Topics tagged with 'Greenhouse Effect'
Support for ETS slumps further, says business lobby
23 Apr 2010
Business support for the Emissions Trading Scheme, due to start for emitters on July 1, appears to have slumped, says the Employers and Manufacturers Association (Northern).
What the emitters and minister are writing to each other
16 Apr 2010
Carbon News has the correspondence between the Climate Change Issues Minister and large emiters on the future of the emissions trading scheme.
Why farming chief is turning his back on $30,000
16 Apr 2010
Federated Farmers boss Don Nicolson says he’s not interested in claiming carbon credits for his forest.
Senators book Earth Day for new energy plan
16 Apr 2010
Senators working on an energy plan for the United States say they are on track to release their proposals on Earth Day, April 22.
Coal the fuel of the future, Congress told
16 Apr 2010
Executives from the world's largest coal companies told Congress yesterday their industry is providing the fuel of the future.
'Climategate' scientists sloppy but not bad
16 Apr 2010
Climate change researchers accused of manipulating or hiding data in last year's "Climategate" affair were guilty of sloppy record-keeping but not bad science, an independent panel in Britain has concluded.
Indecision could fuel huge power price rises
16 Apr 2010
Australians’ power bills are set to treble by 2020 under government policies, yet the country will still fail to meet the government's most cautious emissions targets, one of the country's biggest generators has warned.
Effects of climate change not to be sneezed at
16 Apr 2010
Climate change could push the cost of United States allergies and asthma beyond the current $32 billion annual price tag, according to conservation and health groups.
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.
Tokyo kicks off Asia’s first trading scheme
9 Apr 2010
Plans for a national Japanese emissions trading scheme might still be mired in confusion, but that has not stopped Tokyo winning the race to launch Asia's first carbon trading initiative.
UK poll rivals agree to agree on climate
9 Apr 2010
The three main parties in the UK general election in four weeks agree on at least two things - that humanity is causing global warming and that urgent action must be taken to combat it.
Satellite to check climate change impact on ice
9 Apr 2010
The European Space Agency is launching a satellite that scientists hope will help them to pin down the effects of global warming on the Earth's ice packs more precisely.
Climate scientist Hansen pockets $100,000
9 Apr 2010
American climate scientist James Hansen has won a $100,000 environmental prize for decades of work trying to alert politicians to what he called an unsolved emergency of global warming.
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.
... meanwhile, the clock is ticking for big emitters
1 Apr 2010
Heavy industrial emitters of greenhouse gases have got a month to apply for free carbon credits from the Government.
Kiwi dollars might fund overseas research
1 Apr 2010
Part of the $45 million the Government has pledged to the Global Research Alliance on agricultural greenhouse gas emissions could be spent on research in other countries.
Kiwis sticking to green values, despite recession
1 Apr 2010
Politicians ignore New Zealanders' concerns about the environment at their peril, says the Business Council for Sustainable Development.
Climate change faces the trillion-dollar question
1 Apr 2010
Political and business leaders gather in London today to try to revive the world's faltering challenge to global warming.
We’re too stupid to stop it, says Lovelock
1 Apr 2010
Humans are too stupid to prevent climate change from radically impacting on our lives over the coming decades.
Obama changes mind on offshore oil drilling
1 Apr 2010
US President Barack Obama has unveiled a controversial plan to extend drilling for oil and gas off America's coasts.
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.
Repentant Pachauri slips into neutral
1 Apr 2010
The outspoken chairman of the UN’s climate change body is to adopt a neutral advisory role and has agreed to stop making statements demanding new taxes and other radical policies on cutting emissions.
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.
UK to set up green investment bank
26 Mar 2010
The UK government will set up green investment bank with £2bn of equity to fund low-carbon transport and energy schemes
It’s getting hot in here, weather figures show
26 Mar 2010
The first decade of the new millennium was the warmest on record, the United Nations weather monitoring agency has announced.
Carbon market a no-no, says Democrat
26 Mar 2010
A group of United States senators trying to revive stalled climate-change legislation should abandon a European-style carbon market to win more support, Senator Maria Cantwell, a Washington Democrat, said yesterday.
Don't blame cows for climate change, says scientist
26 Mar 2010
A scientist in the United States has questioned the impact meat and diary production has on climate change and has accused the United Nations of exaggerating the link.
UN launches global gas emissions calculator
26 Mar 2010
The United Nations has launched the first common system of calculating the amount of greenhouse gases produced in a given city.
Meridian to mark Earth Hour
26 Mar 2010
The country’s biggest electricity generator will be turning off the lights at its own premises this coming Saturday as it marks Earth Hour 2010.
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.
Australia and New Zealand Climate Change Business Conference
19 Mar 2010
August 10-12, 2010, Sydney.-The 6th Australia-New Zealand Climate Change & Business Conference will be held at the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre on August 10-12, 2010.
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.
In 10 years, we'll be flying on flax and food scraps
19 Mar 2010
Within 10 years, passenger planes will be flying on jet fuel largely made from flax, marsh grass, and food waste as airlines seek to break away from the oil market and do their part to fight climate change, aviation experts say.
Battle over California climate law takes shape
19 Mar 2010
The campaign to put suspension of California's climate change law before voters in November started taking shape this week as warring parties revealed key sources of funding and traded barbs over the nature of their financial support.
Los Angeles launches green tax on electricity
19 Mar 2010
The city of Los Angeles is introducing a carbon reduction surcharge that will raise $170 million to fight climate change.
Watchdog rules ads overstate climate change risk
19 Mar 2010
Two UK Government adverts which used nursery rhymes to raise awareness of climate change have been banned for overstating the risks, a watchdog has announced.
