Topics tagged with 'Greenhouse Effect'
Whitehall issues security warning over changing climate
24 Apr 2008
The international response to climate security threats has been “slow and inadequate” and nations need to integrate climate change into their security policy to prepare for worst-case scenarios, a Whitehall report says.
Blame it all on climate change, says Annan
24 Apr 2008
Former United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan has blamed climate change for a fistful of ills - and hopes world leaders can sort out the problems at an international forum in June.
Charles gets chance to tell it like it is
24 Apr 2008
PRINCE CHARLES next month will get the chance to air the views that have brought him so much criticism over the years when he addresses an audience of top British business people on the issue of climate change.
Deer hunters stalk carbon sink scheme
24 Apr 2008
The Deerstalkers' Association wants to sink a government proposal to wipe out deer from blocks of the Aorangi Forest on the Wairarapa coast.
UN honours climate change ‘trailblazer’ Clark
24 Apr 2008
Prime Minister Helen Clark has been honoured as a Champion of the Earth by the United Nations for her work on climate change.
Green Party pledges to shut Huntly, hobble coal industry
23 Apr 2008
The Green Party is threatening to end thermal coal exports and close the Huntly coal-fired power stations.
ANALYSIS: Potential political fall out from Green’s shock coal policy
23 Apr 2008
The Greens are viewed by many New Zealanders as “extreme” and offering policies which are too restrictive.
UK expert says NZ policy "a brave experiment", warns world not moving fast enough
23 Apr 2008
One of the UK’s leading climate change commentators calls New Zealand’s decision to include agriculture and forest sinks in its emissions trading regime “a brave experiment”.
Small-forest scheme open for business
23 Apr 2008
Applications are now open for the Government's new Afforestation Grant Scheme aimed at getting more trees planted on farms as part of New Zealand's effort to reduce greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
Farmer leader says carbon price restrictions will restrict food production growth
23 Apr 2008
Federated Farmers president Charlie Pedersen says New Zealand farmers are concerned about their ability to farm in a sensible and sustainable way.
Norwegian leader digs deeps to help poor African nation
23 Apr 2008
Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg was quick to put his money where his mouth is after telling a summit of African leaders that the rich countries created the problems of climate change, and the rich countries should bear the responsibility for solving them.
Nashville boffins to probe your carbon footprint
23 Apr 2008
A diverse group of experts has been brought together in the United States to investigate one of the most important and most widely overlooked sources of greenhouse gases: individual behavior.
Polluter California to advise polluted Olympic city
23 Apr 2008
Olympics host Beijing, one of the world’s most polluted cities, is trying to clean up its act with advice from California, one of the world’s largest emitters of greenhouse gases.
Americans say they'll pay 17 to 19% more for green products, services
23 Apr 2008
While consumer spending has fallen in many categories due to a weakened U.S. economy and budget tightening, Americans are still willing to pay more for green products and services, according to a survey commissioned by SCA and conducted by Harris Interactive.
Farming leadership criticised: industry at enormous risk
22 Apr 2008
New Zealand’s former Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment is calling for a radical rethink of our farming sector in the face of potential famine from climate change and world shortages of food, water and good-quality soils.
Climate change 'a problem for now'
22 Apr 2008
New Zealanders in the primary production sector believe that climate change is an urgent problem which needs addressing now.
Parker: No emissions credits for new renewable power plant developers
22 Apr 2008
Climate Change Minister David Parker says those building new renewable power stations won’t be rewarded with extra carbon credits under the proposed emissions trading scheme (ETS).
Wanganui firm pioneering organic engineering parts
22 Apr 2008
A quest to substitute naphtha derived plastic production engineering components for organic ones is under way at Axiam, a Wanganui high precision engineer better known internationally than it is here.
Kiwis dither while Aussie farmers pounce on carbon-trading scheme
22 Apr 2008
While New Zealand farming leaders openly question the existence of climate change, Australian landowners are queueing to join a national carbon-trading programme.
Fewer US citizens expect severe climate change
22 Apr 2008
As the United States gets ready to celebrate Earth Day 2008, attitudes towards global warming are little changed from last year. Sixty-seven percent of Americans believe the activities of human beings are contributing to an increase in global temperatures, according to a survey by Harris Interactive.
New survey captures primary CER prices ranges
22 Apr 2008
IDEAcarbon, one of whose parent company's principals is Lord Nicholas Stern, formerly of the British Treasury and author of the Stern report on climate change economic impacts, has undertaken a survey among buyers and sellers to derive an understanding of primary CER (pCER) price ranges.
