Topics tagged with 'Greenhouse Effect'
Climate change threatens Te Puke kiwifruit
15 Sep 2017
The most commonly grown variety of kiwifruit around Te Puke will not be commercially viable in the area by the end of the century, say scientists.
Climate-change baddies doing business in NZ
14 Sep 2017
Companies operating in New Zealand have been named as some of the most obstructive to global action on climate change.
PALMER PRESCRIPTION: Climate needs constitution
12 Sep 2017
If Sir Geoffrey Palmer had had his way, New Zealand would have already cut greenhouse gas emissions by 40 per cent.
What Morgan would have said ... if he'd had the chance
11 Sep 2017
The refusal by TVNZ to include The Opportunities Party in televised election debates does the public a disservice.
THE COUNT: English stays silent
11 Sep 2017
Week 12 of The Count ... and Prime Minister Bill English is still in the starting blocks.
High land prices key blocker to forest planting
7 Sep 2017
New Zealand won’t get more carbon-sequestering forests until land prices fall.
We need to get involved, says Maori candidate
7 Sep 2017
Maori need to get involved in fighting climate change, says Maori Party Kelston candidate Cinnamon Whitlock.
Refrigerant Recovery earns praise
7 Sep 2017
A business initiative that safely disposes of climate-damaging gases from the refrigeration and air conditioning industries has had its accreditation as a product stewardship scheme extended.
CLIMATE CASE: National happy the way things are
6 Sep 2017
National is taking a business-as-usual approach to climate policy, warning that Labour and the Greens would go too far if they got into government.
NZ backs global carbon markets cooperation
5 Sep 2017
New Zealand has signed a statement calling for renewed co-operation on carbon markets.
Greens want high-end wood products industry
5 Sep 2017
The Green Party wants a regional research institute to develop high-value wood products as part of a strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Leaked report lifts lid on coastal property risks
4 Sep 2017
A climate change report the Government didn’t want public yet has been released by the Green Party.
THE COUNT: Peters outpaces Ardern
4 Sep 2017
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has pulled ahead of Labour leader Jacinda Ardern in The Count, but the Greens’ James Shaw is looking unassailable.
BLACK-OUT: What was ministry advice on Kiwirail?
1 Sep 2017
Heavily redacted documents give little clue what advice the Ministry for the Environment gave the Government on the scrapping of KiwiRail's electric engines.
CLIMATE REPORT: What is the Government hiding?
30 Aug 2017
The Government’s refusal to release a report on the impacts of climate change suggests it might contain something politically damaging, says constitutional law expert and former Prime Minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer.
NZ backs global climate research project
30 Aug 2017
New Zealand is supporting a new $400,000 scholarship programme to build global expertise on climate change and food security.
What the parties say about climate change
29 Aug 2017
Three-and-a-bit weeks out from the general election, what do we know about the parties’ approach to climate change?
Climate change no big worry, says Prime Minister
28 Aug 2017
Prime Minister Bill English says climate change is not a major concern for most New Zealanders.
EDITORIAL: Honestly, it just doesn't make sense
25 Aug 2017
By publisher ADELIA HALLETT | A plan to lift the speed limit on some roads to 110 kilometres an hour is the latest example of New Zealand’s lack of joined-up thinking on climate change.
IN THEIR OWN WORDS 2: Renewable energy.
25 Aug 2017
What will the political parties vying to run our country do about renewable energy?
Climate-savvy customers making presence felt
24 Aug 2017
Most New Zealand companies are already being affected by customer demands for environmental sustainability - or expect to feel an impact.
Fossil fuel business cops most blame for methane
24 Aug 2017
The extraction and burning of fossil fuels is responsible for much more methane in the atmosphere than scientists thought, research published today shows.
Brazilian downpours oust familiar drizzle
24 Aug 2017
Misty rain is giving way to fear of flash floods as Brazilian downpours cause chaos in the country’s biggest city.
Researchers to probe rich options for Maori land
23 Aug 2017
Rising carbon prices mean carbon farming, backed by manuka honey production, is becoming a viable use of Maori land, says the head of a Ruatoria charitable company.
Swiss trees swelter as climate warms
22 Aug 2017
Foresters are being urged to plant tree species resilient to climate change to save the timber industry as Swiss trees swelter.
THE COUNT: The Jacinda and James show
21 Aug 2017
It was Jacinda Ardern and James Shaw scoring in The Count last week.
