Topics tagged with 'Greenhouse Effect'
Australia launches climate change super fund initiative
26 Sep 2008
What the Australian government is calling the world’s most comprehensive initiative designed to assist super funds manage the risks and maximise the opportunities associated with climate change was launched yesterday by Superannuation Minister Nick Sherry.
UK emissions bill about to become law, says minister
26 Sep 2008
The Climate Change Bill introduced by Britain's ruling Labour Party is about to become law, British Secretary of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Hilary Benn said yesterday.
Ban urges faster efforts to expand access to safe drinking water
26 Sep 2008
Warning that a world without water will be very unstable, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon yesterday called for a three-pronged strategy to ensure that the poorest inhabitants of the developing world have access to clean water and basic sanitation within seven years.
Water management leaking through the cracks
26 Sep 2008
A report card on the state of water infrastructure in New Zealand shows that management of one of New Zealand's most valuable assets, water, is only "adequate", at best, and that significant improvements are required to bring New Zealand's water services up to world's best practise.
Key must explain Williamson’s rail comments
26 Sep 2008
Maurice Williamson’s warning that a John Key-led government would not invest any new money in Auckland’s rail system shows National cannot be trusted to keep KiwiRail in Kiwi hands, Finance Minister Michael Cullen said.
Heavy emitters told climate change issues ripe for litigation
23 Sep 2008
It is only a matter of time before a class action is brought against heavy emitters in New Zealand over damage caused by climate change, says Kensington Swan partner Bryan Gundersen.
Market readies as NZUs about to go on line
23 Sep 2008
Excitement is mounting on the trading markets as NZUs (New Zealand units) are about to go live.
Patagonia talks paved way for Poznan, says Parker
23 Sep 2008
Promoting emissions-reducing technologies and making countries accountable for failing to reach reduction targets were two of the issues on the table in high-level talks Patagonia last week, says Climate Change Minister David Parker.
Australian carbon credit price doubles as emissions scheme looms
23 Sep 2008
The price of credits in the Australian carbon market has more than doubled over the past 12 months.
Copenhagen most important meeting since WWII, says Stern
23 Sep 2008
The UN climate change meeting to be held in Copenhagen next year is the “most important gathering since the Second World War”, according to Nicholas Stern, author of the influential Stern Review on the economics of climate change.
UK names date to run first emissions trading auction
23 Sep 2008
The first auction of carbon trading allowances in the United Kingdom will take place on November 18, the British Government has confirmed.
Leading ad agencies join UN in climate change campaign
23 Sep 2008
Nearly two dozen global advertising giants have joined the United Nations in a partnership to support UN-led efforts to reach agreement on slashing greenhouse gas emissions at a major international conference next year in Copenhagen.
Canadians will pay Rwandans to plant trees
23 Sep 2008
A Canadian carbon offset development company plans to invest $US17m on reforestation projects in Rwanda over the next 20 years.
Online calculator gives emissions measure
23 Sep 2008
A new online guide and calculator have been launched to help businesses to measure and cut their emissions - and boost profits.
Our ETS action outstrips nuclear stand, says international expert
19 Sep 2008
New Zealand’s “brave” emissions trading scheme is as significant on the world stage as our 1980s stand against nuclear energy, and could lead to the formation of an Asia/Pacific carbon-trading bloc, says an international climate-change consultant.
National's fisheries policy hooks seafood industry
19 Sep 2008
National’s fisheries policy would leave the industry more than $130 million better off over the first eight years of New Zealand’s emissions trading scheme, the industry says.
Be careful of giving heavy emitters more, Australia told
19 Sep 2008
Australia’s government has been told heavy emitters’ claims for assistance to cushion the impact of that country’s Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme are “highly contestable".
FUTURE AMERICA: What the candidates say about emissions and climate change
19 Sep 2008
U.S. presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain say that if they are elected in November, they will fight global warming by reducing carbon dioxide emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2020, using methods that include a cap-and-trade system.
Cambodia pioneering carbon trading cooperative
19 Sep 2008
With the global carbon trade booming, environmental projects in developing countries have joined forces to finance their poverty reduction efforts by selling carbon credits collectively.
FORUM: Is the door open for a carbon tax?
19 Sep 2008
Kensington Swan energy specialist Bryan Gunderson looks at the impacts of Australia adopting a carbon tax.
Carbon platform eyes start early next year
16 Sep 2008
New Zealand’s carbon platform, TZ1, should be trading by the first quarter of next year.
NZ key player at Patagonia climate change talks
16 Sep 2008
New Zealand is one of a handful of key countries at an international dialogue in Patagonia to guide the development of the post-2012 climate change accord.
Grab the opportunities, UK expert tells our farmers
16 Sep 2008
Significant opportunities will emerge for New Zealand and Australian agriculture to benefit from moves to address climate change, according to a leading international expert in the field.
