Topics tagged with 'Greenhouse Effect'
Why China is no longer the scapegoat
12 Oct 2012
China has long been perceived as a laggard on climate action, and used as scapegoat by other countries to delay action, says a new report.
Scientists urge Obama, Romney to act
12 Oct 2012
More than 100 scientists and government officials in Florida are calling on America’s presidential candidates to address the danger of sea level rise at the third and final presidential debate.
ETS changes go under scrutiny
5 Oct 2012
Changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme are now being debated by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Select Committee.
Dick Smith’s recipe for a fantastic future without perpetual economic growth
5 Oct 2012
Australian entrepreneur DICK SMITH spoke to New Zealand business leaders in Queenstown recently about an alternative to the current economic model.
Millions to be spent on climate-proofing
5 Oct 2012
Potential climate change trends over the next 90 years will be identified and examined in a new, multi-million dollar research project which aims to climate- proof New Zealand.
Our lakes are warming up, says report
5 Oct 2012
Recent studies reveal significant warming of the world's lakes.
Plan B perhaps, but there’s no Planet B …
5 Oct 2012
A top United Nations official has emphasized the impact that climate change has on food security, peace and stability, and has called on countries to cooperate to address the phenomenon.
Farmers target of climate investment help
5 Oct 2012
The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) has released the Filling the Research Gap: Research Strategy
Government lying to us, says forester
28 Sep 2012
The Government is being accused of lying to New Zealanders over plans to encourage afforesation as a means of reducing greenhouse gas levels.
EDITORIAL: The problem called John Banks
28 Sep 2012
The Government may be weakening in its opposition to restricting the number of international carbon units allowed into New Zealand.
Why Romney in the White House scares Europe
28 Sep 2012
European Union officials are privately alarmed at the chilling effect that a Mitt Romney win in the US presidential election could have on global climate talks, says the EurActiv agency.
UN chief urges Pacific leaders to act
28 Sep 2012
The United Nations is counting on the leadership and active engagement of Pacific nations in tackling some of today’s pressing challenges, including sustainable development, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said yesterday.
Maori leaders want cheap credits blocked
21 Sep 2012
The influential Climate Change Iwi Leaders Group is pressuring the Government to cut the flow of cheap international carbon credits into New Zealand.
Is ETS a scheme or a scam, ask Greens
21 Sep 2012
New Zealand's emissions trading scheme could be renamed the emissions trading scam, Parliament has heard.
Minister takes seat in the powerhouse
21 Sep 2012
Climate Change Minister Tim Groser will discuss climate change with the world’s economic powerhouses next week.
Coal plans devastating, says protest group
21 Sep 2012
Australian industry leaders have been quick to question the accuracy of a claim that a coal basin near the Great Barrier Reef will rank among the world's worst producers of carbon pollution if fully mined.
Scientists urge new way of thinking
21 Sep 2012
A landmark study has found that climate change is likely to have a major impact on Australia’s plants, animals and ecosystems that will present significant challenges to the conservation of the country’s biodiversity.
Put that in writing, minister, says council head
14 Sep 2012
Sustainability Council chief Simon Terry is challenging Climate Change Minister Tim Groser to deny in writing that New Zealand faces a carbon deficit.
Committee begins to wade through ETS ideas
14 Sep 2012
Parliament’s finance and expenditure select committee next week will continue wading its way through hundreds of submissions on changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme.
ETS submission: Changes a costly mistake
14 Sep 2012
The Government’s planned changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme are a costly environmental mistake, the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment says.
Court rejects challenge to weather records
14 Sep 2012
The High Court has rejected a legal challenge to the Niwa national temperature record.
Experts urge action to save carbon market
14 Sep 2012
A high-level panel established to take stock of the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism has released its recommendations by urging nations to intervene forcefully to address the crisis in the carbon market.
Surplus threatens climate deal, says report
14 Sep 2012
Current Kyoto Protocol rules allow rich countries to continue to emit greenhouse gases on a business-as-usual trajectory while accumulating more than 17 billion tonnes of surplus emission reduction permits by 2020, a new study shows.
NZUs down in line with European prices
14 Sep 2012
European carbon offsets have continued to fall, down around 30 per cent now since the beginning of the month, Westpac reports.