EDITORIAL: Media missing the message
18 Aug 2017
By publisher ADELIA HALLETT | “Climate change is the biggest story on any editor’s news-list right now,” claims a story in the Spinoff this week.
Drought legacy can be a lingering death
18 Aug 2017
A climate hazard that doesn’t disappear when the rainclouds gather, drought’s lingering death can delay recovery a very long time.
Our climate change policy a mess, says former PM
17 Aug 2017
New Zealand’s climate change policy is an “unholy mess” that won’t be fixed if the Cabinet doesn’t want it to be, says former prime minister and constitutional expert Sir Geoffrey Palmer.
Nation's best tell MPs how to do climate change
16 Aug 2017
Eminent New Zealanders backed by 60 NGOs will tell MPs today what they should do about climate change.
Super fund goes 40% low-carbon
16 Aug 2017
Forty per cent of the New Zealand Super Fund is now low-carbon.
Ocean oxygen depletion could happen again
15 Aug 2017
The deep past has cruel lessons for the near future, for example how ocean oxygen depletion can stifle the marine world. It could recur.
Climate change is triple risk to Europe
15 Aug 2017
New studies confirm climate change’s triple risk to Europe. The heat is on, lives are at risk and the floods are arriving earlier.
THE COUNT: Gareth and Jacinda on the board
14 Aug 2017
Three leaders scored points last week in The Count - Carbon News’ tally of the number of times the leaders of political party’s mention climate change in their formal speeches and statements as they seek to become our next prime minister.
Nutrition will suffer as warming affects diet
11 Aug 2017
By 2050, heat waves, floods and other climate change effects won’t be the only worry. There’s also the evidence that warming affects diet.
Emissions group to probe lack of carbon cap
10 Aug 2017
New Zealand’s lack of a carbon cap is one of the issues on the table for the Productivity Commission.
Nature deserves legal rights, say Greens
10 Aug 2017
A Green government would give nature legal recognition.
EDS CONFERENCE: Water, water everywhere
10 Aug 2017
It was freshwater at 10 paces on the first day of the Environmental Defence Society’s Tipping Points conference yesterday, with both National and Labour releasing their policies.
Emissions group might branch into ETS
9 Aug 2017
The Productivity Commission could recommend changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Graham's Globe must survive, says Labour
8 Aug 2017
Labour’s climate spokesperson says the work of the cross-party Globe group on climate change must continue, even if founder Kennedy Graham is out of Parliament.
Stand by, Wellington, worsening weather on the way
8 Aug 2017
More floods in Wellington, more droughts in Wairarapa, more hot days in both places and no frosts in the Tararua Ranges - that’s the picture painted in a new climate change report.
THE COUNT: Jacinda has little effect
7 Aug 2017
New Labour Party leader Jacinda Ardern has mentioned climate change a couple of times in passing, but the greatest issue facing humanity has yet to make it into her formal speeches and statements.
Most want us to show leadership on climate change
4 Aug 2017
Most New Zealanders think the country should be a leader on climate change, with just 8 per cent saying the country should “do a Trump” and pull out of the Paris Agreement, a new survey shows.
More investors will spurn fossil fuels
2 Aug 2017
Oil and gas shares offer diminishing returns, and more investors will spurn fossil fuels, though finding a new home for their money is not easy.
THE COUNT: At last, a leader talks climate policy
31 Jul 2017
Seven weeks out from the general election, we’ve finally got a political leader talking climate change policy – and it’s Winston Peters.
CLIMATE BUDGET: We're not ready, says Bennett
28 Jul 2017
New Zealand isn’t ready for a climate budget, says climate minister Paula Bennett.
To be sure, Ireland's long on words and short on action
28 Jul 2017
There’s no shortage of good intentions in Ireland’s climate plan, but they are too vague to cut emissions significantly.
We need expert climate advice, says commissioner
27 Jul 2017
New Zealand should adopt a UK-style Climate Change Commission and all political parties should support it, says the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.
ETS CHANGES: Good news and bad news
27 Jul 2017
The latest changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme have met with mixed reactions.
Govt acts on auctioning and international units
26 Jul 2017
The $25 price cap is staying for now, but the importation of international units will be restricted when the New Zealand carbon market opens to the world again, the Government has just announced.
Is climate law change a first nail in the coffin for Climate Commission?
Thu 6 Nov 2025
The Government’s sweeping overhaul of New Zealand’s climate laws has drawn sharp condemnation, with one expert predicting it's another step towards 'the beginning of the end' for the Climate Change Commission.