Carbon trading band-aid solution, report tells Philippines
16 Sep 2008
The Philippines has been told it must not over rely on the carbon credits scheme in pursuing clean energy projects because the scheme is a short-term approach to the problem.
US names climate change, newtech as high security risks
16 Sep 2008
US intelligence agencies in December will brief the new president on new threats to his country - including a list of emerging technologies that will have a major impact on the US and the world.
Dusty Spain to set up climate change research institute
16 Sep 2008
Spain, among the nations in Europe most affected by desertification, will set up a climate change research institute in the northeastern city of Zaragoza.
ETS befuddles business community, poll shows
12 Sep 2008
The emissions trading scheme might be law, but most business people don’t know much about it.
Disappointed farmers vow to fight on ... but how?
12 Sep 2008
Federated Farmers will keep fighting the emissions trading scheme – but isn’t sure what move to take next.
Garrett: Don't tinker with your new ETS law
12 Sep 2008
Australian Environment Minister Peter Garrett has warned New Zealand not to “go tinkering” with its new emissions trading law.
Industry group tries to scrap EU emissions scheme
12 Sep 2008
The European Parliament’s industry committee is trying to ditch the EU emissions trading scheme and to boycott 2020 climate targets, environmental groups said following a vote overnight on how the carbon market should operate after 2012.
Public strongly behind EU policies on climate change
12 Sep 2008
Europeans are highly concerned about climate change and clearly are willing to take action against it.
Britain votes $130 million climate aid for Bangladesh
12 Sep 2008
Britain will give $US130 million dollars to help at-risk Bangladesh to fight the effects of climate change.
Greenhouse gas emissions: What others are doing
12 Sep 2008
Companies and governments, including New Zealand, are turning to emissions trading as a weapon to fight climate change, in a carbon market worth $64 billion last year.
Cool idea: Paint your roof white
12 Sep 2008
If the 100 biggest cities were to whiten the roofs of all of their buildings and use more reflective pavement, the global cooling effect would be huge, a new study has concluded.
Thawed permafrost massive contributor to gas emissions
12 Sep 2008
Permafrost in the Northern Hemisphere contains more than twice the amount of carbon in the atmosphere, and rapid thawing could make it a huge contributor to global climate change.
Go global, UN chief tells students
12 Sep 2008
In an ever increasingly interdependent world, where challenges such as climate change, development and security transcend national boundaries, it is in everyone’s best interest to think globally, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told students at Fairleigh Dickinson University, where the United Nations chief received an honorary degree yesterday.
Google Earth puts you in the cockpit for hotspots flyover
12 Sep 2008
People can “fly” to some of the world’s most dramatic environmental hotspots courtesy of the UN Environment Programme innovative use of the popular mapping tool Google Earth.
REACTION: Greens: ETS a first step, time for some big strides now
12 Sep 2008
The passing of the Emissions Trading Scheme is the first small step towards getting New Zealand’s carbon emissions under control – there is still much work to be done, the Green Party says.
REACTION: National: We will amend flawed ETS
12 Sep 2008
The rushed passage of the Emissions Trading Bill will be a hospital pass for the incoming government, says National’s climate change spokesman, Nick Smith.
Rudd’s carbon scheme leaves early movers exposed
12 Sep 2008
The Australian Federal Government’s proposed Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CPRS) has cast considerable uncertainty over the voluntary carbon market, leaving early movers on carbon reduction exposed, according to a submission on the government’s Green Paper by international professional services company GHD.
Businesses, wake up and smell the carbon
11 Sep 2008
New Zealand business woke up to a new reality today – it’s time to start counting carbon.
Forest owners first to feel effects of ETS
11 Sep 2008
Forest owners will be the first New Zealanders into the emissions trading scheme - with the first entering within 10 weeks.
GOVERNMENT STATEMENT: Historic climate change legislation passes
11 Sep 2008
A cornerstone economic tool will now proceed to help New Zealand reduce greenhouse gas emissions and tackle climate change, Climate Change Minister David Parker says.
REACTION: Thank god that's over, now back to the climate, says Greenpeace
11 Sep 2008
Greenpeace is calling on political parties to outline their future plans for tackling climate change, now the emissions trading scheme has been passed into law.
FORUM: Biochar holds many of the answers for climate change
11 Sep 2008
Biochar technology is an environmental triple-whammy, so why is it under attack? By Dr Peter Read.
Parker hails party leaders for 'great victory' on climate change bill
9 Sep 2008
Prime Minister Helen Clark, Finance Minister Michael Cullen and Agriculture Minister Jim Anderton have played pivotal parts in getting New Zealand’s emissions trading scheme passed, Climate Change Minister David Parker says.