Now for the world's first hybrid rubbish truck
22 Apr 2008
Volvo is testing two hybrid refuse trucks in regular daily operations in Sweden by refuse collection firms Renova and Ragn-Sells.
Bottled bio water being sold in Blake's name
22 Apr 2008
The Good Water Project is launching a direct to home and office service water delivery service.
Farm leaders, Agriculture Minister trade words on impact of ETS
21 Apr 2008
A row is brewing over the extent of the impact on farming of the proposed emissions trading scheme.
Farmer leadership slips back into attack on climate change science
21 Apr 2008
Federated Farmers wants the “religion” of climate changed reassessed before an emissions trading scheme is brought in, a stance which has failed to impress the Minister of Agriculture.
Energy’s emissions nearly match agriculture’s
21 Apr 2008
The energy sector is threatening to overtake agriculture as the biggest source of New Zealand’s carbon emissions, the latest edition of the Greenhouse Gas Inventory shows.
Wellington City decides on carbon credit revenue plan from town belts, forests
21 Apr 2008
Wellington City is looking to earn large annual revenues from emission credits by turning its town belts and forests into carbon sinks.
CERs deal to help offset Bell Gully emissions, firm not entering trading market
21 Apr 2008
The first-ever Certified Emissions Reduction units (CERs) to be transferred between two countries are bringing law firm Bell Gully closer to its goal of carbon neutrality.
Parker: Industry protection under ETS being considered
21 Apr 2008
Designing an emissions trading scheme which effectively reduces greenhouse gas emissions while being fair to industry is an important matter which requires careful consideration, Climate Change Minister David Parker says.
Labour’s credibility on climate change dies with latest figures
21 Apr 2008
Figures showing yet another increase in New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions are a fatal blow to the credibility of Labour’s climate change record, says National’s Climate Change spokesperson, Nick Smith.
NZ emissions up .5 million tonnes in 2006
21 Apr 2008
The latest annual greenhouse gas inventory report shows New Zealand’s emissions rose less than 1% between 2005 and 2006.
No proposal for congestion charging in Wellington
21 Apr 2008
Greater Wellington Regional Council has absolutely no proposal for congestion charging, Chair Fran Wilde said today.
US emissions down 1% year-on year, rising lower than economic growth over 16 years
21 Apr 2008
Washington, D.C. - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has released the national greenhouse gas inventory, which finds that overall US emissions during 2006 decreased by 1.1 percent from the previous year.
World ETS expert: global trading needed or ETS unsustainable
21 Apr 2008
The costs of combating climate change are much lower than they might seem, because there are real business opportunities wherever you look, according to Henry Derwent, President and CEO International Emissions Trading Association (IETA).
THE FOOD CRISIS: Long term challenges says Rice
21 Apr 2008
By Merle D. Kellerhals, Jr., Staff Writer,USINFO. Washington - President Bush is seeking an additional $350 million from Congress to provide immediate emergency food assistance, but the current food crisis has long-term global challenges, says Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
Genesis to build new $420m thermal plant unless regulations say not to
18 Apr 2008
The absence of legal definitions of base-load and peaking power supply is behind Genesis Energy’s seeking resource consent for a new thermal power station north of Auckland, the Government’s planned 10-year ban not withstanding.
Bush whacked over climate change goals statement
18 Apr 2008
President Bush’s announcement of a new goal of stopping the growth in GHG emissions has met with a range of reaction, from being described as his “ last gasp?” by Sky News - to simply a statement which will “be soon forgotten”.
Auto industry authority: hydrogen fuel may be viable
18 Apr 2008
BMW says that the influential J.D. "Dave" Power III, founder of J.D. Power and Associates and board member of Fuel Systems Solutions, Inc., is the latest high-visibility eco-friendly ambassador to receive keys to a BMW Hydrogen 7 - the first hydrogen-powered luxury sedan.
ANALYSIS: World food problem: Business as usual not an option
18 Apr 2008
By Lester R. Brown - A fast-unfolding food shortage is engulfing the entire world, driving food prices to record highs.
Conservation Minister to meet Australian colleagues
18 Apr 2008
Conservation Minister Steve Chadwick today travels to Australia to participate in ministerial council meetings and discuss ways that New Zealand and Australian governments will face environmental challenges.
Biofuels target of protests in UK
18 Apr 2008
London - There have been demonstrations in London and groups across the UK also protested against the introduction of mandatory biofuel blending.
Bush sets 2025 as year for nil US emissions growth
17 Apr 2008
US President George Bush this morning announced a new national climate change goal – to stop the growth of US greenhouse has emissions by 2025.
