 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New research suggests Aotearoa holds some of the world’s strongest tidal-stream energy potential – enough to generate up to 93% of today’s electricity use – but one expert cautions that extracting energy at such a scale could have significant impacts and remains highly uncertain.
NZ could lose nearly all glaciers this century without stronger climate action
Tue 16 Dec 2025
New Zealand could see 97% of its glaciers vanish by 2100, with new international modelling projecting a rapid acceleration in glacier extinction from the 2030s onward – even under lower-warming scenarios.
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.
Oil and gas majors would create $78bn more value by stopping exploration
11 Dec 2025
Media release | Ten of the world’s largest oil and gas companies would create significantly more shareholder value by ending exploration and sharply curtailing upstream development, according to new analysis released today by ACCR.
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.
The surprisingly convincing case against cars
Fri 19 Dec 2025
Life After Cars dares to imagine how different, and enriching, a car-free world could be.
Kaicycle celebrates ten years of collective climate action in Pōneke
14 Nov 2025
Media release: Kaicycle | Since 2015, Kaicycle has grown from a humble pilot project growing kai and collecting compost on bicycles into the thriving urban farm and composting hub that Wellingtonians know and love.
Heatwaves, downpours and droughts – Auckland on track for more extreme weather
1 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New projections show Auckland will face more heatwaves, heavier downpours, worsening droughts and growing coastal threats as climate extremes intensify, according to a new report from Earth Sciences New Zealand.
NZ just had its hottest spring in at least 116 years
10 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | This year New Zealand had its hottest spring since records began, with widespread heat, rainfall extremes and destructive wind driven by sudden stratospheric warming.
Media round-up
12 Dec 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Another offshore wind firm exits New Zealand over a clash with seabed mining; Fonterra falls behind on its climate goals as farm emissions remain flat; and the businesses trapped by the gas 'death spiral'.