NZ off-track for 2030 methane target
Thu 6 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand is no longer on track to meet its 2030 methane target, according to the Ministry for the Environment.
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.
New Indigenous-led Climate Institute opens at Lincoln University
Thu 6 Nov 2025
Media release | Te Whare Wānaka o Aoraki Lincoln University proudly announces a pivotal new chapter in climate resilience with the establishment of the Kāika Institute of Climate Resilience.
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 tanks off the back of Govt’s proposed climate law changes
Thu 6 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Secondary market prices dropped 20% in early morning compliance carbon trading yesterday, as the market woke up to Tuesday’s late-breaking government announcement of proposed law changes to climate policy.
Solar geoengineering in wrong hands could wreak climate havoc, scientists warn
Thu 6 Nov 2025
Blocking the sun may reduce global heating – but ‘rogue actor’ could cause drought or more hurricanes, report finds.
Another hit to market as Govt uncouples ETS from international climate target
Wed 5 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s surprise move to break the connection between the Emissions Trading Scheme and New Zealand’s Paris Agreement climate target is a brutal hit to confidence in an already moribund market.
Scrutiny on energy security
Mon 3 Nov 2025
A special debate in Parliament put the Government’s energy security agenda under scrutiny, with parties splitting sharply over the role of gas, the place of an LNG import terminal, and how far to push market reform to ease pressure on power bills.
'Little to be hopeful about' – NZ scientists caution ahead of COP30
31 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Record heat, worsening climate impacts and global backsliding on emission reduction commitments have left some New Zealand climate experts with little optimism as COP30 approaches.
$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.
How the US could shape the COP30 climate summit without even being there
Thu 6 Nov 2025
The Trump administration has recently taken aggressive stances to try to influence other countries’ climate policies, mainly by threatening hostile trade measures.
Govt climate policy set by vested interests to delay emissions cuts - Carr
Thu 6 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Rod Carr, former Climate Change Commission chair, says the Government’s move to unlink the Emissions Trading Scheme from our international climate target to 2030 undermines the credibility of emissions pricing as a tool for climate action – and is yet another Coalition Government policy designed to benefit vested interests rather than ordinary New Zealanders.
“Dirty and expensive:” City of Sydney bans gas as it votes to electrify all new big buildings
Thu 6 Nov 2025
The City of Sydney has followed the example of the ACT and Victoria governments and voted unanimously to require all newly built residential buildings, medium to large commercial buildings, hotels, and serviced apartment buildings, to be all-electric.
From nuisance to crisis: New report on pest wasps In Aotearoa
24 Sep 2025
Media release: Moths and Butterflies NZ Trust | Just published is the Final Report of the Pest Wasps Survey carried out by the Moths and Butterflies of NZ Trust (MBNZT) offering a comprehensive look at New Zealanders’ awareness, experiences, and attitudes toward wasps and the growing ecological, health, and social issues associated with them.
How climate change worsens heatwaves, droughts, wildfires and floods
Thu 6 Nov 2025
Many extreme weather events are becoming more common and more intense around the world, fuelled by human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels.
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.
Govt delays will damage carbon market confidence, experts warn
Tue 4 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Emissions Trading Scheme experts have warned the Government that its move to delay decisions on the country’s emissions budgets will further undermine confidence in an already weak carbon market.
Hutt City Council slashes gas emissions
Mon 3 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Hutt City Council is set to cut its gas emissions by 60% by 2026 as it speeds up phasing out fossil fuels from public facilities.
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.”
Bank of England must better address climate risk to tackle inflation
Tue 4 Nov 2025
The central bank is being urged to take a series of actions to better respond to environmental risks.
TotalEnergies loses in Paris court, marking a turning point for fossil fuel truth-in-advertising
Wed 5 Nov 2025
TotalEnergies was found to have misled consumers about its role in the energy transition.
Lake Onslow battery project set for revival?
29 Oct 2025
A newly formed private consortium has emerged with plans to finance and build the massive Lake Onslow pumped-hydro project, despite the coalition government’s decision to abandon the scheme.
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
31 Oct 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: A controversial seabed mining project could lead to sediment flows knocking over rigs and damaging wind turbines; weather-related insurance claims climb; and is the government playing Russian Roulette with our future over methane targets?
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.
Z Energy settles greenwashing case over ‘quitting petrol’ claims
Tue 4 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Z Energy has settled a landmark greenwashing case over claims it misled the public about moving away from petrol – a result Lawyers for Climate Action NZ says delivers long-overdue accountability.