Smith: Government should be ‘up front’ over ETS costs and impacts, criticises 20 day media ban
17 Apr 2008
Opposition climate change spokesperson Nick Smith is urging the Government to come clean and tell the public exactly what advice it has about how much money the Government will make from the auctioning of permits under the proposed emissions trading scheme.
Ministerial press secretaries impose up to 20 day information ban on Carbon News
17 Apr 2008
Two Ministerial press secretaries have said they will restrict the flow of information to Carbon News.
The questions we have asked Minister Parker
17 Apr 2008
Here are the questions Carbon News has asked Climate Change Minister David Parker.
State landlords must go green
17 Apr 2008
Go Green or flag away your state tenants. The massive over-building of state office accommodation in Wellington is designed to ensure that public servants from 2010 onward will toil only in green buildings.
EU officials investigate competitiveness issues arising from ETS plan
17 Apr 2008
European Union (EU) officials from the European Climate Change Programme (ECCP) in the past few days have initiated a program to identify which energy-intensive industries might need protection as a result of the EU's recently proposed tougher greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions controls.
Nelson voluntary offset trader launching in Australia, UK
17 Apr 2008
Offset the Rest, a New Zealand organisation that sells voluntary offset carbon credits, plans to launch into the UK and Australia next month.
ANALYSIS: High hopes for the Lieberman-Warner ETS bill in the US
17 Apr 2008
By Emily Farnwort. - The °Climate Group recently held its first North American members meeting with attendance from over 50 leading businesses, states and cities. The conversation was centered on action from the US on climate change. It was a far-ranging and optimistic conversation with a striking focus on the need for leadership and a robust carbon market.
Who's the Green Car Maker of the Year?
17 Apr 2008
Citroën has been named as the Green Car Maker of the Year and its award-winning people mover, the Citroën C4 Picasso, has been named for the second year running as the Diesel People Mover of the Year in the annual 'What Diesel Car?' awards.
Ticking time-bomb in Govt’s failure of leadership on climate – Carr
Today 11:15am
By Liz Kivi | The coalition Government’s failure to slash emissions is like pulling the pin on a grenade, handing it to a kid, and saying “hold on tight, she’ll be right”, says former Climate Change Commission chair Rod Carr.
Trans-Tasman ministers push climate cooperation amid NZ retreat from climate commitments
Mon 8 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Last week's 2+2 Climate and Finance Ministers’ Dialogue in Auckland urged deeper trans-Tasman climate cooperation, despite New Zealand’s recent moves to weaken climate policies.
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.
Second fire tears through Tongariro National Park
Today 11:15am
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Fire crews have returned to Tongariro National Park this morning as a fast-moving fire that started yesterday threatens unburnt vegetation and nearby communities, just a month after a major blaze scorched 3000 hectares in the same area.
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.
Carbon market conduct pioneer passes on the baton
Mon 8 Dec 2025
Media release | The International Carbon Reduction and Offsetting Alliance (ICROA), a pioneer in early voluntary carbon market conduct, has announced that it will wind down operations by late 2026.
Seven EU countries pressure European Commission to rethink 2035 diesel and petrol car ban
Today 11:15am
Pressure from EU countries, lawmakers and the automotive industry is likely pushing the European Commission to delay the revision of the bloc's ban on diesel and petrol cars by 2035.
Carbon auction tipped to be a non-event
2 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | Tomorrow’s Emissions Trading Scheme auction is all but certain to fail, with participants blaming the government for destroying confidence as NZUs continue to change hands on the secondary market at a 40% discount on the $68 auction floor.
KiwiRail pauses coal trains amid rising climate protests
Today 11:15am
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.
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.
$235 billion worth of NZ buildings exposed to flooding
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.
Al Gore's case for optimism
Mon 8 Dec 2025
This year’s United Nations climate summit in Belém, Brazil had everything: A literal flood, a literal fire, a record-breaking 1,600+ fossil fuel lobbyists, and delegates from oil-producing nations working overtime.
Govt ‘scaremongering’ over co-operation – former climate ambassador
Fri 5 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand’s former top climate diplomat, Kay Harrison, says the Government’s recent comments ruling out buying climate mitigation offshore amount to scaremongering, and the country is missing a chance to give our businesses a boost.
What Victoria auditor-general's report actually says about so-called 'transition chaos'
Mon 8 Dec 2025
Mainstream media loves a electricity blackout scare, but in the wake of this week’s report from the Victorian auditor-general on the state of the state’s transition to renewables, the headline hysteria hit new heights.
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.
Politicians in South-East Asia ignore climate change at their own political peril
Today 11:15am
Anger and frustration are growing in devastated communities, as governments botch their response to the climate crisis.
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.
