Topics tagged with 'Greenhouse Effect'
Investors chip in as renewables rise toward record level
13 Apr 2015
Carbon dioxide levels might be soaring, and governments might be slow to reduce fossil fuel emissions and contain climate change, but the smart money could nevertheless be going into renewable sources such as wind and solar power.
Unhappy birthday for UK's nuclear white elephants
13 Apr 2015
A state-of-the-art British plant designed to re-use spent nuclear fuel so as to cut greenhouse gas emissions is to close after years of what its critics call “commercial and technical failure.”
Water Man of India makes rivers flow again
13 Apr 2015
Revival of traditional rainwater harvesting has transformed the driest state in India, and could be used to combat the effects of climate change across the world.
NZ hangs back as countries commit to carbon cuts
7 Apr 2015
Russia did it. The United States did it. All the countries in the European Union have done it, as have Mexico, Norway, Switzerland and Latvia. Even oil-and-mineral-exporting Gabon, population 1.3 million, did it.
How the US’s post-2020 climate target could fit into a global deal
7 Apr 2015
The United States' formal submission this week of its intended post 2020 climate target raises several questions for this year’s global climate talks.
BP’s extreme climate forecast puts energy giant in a bind
7 Apr 2015
BP’s annual Energy Outlook report details the results from modelling of what it sees as the “most likely” energy scenario out to 2035.
Hi-tech farming seen as way to green the food chain
7 Apr 2015
Connected agriculture – from farm to retail – has been promoted at an event in Brussels as the way to wean European agriculture off its addiction to chemicals, water and fossil fuels.
New ocean energy plan could worsen global warming
7 Apr 2015
One of renewable energy’s more outspoken enthusiasts has delivered bad news for the prospects of developing ocean thermal energy. His prediction is that although the technology could work for a while, after about 50 years it could actually exacerbate long-term global warning.
Rich nations urged to cut temperature rise targets
7 Apr 2015
The official target of limiting global warming to a 2C rise has been described by a senior scientist as “utterly inadequate” to protect the people most at risk from climate change.
Forest experts are wrong, say climate change ministers
30 Mar 2015
The Government is sticking to its guns – forest planting is down because of the cyclical nature of the industry, and not because carbon prices are too low to encourage planting.
We're watching carbon prices, says Government
30 Mar 2015
The Government says it is watching carbon prices creep higher.
Australia well short of meeting emissions target
30 Mar 2015
Australia’s flagship climate change scheme will buy the country just half of its 2020 emissions reduction target, a market watcher says.
China ramps up the rhetoric on climate change
30 Mar 2015
By KEIRAN COOKE.- Zheng Guogang, head of the China Meteorological Administration, says future variations in climate are likely to reduce crop yields and damage the environment.
Beat-the-heat beans could keep feeding millions
30 Mar 2015
Scientists believe they may have found how to safeguard a staple tropical crop, on which hundreds of millions of people depend, from the depredations of climate change.
Fossil-fuel investment risk not on our radar, says Treasury
23 Mar 2015
Fossil-fuel investment exposure might be worrying the Bank of England, but it has failed to cause any ripples at New Zealand’s Treasury.
Memo Jo: Foresters need a bit more than praise
23 Mar 2015
Forest owners want the Government to put its money where its mouth is on sustainable forestry – and are gathering the numbers to back their case.
NZ slow to commit to Paris emissions deadline
23 Mar 2015
New Zealand will not get its post-2020 emissions reduction target into the United Nations by the end of the month.
Old King Coal is sick ... but not yet dying
23 Mar 2015
A global investigation into every coal-fired power plant proposed in the past five years shows that only one in three of them has actually been built.
Why is low-carbon energy innovation so slow? You can thank Economics 101
23 Mar 2015
The world needs a lot of energy. Global energy demand is expected to increase by 37 per cent percent over the next 25 years, according to the International Energy Agency’s World Energy Outlook 2014.