Nelson commuters urged to ditch car once a week
22 Oct 2025
By Max Frethey, Local Democracy Reporter | Nelson has a bold carbon emission reduction target and residents are being encouraged to leave the car at home one day a week to help meet it.
Supermarket fast-track a ‘cynical ploy’, risks climate and environmental protections
Wed 5 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government’s “express lane for supermarkets” announcement has been met with fierce backlash, with critics calling the Fast-track Approvals Amendment Bill a Trojan horse that strips environmental protections, sidelines communities, and hands sweeping powers to ministers at the expense of democracy.
NZ's latest climate target 'weak' – Climate Action Tracker
24 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand's new international climate target to 2035 is weak, and could even allow for higher emissions than the 2030 target, according to a global scientific project that tracks government climate action.
Climate impacts hit NZ with increasing wild weather
23 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand is facing a triple whammy of climate impacts today, with severe winds and rainfall predicted for much of the country while some areas are still dealing with wildfires ignited earlier in the week.
Carbon Finance Program upscales efforts to close climate investment gap in climate vulnerable nations
22 Oct 2025
Media release | The Climate Vulnerable Forum and its V20 Finance Ministers (CVF-V20) will work with the Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative (VCMI) to upscale the Carbon Finance Program in reach and impact, supporting more climate-vulnerable countries to host high-integrity carbon projects that yield tangible climate, nature, and sustainable development benefits.
Lobby group launches ‘blueprint’ for ocean management reform
18 Sep 2025
The Environmental Defence Society yesterday released its plan to tackle widespread ecological decline in our oceans.
Judge says Greenpeace must pay $345 million in pipeline lawsuit, cutting jury amount nearly in half
31 Oct 2025
A North Dakota judge has ordered Greenpeace to pay damages of $345 million, reducing an earlier jury award after it found the environmental group and related entities liable for defamation and other claims in connection with protests of an oil pipeline nearly a decade ago.
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.
Here comes the sun: solar surge gathers pace
Tue 4 Nov 2025
More than $700 million of new solar investment advanced last week, underscoring the pace of the renewable buildout.
AgriZero backs first nitrous oxide solution with $1.2m investment
Thu 6 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | A Kiwi ag-tech start-up developing a device for cows to wear to drastically cut nitrous oxide emissions has secured $1.2 million in government-industry funding.
Solar households to get little-noticed tax break
23 Sep 2025
A provision in the government’s latest tax bill would exempt households from paying tax on income they earn by selling excess electricity back to the grid.
Climate scientists and republican lawyers are taking aim at Big Tech’s emissions
17 Oct 2025
Technology companies have long been one of the biggest investors in clean energy, but new accounting rules could upend that.
Last minute change to oil and gas legislation over cleanup costs
31 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government is expected to repeal the oil and gas ban today, with a last-minute amendment handing discretionary power to two ministers over the controversial issue of decommissioning.
How ‘vehicle-to-grid’ technology could boost China’s electricity system
31 Oct 2025
China’s surging electric vehicles ownership – now exceeding 25.5m – is opening the door to a new technology that can help to enhance the flexibility of electricity supply.
Govt weakens climate legislation, strips CCC’s powers
Wed 5 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government has announced sweeping changes to key climate legislation, including stripping the independent Climate Change Commission of one of its core roles, and removing the requirement that Emissions Trading Scheme settings align with international climate targets.
Fix it, don't ditch it: University of Auckland hosts first Repair Cafe
9 Oct 2025
Media release - Auckland University | The University's first-ever Repair Cafe is bringing students and staff together to give broken items a new lease on life, while promoting a culture of repair and reuse.
Council buys dairy farm to help clean up Lake Rotorua
21 Oct 2025
Bay of Plenty Regional Council has bought a 266-hectare dairy farm in the Lake Rotorua catchment and plans to retire it from production to reduce nitrogen entering the lake.
Adaptation plan at odds with public sentiment: survey
21 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s position on climate adaptation buyouts shows a disconnect with public opinion, according to survey findings from insurer Suncorp NZ.
‘Damp squib’ – Govt energy plan slammed for locking in fossil fuels
2 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Critics across business, climate groups and the opposition say the Government’s electricity reforms duck structural change, double down on LNG and gas, and offer little relief for soaring power prices – warning of an “expensive white elephant", deeper energy poverty and a missed chance to scale renewables.