Uncertainty eroding confidence in forestry sector
Fri 5 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Warnings are mounting that tree planting is set to plunge to “very close to zero”, as new Ministry for Primary Industries data shows ETS registration applications falling sharply as confidence in forestry declines.
Media round-up
Fri 5 Dec 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Labour’s chronic evasiveness as the Government reneges on climate change; newly released documents reveal the country's new methane target is associated with 'perilous' 2.7C of warming; and New Zealand's 'pitiful' decision on emissions targets comes with costs.
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.”
Analysis: Why COP30’s ‘tripling adaptation finance’ target is less ambitious than it seems
Fri 5 Dec 2025
One of the headline outcomes to emerge from COP30 was a new target to “at least triple” finance for climate adaptation in developing countries by 2035.
TotalEnergies loses in Paris court, marking a turning point for fossil fuel truth-in-advertising
5 Nov 2025
TotalEnergies was found to have misled consumers about its role in the energy transition.
Tribunal warns govt geothermal strategy risks Treaty breach
2 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The government's geothermal development strategy risks breaching the Treaty of Waitangi, according to a report from the Waitangi Tribunal released last week.
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.
NZ’s rejection of emission targets fuels risk of international law breach
Mon 8 Dec 2025
By Karen Scott, Professor in Law, University of Canterbury | The New Zealand government’s decision this week to reject all of the Climate Change Commission’s emission target recommendations was just the latest in a string of policy statements that weaken the country’s action on climate.
NZ fails to back ‘roadmap’ to phase out fossil fuels at COP
24 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Eighty-six countries including Australia, the UK, Germany, and Ireland backed a proposal at COP30 for national plans on how to quit oil, gas and coal – but New Zealand wasn’t one of them.
Hello, foreign oligarchs and corporations! Please come and sue the UK for billions
Wed 3 Dec 2025
COMMENT: The case of a planned Cumbrian coalmine shows how governments around the world are being threatened by litigation in shadowy offshore courts.
Govt's emissions ‘buffer’ an illusion with all NZ's carbon budgets off track
28 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Dr Christina Hood, head of consultancy Compass Climate, says the Government’s claim that New Zealand has a comfortable emissions “buffer” to absorb higher agricultural pollution is misleading, with projections showing emissions budgets are actually set to be missed in real terms.
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.
Storms in the Southern Ocean are producing more rain – and the consequences could be global
Mon 8 Dec 2025
Storms in the Southern Ocean influence weather patterns across Australia, New Zealand and the globe.
Govt rejects advice on international aviation and shipping emissions
Thu 4 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government has rejected all the Climate Change Commission’s recommendations to strengthen emissions targets.
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.
Govt green lights rural recycling scheme
Thu 4 Dec 2025
The Government has approved new regulations to bring rural waste schemes under one unified framework.
Govt to unveil RMA replacement as summer looms
Mon 8 Dec 2025
The last session of Parliament for the year begins this week, and the Government is expected to introduce the legislation that will replace the Resource Management Act.
Shipping movements disrupted as climate change protesters block coal ships
2 Dec 2025
NSW police have arrested 141 people who attempted to block the shipping channel in Newcastle Harbour during Rising Tide protests, which began on Thursday.
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.
Rare win for renewable energy: Trump administration funds geothermal network expansion
Fri 5 Dec 2025
A first-in-the-nation heating and cooling network in Massachusetts is set to double in size.
Southland's waters warming faster
Mon 8 Dec 2025
Matthew Rosenberg, Local Democracy Reporter | Waters are warming in Murihiku Southland at higher rates than elsewhere, with implications for fisheries and habitats.
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.
Pollution from coal plants was dropping. Then came Trump and AI.
1 Dec 2025
Data centres’ hunger for electricity is prompting some states to keep their coal-burning power plants from closing – while DC relaxes air pollution limits.
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.
Spain announces $1.5 billion package to boost electric vehicle market
Fri 5 Dec 2025
Spain's plan includes 400 million euros in direct subsidies in 2026 for consumers to buy EVs.
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.
Study provides a step-change in understanding NZ’s groundwater
28 Nov 2025
Media release | Earth Sciences New Zealand has developed a world-first National Groundwater Age Map and a powerful suite of tools to support the sustainable management of our hidden groundwater resources, from national through to local scales.
Wildfires destroy 40 homes and kill a firefighter in Australia
Today 11:15am
There were 52 wildfires burning across New South Wales on Monday and nine remained out of control. A total of 20 homes had destroyed over the weekend in that state.
NZ’s energy system at a crossroads – report
21 Nov 2025
A new report says New Zealand’s rapid shift toward a 95% renewable electricity system is at a critical turning point, urging faster consenting, stronger firming solutions and better grid planning.