Law firm awards student environment prize
23 Mar 2015
Rachael Witney is the winner of the Simpson Grierson Environmental Law Prize for 2014.
Foresters draw up wishlist for ETS review
16 Mar 2015
The Emissions Trading Scheme review is likely to be pushed into next year, forest owners say.
Chemical fertilisers poison our water, says study
16 Mar 2015
Waterways – including human drinking supplies – are being poisoned by excessive use of chemical fertilisers, new research shows.
Heat is on to slow down faster rise in temperatures
16 Mar 2015
Analysis of temperature records and reconstructions of past climates indicates that the pace of global warming is about to accelerate.
Why is pumping CO2 underground stuck in second gear?
16 Mar 2015
There are many uncertainties with respect to global climate change, but there is one thing about which I have no doubts: we will not solve climate change by running out of fossil fuels.
World needs early warning of climate-linked disasters
16 Mar 2015
A senior French political leader has told an international conference on how to reduce the risk from natural disasters that 70 per cent of them are now linked to climate change, twice as many as 20 years ago.
Carbon measure puts us among worst in the world
9 Mar 2015
New Zealand’s carbon intensity is going through the roof, despite Government claims to the contrary.
Beehive breaking our climate change pledge
9 Mar 2015
Latest figures show that New Zealand is not planting enough trees to meet its climate change pledges, and a carbon forestry expert says that the Government is to blame.
How well prepared are businesses for climate change?
9 Mar 2015
The world is changing. The weather is becoming more volatile, with the number of extreme weather events on the rise. Climate change represents the new normal: the Earth is already showing the impacts of our actions, which will continue to become more visible.
Four ways to boost Australia’s economy and help the climate
9 Mar 2015
Australia likely has several decades of coal left in it.
How artificial lagoons can be used to harvest energy from the tides
9 Mar 2015
The search for alternative energy sources in the age of climate change has overlooked tidal energy: a vast and unexploited worldwide resource.
Prices fail to reflect real costs of fossil fuels
9 Mar 2015
Forget the price of petrol at the pumps. The true cost of any fossil fuel is much greater if social costs are factored in, according to new research.
Govt vows to ask public about emissions target
2 Mar 2015
The Government will consult the public over New Zealand’s post-2020 emissions reduction target.
Sydney aims to save $600m on energy bills
2 Mar 2015
Sydney is aiming to become one of the world’s most energy-efficient cities, slashing greenhouse gas pollution and saving $600 million on energy bills by 2030.
Let's cut emissions, not worry about how
2 Mar 2015
Australia had an emissions trading scheme with a fixed price; it was one good way to encourage carbon cuts throughout the economy.
Bad news, says BP, we're looking at a 25% rise in CO2
2 Mar 2015
The British-based oil and gas giant BP says it expects global emissions of carbon dioxide to rise by a quarter in the next 20 years.
ETS nothing but 'words, fishhooks and traps,' says Palmer
23 Feb 2015
New Zealand’s Emissions Trading Scheme legislation is so full of “words, fishhooks and traps” that giving sound legal advice on it to businesses is almost impossible, says one of our leading legal minds.
New Zealand’s defective law on climate change, by Sir Geoffrey Palmer
23 Feb 2015
Distinguished law fellow Sir Geoffrey Palmer, QC, has been at or near the heart of our attempts to tackled climate change for nearly three decades.
Help our green businesses, pleads academic
23 Feb 2015
New Zealand businesses want the Government to step up to protect the country’s 100% Pure brand.
Big cities head for water crisis as populations explode
23 Feb 2015
More than 40 per cent of the world’s great cities supplied by surface water could become vulnerable to shortages and drought by 2040, according to new research.
Shell chief calls for climate action, but what are the motives?
23 Feb 2015
Shell chief Ben van Beurden is pointing the way for oil companies to demand greater certainty over future climate policy.
