Topics tagged with 'Greenhouse Effect'
Fiscal risk of climate change is in the trillions
5 Apr 2016
Nearly $NZ35 trillion worth of global financial assets could be at risk from climate change, a new report is warning.
GET WISE! We have a real carbon exposure risk
5 Apr 2016
New Zealand has a carbon exposure risk whether it likes it or not, says business commentator Rod Oram.
Labour MP: Leaving overstayers here will help sinking islands
5 Apr 2016
New Zealand should let overstayers from Pacific countries which are becoming uninhabitable stay here, says Labour’s Pacific climate change spokesperson.
Air NZ emissions move wins global support
5 Apr 2016
Air New Zealand’s move to offset greenhouse gas emissions from its aircraft by supporting the restoration of native forests is picking up international momentum.
GM crops can thrive as climate warms
5 Apr 2016
Plants genetically modified to take advantage of hotter temperatures and increased carbon dioxide could cut fertiliser use and raise yields to alleviate global food shortages.
Businesses don't get it, says Bloomberg group
4 Apr 2016
Disclosure of the risks companies face from climate change is fragmented and incomplete, the G20’s Taskforce on Climate-Related Disclosure says in its first report.
SEA-LEVEL WARNING: The Government won't listen
4 Apr 2016
New research suggesting that sea-level rise could be faster and more extreme than currently expected means that a task force to analyse the risk for New Zealand makes even more sense. So why isn’t the Government doing it?
Antarctic melt could be alarming, say scientists
4 Apr 2016
Scientists in the US predict that the alarming rate at which Antarctica’s ice continues to thaw could be enough to double global sea level rise within this century.
Auckland campus looks at sustainability
4 Apr 2016
Sustainability week kicks off at Auckland University today with a discussion on sustainability and innovation in the food system.
You're gambling, Greens tell Government
1 Apr 2016
The Government is gambling with our future by not preparing now for rising seas which threaten up to $20 billion worth of New Zealand homes, the Green Party says.
What does the science really say about sea-level rise?
1 Apr 2016
A recent high-profile study led by US climatologist James Hansen has warned that sea levels could rise by several metres by the end of this century. How realistic is this scenario?
Science grapples with climate conundrums
1 Apr 2016
New research illustrates that reactions of people, plants and animals to the changing climate are a key factor in unravelling the complexities of global warming.
Storing carbon could help to meet climate goals
31 Mar 2016
Australia's agricultural lands help to feed about 60 million people worldwide, and also support tens of thousands of farmers as well as rural communities and industries.
Rising heat brings earlier (and better) vintage
30 Mar 2016
Winegrowers can expect good grape harvests much earlier now, thanks to climate change, but scientists say the effect may not last.
'Unless you make the price of fossil fuels honest, people will just keep burning them'
29 Mar 2016
"They talk like they realise there’s a problem, but they’re not taking the only action that would be effective. Unless you make the price of fossil fuels honest, by including their cost to society, people will just keep burning them." That's retired Nasa scientist Dr James Hansen, talking to Radio New Zealand’s Kim Hill on Saturday morning.
Does doing renewable energy demand the undoable?
29 Mar 2016
Switching to renewable energy as fast as the world needs to will require changes so massive that they are unlikely to happen, scientists say.
It looks like Asia is losing its appetite for coal
29 Mar 2016
Many hundreds of planned coal-fired power plants in Asia will probably be shelved as economies slow and climate change and air pollution worsen.
Labour vows to set new rules around carbon risk
24 Mar 2016
Carbon risk disclosure would be compulsory under a Labour government, says finance spokesman Grant Robertson.
What will Turnbull’s $1b energy fund actually do?
24 Mar 2016
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has announced the creation of a A$1 billion Clean Energy Innovation Fund, to be jointly managed by the Clean Energy Finance Corporation and the Australian Renewable Energy Agency.
OUR SUSTAINABLE FUTURE: Labour lays it on the line
23 Mar 2016
Regional clusters, an overhaul of the country’s science system, and encouraging social enterprises could be part of a Labour government’s drive to develop clean-tech, sustainable jobs.
Black-out Bridges keeps us in the dark on e-cars
23 Mar 2016
Transport Minister Simon Bridges is refusing to release advice officials have given him on encouraging New Zealanders to switch to electric vehicles.
No worries, says Key, science will save the world
23 Mar 2016
Prime Minister John Key says that science will save the world from climate change.
Are vegetables really the most low-carbon diet?
23 Mar 2016
It is often claimed that a vegetarian diet is better for the environment, because grazing animals such as cattle and sheep produce a lot of methane, a far more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.
Electric cars the answer for NZ, says report
22 Mar 2016
Switching to electric vehicles will do more to prevent climate change than installing solar panels will – even if the electricity to power the cars comes from burning fossil fuels, says a new report.
Beehive blind to one big fact, says energy expert
22 Mar 2016
The Government’s argument that New Zealand should search for natural gas because it’s cleaner than coal ignores the fact that the world already has more fossil fuels than it can safely burn, says a world expert on energy and climate change.
European politicians push nuclear ‘poison pill’
22 Mar 2016
The economics of nuclear power in Europe are in meltdown, leaving taxpayers facing a heavy burden as the industry clings to pledges of huge public cash injections.