Arrogance undid Copenhagen summit, says Stern
19 Mar 2010
The "disappointing" outcome of December's climate summit was largely down to "arrogance" on the part of rich countries, according to Lord Stern.
Time to stop pointing fingers, says Maldives
19 Mar 2010
The climate change debate should be reframed in economic and security terms ahead of a year-end UN summit in Mexico seeking a binding climate deal, the president of the Maldives says.
UN chief sees progress toward next talks in Mexico
19 Mar 2010
Countries responsible for more than four-fifths of global emissions of greenhouse gases have now backed the accord that emerged from last year’s climate change summit in Copenhagen, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said yesterday.
EXCLUSIVE: Why it's not worth planting trees
12 Mar 2010
A consultant is calling on the Government to underwrite the risk of accidental harvest of trees and to guarantee forest owners a minimum price for carbon under the emissions trading scheme.
Get wise to green issues, expert tells employers
12 Mar 2010
A ruling by a British judge that environmentalism has the same weight in law as religious and philosophical beliefs should send a warning to New Zealand employers, a local expert says.
Report lists 10 ‘fat cats’ getting rich from carbon
12 Mar 2010
Windfall profits from Europe’s system for trading industrial carbon quotas could discourage big regional polluters from doing anything to curb emissions.
IPCC review scientists won't revisit landmark report
12 Mar 2010
An outside review of the work of the United Nations’ climate change panel will not re-check the body’s controversial latest report but will instead focus on improving procedures for the future.
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.
More Americans stop worrying, poll shows
12 Mar 2010
Americans are less concerned about the threat of climate change than they were two years ago and almost half say the seriousness of global warming is overblown, a Gallup poll shows.
Vietnam to get $790m climate change funding
12 Mar 2010
Vietnam has received $790 million in pledges from donor countries and international organisations to devise measures to cope with climate change and curb carbon emissions.
Registry stays silent on $19m share value drop
5 Mar 2010
The company which bought NZX’s voluntary environmental registry TZ1 is not commenting on a drop in share value.
Marks and Spencer’s big green plan sends a message to Kiwi businesses
5 Mar 2010
A bold new bid by Marks and Spencer to become the world’s most sustainable retailer by 2015 sends an important signal to New Zealand businesses in the export supply chain, says a business lobby group.
UK adviser calls for carbon tax on China
5 Mar 2010
Britain should consider a carbon tax on imports to help struggling manufacturers, according to one of the government's key advisers, despite fears such a measure could lead to a global trade war.
Britain plans soft loans for home efficiency
5 Mar 2010
British households will be able to take out soft loans to improve the efficiency of their homes, under a new proposed law to fight climate change and cut fuel poverty.
Urgent need to rethink tourism says expert
Today 12:00pm
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The post-pandemic recovery has created an urgent need to rethink how tourism operates, who benefits from it, and how it impacts the social and environmental systems it depends on, according to new research.
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.
$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?
Today 12:00pm
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
Wed 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.
Vanuatu’s legal battle against climate superpowers heads to the UN
Today 12:00pm
COMMENT: The United Nations General Assembly upcoming vote responding to the International Court of Justice’s landmark 2025 advisory opinion on climate change could help move climate responsibility from political promise to legal accountability.
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.
Coal pollution is cutting solar power output worldwide, study finds
Today 12:00pm
New research led by the University of Oxford and University College London has revealed pollution from coal-fired power plants is significantly reducing the energy output of solar photovoltaic installations, particularly where these are expanding side by side.
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
Today 12:00pm
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.
Conservation land open for voluntary carbon market schemes
Tue 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.
Natural gas to play key role in strategy to double Canada’s electricity grid by 2050
Today 12:00pm
A new national strategy will double the capacity of the country’s electricity grid by 2050, Prime Minister Mark Carney said as he announced the plan last week.
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.
Future big droughts may be worse than we think – NZ’s past shows why
Today 12:00pm
By Adam Brown, University of Waikato; Dave Frame, University of Canterbury, and Luke Harrington, University of Waikato | For an agricultural nation like New Zealand, severe drought is one of the most ominous consequences of a warming planet.
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
Thu 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.
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.
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.
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.
Methanexit: writing on the wall for NZ’s biggest gas user
6 May 2026
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand’s biggest fossil gas user, Methanex, is expected to stop production by the end of this year, with the company confirming its Motunui methanol operation won’t survive Māui gas field’s closure.
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
Thu 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.
Coal mine challenge reaches Aus High Court
Wed 13 May 2026
What climate change impacts should a planning authority have to take into account when assessing a mining project?
Australian operator to run NZ ETS auctions
11 May 2026
The Government has appointed an Australian company to run its Emissions Trading Scheme auctions, taking over from NZX, which has operated the ETS auctions since they began in 2021.
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.
Deep-sea mining risks biodiversity loss lasting decades, scientists warn
11 May 2026
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The first comprehensive review of deep-sea mining research has found mining could cause ecological damage lasting decades and, in some ecosystems, irreversible biodiversity loss, with New Zealand experts warning the industry poses major risks to fragile ocean environments.
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
Wed 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.
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
Today 12:00pm
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
Thu 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.
Africa secures major clean energy deals as France deepens investment push
Fri 15 May 2026
French and African leaders have announced more than $11 billion in renewable energy investments across Africa, underscoring the continent’s growing importance in the global push for cleaner energy and industrial development.
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.
More red lights for cars might mean more green lights for sustainable transport
7 May 2026
Media release: Royal Society Open Science | Reducing the amount of green light time for cars at traffic lights could encourage commuters to switch to more sustainable transport.
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.
Trump has hindered offshore wind while China and other countries invest heavily
Today 12:00pm
President Donald Trump is stopping offshore wind projects in the United States, just as the industry was poised to grow significantly.