Climate impacts on European farmers’ yields per field
23 Feb 2015
Farmers in Europe have already begun to feel the pinch of climate change as yields of wheat since 1989 have fallen by 2.5 per cent and barley by 3.8 per cent on average across the whole continent.
Energy Union targets renewables subsidies, boosts idle coal plants
23 Feb 2015
The European Commission’s overhaul of the EU electricity market will target national public support for renewables, while encouraging governments to pay energy companies in other member states for idle power stations.
Politicians sign cross-party climate change pact
16 Feb 2015
British politicians have signed a ground-breaking agreement on climate change.
Energy-efficiency rules fail US academic's test
16 Feb 2015
Energy efficiency rules in California have failed to cut energy consumption, suggesting that direct action is less effective than carbon pricing in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, a visiting economist says.
Our universities get a D for divestment
16 Feb 2015
New Zealand universities are among the worst in the world when it comes to divestment from fossil fuel investments, a new report says.
Oil aside, we’ve reached peak chicken, peak rice, and peak milk
16 Feb 2015
We still haven't reached peak oil. But peak milk happened in 2004, peak soybeans in 2009, and peak chicken in 2006. Rice peaked in 1988.
UN states agree on key document for climate change pact
16 Feb 2015
A key milestone on the route to a new, universal agreement on climate change has been reached by more than 190 states meeting in Geneva.
Nats' Waitangi promise: We'll talk to Maori about climate change
9 Feb 2015
The Government has said it will work with Maori on the two big climate change/carbon pricing decisions it faces this year – the post-2020 emissions reduction target and the review of the Emissions Trading Scheme.
Iwi leaders lose climate change champion
9 Feb 2015
One of New Zealand’s most influential leaders on climate change has died.
Climate debt grows as Australia messes about
9 Feb 2015
Policy procrastination over climate change is costing Australia money, a new analysis shows.
Insurers call for stronger direction on reducing natural hazard risk
Fri 8 Aug 2025
Media release | The Insurance Council of New Zealand | Te Kāhui Inihui o Aotearoa (ICNZ) is urging the Government to provide stronger national direction to better manage natural hazards risks like flooding and landslips and avoid developments in high-risk areas.
Media round-up
Fri 8 Aug 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Former minister of forestry Stuart Nash condemns "lock and leave" carbon farming; Fonterra's convenient omission about its switch from coal; and KiwiRail’s bold electrification plans.
NZ Post drops science-based climate target
8 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | NZ Post has dropped its science-based emissions reduction target of 42% by 2030 with no plans to replace it.
Why plane turbulence is becoming more frequent - and more severe
Wed 6 Aug 2025
As climate change shifts atmospheric conditions, experts warn that air travel could become bumpier: temperature changes and shifting wind patterns in the upper atmosphere are expected to increase the frequency and intensity of severe turbulence.
'Cali Fund’ for nature still empty as emails show industry hesitation
Fri 8 Aug 2025
A major fund for biodiversity remains starved of resources more than five months after its launch – with no money yet put forward by the large companies who could contribute.
Sustainability claims questioned as renewable diesel surges
14 May 2025
Critics are sceptical about industry claims of renewable diesel life-cycle greenhouse gas emission cuts and warn renewable diesel carbon releases will surge if sourcing is scaled up, triggering tropical deforestation as producers convert forests to energy crops, such as oil palm and soy.
Carbon prices slide as market awaits ETS decision
1 Aug 2025
By Liz Kivi | Volatility has returned to the secondary carbon market, with prices sliding again after plateauing in recent weeks, as the market waits for government decisions on Emissions Trading Scheme settings.
Trump moves to shut down NASA missions that measure carbon dioxide and plant health
Fri 8 Aug 2025
The Trump administration wants to end two NASA missions that monitor a potent greenhouse gas and plant health.
Bearish sentiment lingers for carbon market
11 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | The compliance carbon market could be set for a gradual upward trajectory, however unsold volume from the quarterly Emissions Trading Scheme auctions continues to act as ‘a price ceiling,’ according to an expert.