National promises ETS by 2010 - but fails to answer question on cap
9 Sep 2008
National is promising to have an emissions trading scheme in force by 2010.
Displaced islanders again appeal to NZ for help
9 Sep 2008
New Zealand is again being asked to help the people losing their home from rising sea-levels in the wake of the failure of money from Papua New Guinea to materialise.
New courses focus on climate action, activism and creating vision
Fri 12 Sep 2025
Media release | Dark Times Academy’s final lineup of courses for 2025, launching in mid-September, will focus on taking action on climate, learning about practical activism, and creating visions for the future.
A revolution is sweeping Europe’s farms: Can it save agriculture?
Fri 12 Sep 2025
Momentum is building for regenerative agriculture, a set of approaches that could help farms to weather the changing climate and make them more profitable.
NZ needs to be part of a regional SAF strategy: Z, Air NZ
9 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | New Zealand needs to be part of a regional strategic approach to sourcing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), with domestic production less the aim than ensuring access to the fuel from one of a number of strategically positioned bio-refineries around the world.
'Non-negotiable' – EU carbon pricing to hit Kiwi exporters, expert warns
Thu 11 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | High carbon exports will inevitably face a high carbon tax at the EU border, possibly in the next five years, and high methane agricultural products might not be exempt, an international expert told a local audience yesterday.
'Reframe' climate conversations - focus on thriving together, says advisor
Thu 11 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand must mirror its Covid-19 response if it wants to get buy-in from the public on climate action, according to Ministry for the Environment chief advisor Heather Peacocke.
Air NZ declares surprisingly low SAF prices
3 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Air New Zealand is able to source sustainable aviation fuel at between 1.5 and 2.5 times the price of conventional fossil fuels used for flying, all sourced from the US.
No bidders front to carbon auction - again
Wed 10 Sep 2025
By Liz Kivi | Today’s quarterly carbon auction was a non-event yet again, making it the third consecutive auction this year with no bidders, with the secondary market price still limping along at nearly 20% below the auction floor.
Australia’s biggest gas project greenlit to 2070 with ‘partial’ protection for Indigenous rock art
Mon 15 Sep 2025
Approval met with fury from conservation groups and the Greens, who called it a ‘betrayal’ of Australians who want climate action.
'Atrocious' and 'bizarre': experts slam Act Party's climate policy
3 Sep 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Act Party is promising to challenge New Zealand’s Paris Agreement climate target, while the coalition Government’s other minor partner, NZ First, also says it wants to reevaluate the country’s commitment to the international treaty.
Industry struggles with double-digit power price hikes
Mon 15 Sep 2025
As power prices surge by double-digit amounts for the second year in a row, industrial users can’t keep absorbing cost increases, the Major Electricity Users’ Group says.
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.
Milestone for NZ Steel electrification
Wed 10 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | NZ Steel has passed an installation milestone for its new electric arc furnace, which will reduce emissions from the Glenbrook steel mill site by as much as one megatonne (1Mt) a year.
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.”
Wind and solar power fuel over one-third of Brazil's electricity for first time
Mon 15 Sep 2025
Wind and solar power generated more than a third of Brazil’s electricity in August.
Declining sea-ice is altering Antarctic food webs
Thu 11 Sep 2025
A new study shows a significant change in Antarctic phytoplankton over time that could cascade through the marine food web and affect the ocean’s capacity as a carbon sink.
Study links world’s top oil and gas firms to 200 ‘more intense’ heatwaves
Mon 15 Sep 2025
Global warming linked to the world’s biggest oil and gas companies made all “major” 21st century heatwaves more intense and frequent.
Marginal drop in last year's regional emissions
27 Aug 2025
Regional greenhouse gas emissions were down slightly last year, with a fall in gas supply leading to a big drop in Taranaki, but more coal burnt leading to higher emissions in Waikato, according to new figures from Stats NZ
Indigenous forest 'islands' could help transition exotic plantations to native bush
Thu 11 Sep 2025
Native forest 'islands' within exotic plantations might be the key to transitioning plantations from exotic to Indigenous, according to new research.
EU considers faster Russian oil and gas exit after US pressure
Mon 15 Sep 2025
The European Union is considering a faster phase-out of Russian fossil fuels as part of new sanctions.
A modest geothermal strategy
31 Jul 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | The Government has unveiled a far more modest geothermal energy strategy than its primary backer, Resources Minister Shane Jones, had sought.
Why mega-polluters have little to fear from the European Central Bank and its new climate policy
Fri 12 Sep 2025
The European Central Bank plans to raise borrowing costs for climate offenders – but a new FTM analysis shows that big polluters such as Shell will barely feel it.