Energy efficiency in itself can become a market
21 Mar 2016
New research by the European Commission suggests that energy efficiency can become a “niche” market that will attract investors away from fossil fuels.
Climate change lines up big hit for hydro plants
18 Mar 2016
Water shortages caused by climate change will affect two-thirds of the world’s hydro-electricity generation plants by 2069, a new report shows.
Give ETS strength, pleads forest industry chief
17 Mar 2016
The Emissions Trading Scheme is a eunuch that needs to have its vasectomy reversed, the head of the forestry industry says.
Carbon creeps up as minister talks ETS changes
17 Mar 2016
Carbon has gone to $11 on the back of Climate Change Minister Paula Bennett’s latest comments on carbon prices.
Stretching the laws of physics will make a world of difference
17 Mar 2016
Carbon-negative cars, cost-effective organic solar cells and electricity from waste treatment are possible clean energy options as scientists stretch the laws of physics.
Meltdown Earth: Is there anyone out there listening?
17 Mar 2016
And another one bites the dust ... The year 2014 was the warmest recorded by humans. Then 2015 was warmer still. January 2016 broke the record for the largest monthly temperature anomaly. Then came last month.
Clean energy is a win-win for the US
16 Mar 2016
Simply implementing its Paris climate conference commitments on reducing greenhouse gas emissions could save the US billions of dollars – and save hundreds of thousands of lives.
UN goals need climate-change action now
16 Mar 2016
Failing to take action on climate change will make it harder to meet the United Nations’ sustainable development goals, a new report says.
Mediterranean may be driest for 900 years
16 Mar 2016
The drought that has blighted the eastern Mediterranean since 1998 could be the worst in nine centuries, according to new research led by scientists from the US space agency Nasa.
Give cities their own planning rules, says commissioner
15 Mar 2016
New Zealand might need special planning rules for cities to help them to cope with climate change, says Parliamentary Commission for the Environment Dr Jan Wright.
Climate needs Africa’s farmers to change fast
15 Mar 2016
Climate change could soon begin to make dramatic impacts on Africa’s agriculture. Up to 60 per cent of land now used to grow beans could become unviable by the end of the century – and in some places, farmers will need to change their ways within the next 10 years.
Food production threatens to overwhelm climate efforts
14 Mar 2016
Each year our terrestrial biosphere absorbs about a quarter of all the carbon dioxide emissions that humans produce.
New methane probe points finger at agriculture
11 Mar 2016
New research showing that agriculture, and not fossil fuels, is responsible for rising methane levels is especially important for New Zealand, says the lead researcher.
Massive sea level rise if southern ice sheet melts
11 Mar 2016
The world is on track for massive sea level rises resulting from the melting of an Antarctic ice sheet, one of New Zealand’s leading scientists is warning.
Sorry, but throwing seawater at Antarctica won't fix the problem
11 Mar 2016
Pumping seawater on to the Antarctic landmass to form ice and stop sea levels rising stands little chance of success, scientists say.
How climate denial gained a foothold in the Liberal Party
11 Mar 2016
It seems the Liberal Party is still having trouble letting go of climate denial, judging by the New South Wales branch’s demand that the Turnbull government arrange a series of public debates on climate science.
Electric car sales worldwide are powering ahead
10 Mar 2016
Improved technology and falling costs are moving electric car sales into the fast lane as manufacturers are now able to achieve significant economies of scale.
If planners understand it's cool to green cities, what's stopping them?
10 Mar 2016
Cities are getting hotter, more crowded and noisier. Climate change is bringing more heatwaves, placing pressure on human health, urban amenity, productivity and infrastructure.
Clean, green report card shows we're woeful
9 Mar 2016
Clean, green New Zealand has one of the worst records in the world when it comes to the impact of agriculture on the environment, a new report shows.
How to make an ETS, Kiwi-style ... or not
9 Mar 2016
New Zealand’s pioneering experience in building an emissions trading scheme is the basis for a new World Bank guide to designing an ETS.
The Great White Hope of climate science gets darker
9 Mar 2016
Greenland, climatology’s great white hope and the biggest block of ice in the northern hemisphere, is losing its reflectivity.
Human fingerprint on extreme weather goes back to the 30s
9 Mar 2016
In recent years, climate scientists have looked at the role climate change played in unusual extreme weather events such as Australia’s hottest summer in 2012-13 and recent heatwaves.
How climate helped to trigger the fall of Angkor Wat
8 Mar 2016
Scientific evidence is growing that the decline of once-mighty Angkor, the famed temple site in modern Cambodia, was in large part due to abrupt climate change.
New map will help you navigate the ETS world
7 Mar 2016
The long and sometimes rocky road to the development of an emissions trading market has been mapped.
Urgent need to rethink tourism says expert
Mon 18 May 2026
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?
Mon 18 May 2026
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
Mon 18 May 2026
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
Mon 18 May 2026
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
Mon 18 May 2026
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
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
Mon 18 May 2026
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
Mon 18 May 2026
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
Mon 18 May 2026
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
Mon 18 May 2026
President Donald Trump is stopping offshore wind projects in the United States, just as the industry was poised to grow significantly.