Gentailers to stockpile coal under new deal
Tue 5 Aug 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | An agreement between New Zealand’s four major electricity generators to establish a 10-year fuel reserve is being labelled a 'climate change stockpile', and could undermine momentum for renewable energy investment.
Is extending Huntly power station to 2035 in consumers’ best interest?
22 Jul 2025
By Simon Orme | COMMENT: Genesis Energy is proposing a cartel to keep high-emitting Huntly Power Station in business to 2035. If extending Huntly has economic benefits, is a cartel necessary?
What does 'drier' really mean in 'green' homes?
1 Aug 2025
Media release - Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland | Researchers say green-rating systems could improve clarity and effectiveness by explicitly defining ‘drier’ and using two measures of humidity.
Cuts to climate finance put exports in jeopardy: Lawyers
23 May 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government has halved international climate finance, a move aid organisations describe as “devastating,” and which lawyers say could put our Paris Agreement commitments and export market access at risk.
NZ voluntary carbon market’s sad state
14 Jul 2025
By John O’Brien | OPINION: A combination of scandals, challenging economic times, and cheaper offshore carbon credits, mean that the domestic voluntary carbon market in New Zealand remains absolutely tiny.
China updates green taxonomy to increase energy transition finance
Thu 7 Aug 2025
China has updated its green taxonomy as part of the country’s efforts to strengthen its net-zero transition ambitions and reduce fragmentation.
Key orange roughy population on verge of collapse, govt considers closure
9 Jul 2025
Media release - Deep Sea Conservation Coalition | New data reveals that New Zealand’s main orange roughy fishery, accounting for half of the country’s total catch, is on the brink of collapse, with one model showing it may have reached that point already, and the government’s considering closing it.
Proposed hazards policy ‘bare bones’ – Upton
Fri 8 Aug 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Simon Upton has backed the government’s proposed National Policy Statement for Natural Hazards, but warns it is only a start to what’s needed to manage escalating climate and disaster risks.
Latest trawl bycatch numbers 'a grim wake-up call'
24 Jun 2025
Media release – Greenpeace | The latest fisheries bycatch data paints a grim picture, with trawlers hauling up thousands of kilograms of coral and killing hundreds of fur seals and seabirds over a 12 month period.
Tairāwhiti group warns forestry rollback will fuel future disasters
Thu 7 Aug 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | A sustainable land-use advocacy group has slammed government proposals they say will gut forestry protections and roll back hard-fought gains made in the wake of Cyclone Hale and Gabrielle.
Labour vows to reinstate oil and gas ban
Wed 6 Aug 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Labour Party is promising to reinstate a ban on new oil and gas exploration permits, but won’t say if they will go even further and commit to revoking permits if elected.
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.
NZ signs up to UK initiative to boost renewable energy in the Pacific
Fri 8 Aug 2025
New Zealand has joined the United Kingdom's TIDES initiative, which aims to support renewable energy developments in the Pacific Islands.
Airlines risk legal challenges by advertising jet fuel as “sustainable”, NGO warns
18 Jul 2025
Amid suspected fraud in the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), a new report says the airline industry should stop calling all alternatives to kerosene “sustainable”.
Watts talks big on energy reform, but barriers persist
29 May 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Energy and Climate Change minister Simon Watts says the government is doubling down on efforts to boost renewable energy generation, streamline regulation, and drive private sector investment as New Zealand faces mounting energy security and affordability challenges.
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 need to get ready for the next climate-fuelled disaster: FMA
Wed 6 Aug 2025
Insurers need to do more to improve their claims processes and services as climate-driven disasters increase in frequency and severity, according to the Financial Markets Authority.
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.
First-of-a-kind US class-action lawsuit would force EPA to reinstate $3bn climate program
Thu 7 Aug 2025
Coalition of non-profits, tribes and local governments sued EPA chief for halting climate justice grants.