Media round-up
5 Sep 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: The great methane debate; law change scuppers legal challenge to irrigation scheme consent; and what are the energy and climate implications of the $7.5 billion Amazon Web Services data centre deal?
Coal imports up 650%
Fri 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.
Media round-up
29 Aug 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Changes to road user charges will increase New Zealand's emissions; Climate Change Minister Simon Watts promises better access to hazard data for homeowners; and Kiwis borrow over $1 billion in ‘green loans’ for heat pumps and electric cars.
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.
Apple Watch not a 'CO2-neutral product,' German court finds
28 Aug 2025
Apple can no longer advertise its Apple Watch as a "CO2-neutral product" in Germany, following a court ruling on Tuesday that upheld a complaint from environmentalists, finding that the U.S. tech company had misled consumers.
Forest carbon stores massive blind spot - study
4 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Aotearoa New Zealand’s planted forests hold significant deep soil organic carbon — with over half of it stored below 30 cm, and much of it over 1,000 years old.
Invites-only fast-track for seabed mine slammed as 'rushed, awful'
Fri 12 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | With the wider public shut out of submissions, critics including Te Pāti Māori, Kiwis Against Seabed Mining and Greenpeace say the process strips away robust scrutiny and risks setting a dangerous precedent.
‘Pick up the phone’ on climate change action, Hipkins urges Luxon
9 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should reach out to the Labour Party if he wants get a political deal on methane reductions and the Paris agreement rather than his two coalition partners, Labour leader Chris Hipkins says.
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.
Endeavour Fund research to shape NZ’s future
5 Sep 2025
Media release - New Zealand Government | A project that looks to harness the potential of supercritical geothermal energy is amongst 19 ambitious science programmes the Government is backing, Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Dr Shane Reti and Regional Development Minister Shane Jones announced today.
Watts full-throated in National’s support for Paris
Wed 10 Sep 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts came to this week’s Climate Change and Business Conference with nothing to announce.
Govt resilience plan 'dangerous fantasy' - thinktank
29 Aug 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | An independent thinktank, whose members include former Prime Minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer and multiple academics, is warning that the government’s long-term resilience strategy ignores physical and energy realities and exposes Kiwi households and businesses to systemic failure.
‘Plastic Cup’ competitions are cleaning up rivers in Hungary
1 Sep 2025
Afloat on DIY boats, teams of volunteers have removed over 450 tons of plastic waste from the Danube and its tributaries.
Trump sends fracking CEO to Europe to sell climate denial—and gas
Mon 15 Sep 2025
Debunking some of Chris Wright's most egregious lies.
Underestimating support for climate action limits political decision making, study says
8 Sep 2025
Research reveals huge disparity between perceived and actual willingness of public to contribute to fixing climate.
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.
Media round-up
Fri 12 Sep 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Climate adaptation discussions descended into political squabbling at a recent conference; New Zealand may find itself no longer trusted by allies if it ditches climate goals; and are we living through the fastest energy transformation in human history?
Polar geoengineering ideas 'dangerous'
Wed 10 Sep 2025
Geoengineering will not save the polar regions from catastrophic meltdown, according to an expert.
Climate groups want UK wealth tax to make super-rich fund sustainable economy
17 Jul 2025
Growing number of campaigners urge government to ensure green investment is not done ‘on backs of the poor’.
Ara Ake backs 13 projects to unlock NZ’s energy flexibility
Thu 11 Sep 2025
Media release | Ara Ake has approved over $600,000 in funding from the National Flex Discovery Fund for 13 flexibility service providers (FSPs).
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.
Most EU carmakers on track to meet emission targets: study
Wed 10 Sep 2025
Almost all European carmakers are on track to meet EU emission targets after winning a reprieve this year as electric vehicles (EV) sales pick up, a study showed.
Hotter, longer, more frequent: NZ’s escalating heat risk
26 Aug 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Heat extremes in New Zealand will intensify faster than previously thought, according to a new study.
Echo Tech secures growth investment to tackle NZ's e-waste crisis
Mon 15 Sep 2025
Media release | Echo Tech Limited, New Zealand’s leading provider of e-waste recycling and IT asset recovery services, is proud to announce a strategic investment from growth equity firm Altered Capital.
La Niña set to prolong NZ hydro shortfall
9 Sep 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | With La Niña favouring a drier-than-normal spring across much of the South Island, hydro lakes are unlikely to recover without substantial rain and late snowmelt – keeping national storage levels below average.
Record UK wildfires have burned an area twice the size of Glasgow in 2025
12 Aug 2025
Wildfires have scorched more than 40,000 hectares of land so far this year across the UK – an area more than twice the size of the Scottish city of Glasgow.
Which countries are scaling solar and wind the fastest?
Fri 12 Sep 2025
The leaderboard is quite different depending on what metric you look at.