Fund for low emissions transport winds up
31 Jul 2025
New Zealand’s Low Emission Transport Fund has officially wrapped up, ending a nine-year programme that put hundreds of millions of dollars towards accelerating the country’s shift to cleaner transport.
Backlash over govt conservation changes
Mon 4 Aug 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The government’s proposed changes to the Conservation Act are the most significant roll back in conservation protections in a generation, according to the Green Party.
Urgent action needed to get on track for climate goals - commission
25 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand is making progress on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but more work is needed – urgently – to set up for future reductions, according to the latest report from the Climate Change Commission.
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.
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.
NZ govt’s fossil fuel plans could break international law
24 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government could be breaching international law with its plans to subsidise and expand fossil fuel extraction, following a ruling overnight from the world’s highest court.
NZ part of hidden global deep-sea network beneath the waves
25 Jul 2025
Media release - Earth Sciences New Zealand | A world-first study of marine life, including sea creatures found in New Zealand's dark, cold, pressurised ocean depths, has revealed that deep-sea life is surprisingly more connected than previously thought.
Divided nations start 'final' talks on UN plastics treaty
Wed 6 Aug 2025
The key divide is whether the new treaty includes a target to limit plastic production or just focuses on recycling and waste management.
A new report shows how local climate activism leads to ‘remarkable’ gains
Thu 7 Aug 2025
Efforts to pass laws and advance clean energy projects can significantly reduce emissions, and at a low cost.
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.
Stop saying 'the clean energy revolution is inevitable'
Fri 8 Aug 2025
OPINION: The phrase has been everywhere since Trump’s re-election.
Warmer end to winter but dry spell expected over southern lakes
Tue 5 Aug 2025
As hydro lake levels hover just below average levels, climate forecasts indicate that warmer than usual weather conditions will reduce demand, but there will likely be less rain over the southern hydro lakes as New Zealand moves towards spring and summer.
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’.
Can robot taxis solve NZ's transport woes?
23 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Ministry of Transport has tested the idea of driverless taxis as a futuristic fix. But while new modelling explores how "robotaxis" could ease congestion and reduce car ownership, critics say it misses a crucial point – the country’s worsening transport emissions.
United Nations carbon market rules agreed but concerns remain
25 Nov 2024
New carbon market rules agreed at the fractious UN climate summit will be a relief to New Zealand and Singapore, who were leading the negotiations, but concerns about greenwashing and disadvantaging nature-based solutions remain.
EV sales fall, but it’s complicated
29 Jul 2025
Imports of fully electric vehicles fell over 50% in value during the 12 months to June 2025, compared with the year ended June 2024, according to Stats NZ.
Barclays exits net zero banking alliance
Tue 5 Aug 2025
Barclays will exit the Net-Zero Banking Alliance, marking the second UK-based bank to withdraw from the UN-backed coalition dedicated to advancing global net zero goals through their financing activities, after the departure last month of HSBC.
'Yet another rate': Franz Josef ratepayers balk at $2.8m stopbank extension
Mon 4 Aug 2025
By Lois Williams, Local Democracy Reporter | Franz Josef ratepayers have given the thumbs down to plans for a $2.8 million stopbank extension to protect the town’s sewerage plant from the Waiho River.
The struggle for control of the Arctic is accelerating - and it's riskier than ever
11 Jul 2025
As the battle for one of the world’s coldest places heats up, an increasingly fragile security balance may be breaking down, leading to an escalating arms race.
UN University report warns against carbon credits from REDD, tree planting, and improved forest management
13 Jun 2025
But the report stops short of recommending banning the trade in carbon temporarily stored in trees.
For the first time, China invests more in wind and solar than coal overseas
29 May 2025
China’s Belt and Road Initiative, long derided for its heavy carbon footprint, was dominated by wind and solar power projects for the first time from 2022 to 2023, according to a new analysis. But coal plants financed in earlier years are still coming online.