Quake city threatened, says ice scientist
7 Sep 2012
Not enough notice is being taken of the potential threat of rising sea levels in the rebuild of Christchurch, says University of Canterbury Gateway Antarctic director Professor Bryan Storey.
Weather wrecking food supply, says report
7 Sep 2012
New research shows that the full impact of climate change on future food prices is being underestimated, according to international agency Oxfam.
Europe throws switch on incandescent bulbs
7 Sep 2012
The European Union has banned the sale of 40W and 25W incandescent bulbs.
Pacific nations get climate change help
7 Sep 2012
Australia will fund a $58 million package to help Pacific countries to become more resilient to climate change.
We’re well on the road to Doha, says UN
7 Sep 2012
A week of climate talks in Bangkok has allowed countries to make concrete progress on key issues, providing a positive momentum for the upcoming United Nations conference in Doha, says a UN official.
Climate scientists ask fishers for help
7 Sep 2012
Fishers and scientists will be better informed about the impacts of a changing climate on Australian coastal fish species, thanks to a new partnership.
Work goes on to link Tasman trading schemes
31 Aug 2012
Australia’s decision to link to the European Emissions Trading Scheme will not slow progress on linking to the New Zealand scheme, the Government says.
Dick Smith: How to keep ahead of the curve
31 Aug 2012
For a man who should be retiring, Aussie entrepreneur Dick Smith is a very busy man.
NZ to host EU energy conference
31 Aug 2012
An international conference to bring Pacific Islands governments together with potential investors in renewable energy development will be held in New Zealand next April.
Check aid targets, urges Pacific report
31 Aug 2012
A new report is urging funding donors and Pacific governments to work together with civil society organisations to ensure the money reaches those most vulnerable to climate change.
Australia to link with EU carbon market
31 Aug 2012
Australia will scrap its planned floor price for carbon emissions and will link directly with the European Union's emissions trading system by 2018, says Climate Change Minister Greg Combet.
Public split as ETS changes face scrutiny
24 Aug 2012
Changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme have gone into Parliament as a new poll shows that New Zealanders are evenly split over whether we should even have a price on carbon.
ETS bill has October deadline
24 Aug 2012
The Government expects to have its changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme through the select committee and back into Parliament by October 17.
EXCLUSIVE: Carbon News readers can now get full climate report
24 Aug 2012
Subscribers to Carbon News now have access to the full report on research into New Zealanders' views on climate change.
Billions back fossil fuels, says study
24 Aug 2012
Subsidies for fossil fuels could top $US1 trillion this year, an American-based independent research agency is warning.
Niwa gets bulk of new research money
24 Aug 2012
Environmental research has been allocated more than $16 million in the latest Government science investment round.
UN calls for integrated climate policies
24 Aug 2012
More efforts are needed to combat the threat of climate change and counter its ripple effects on global food security, the United Nations says
Pacific needs climate aid, says report
24 Aug 2012
A major report on climate change finance will be launched at the Pacific Islands Forum next week in Rarotonga.
Beer drinkers say cheers to reducing methane
24 Aug 2012
Australian beer drinkers don’t know it but they are helping cattle farmers to reduce methane produced by cows.
Regional market will happen ... some day
17 Aug 2012
An Asia-Pacific regional carbon market is inevitable, eventually, says carbon trader Nigel Brunel.
AL MORRISON: We've been too smug for too long
17 Aug 2012
The Department of Conservation wants to do business with business.
Study warns South Pacific of storm shocks
17 Aug 2012
South Pacific countries will experience more extreme floods and droughts, in response to increasing greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new study.
Singapore aims to be green growth hub
17 Aug 2012
Singapore sees itself becoming a “green growth hub” that delivers green solutions both at the national and global levels.
Spy in the sky shows Arctic ice loss worse than thought
17 Aug 2012
Sea ice in the Arctic is disappearing at a far greater rate than previously expected, according to data from the first satellite launched to study the thickness of the Earth's polar caps.
Europe limits dumping of e-waste
17 Aug 2012
At least 85 per cent of electrical and electronic waste generated in the European Union will have to be recycled by 2020 under new rules that took effect this week.
Fish on the move, say ocean scientists
17 Aug 2012
Climate change is affecting Australia’s marine ecosystems more quickly than expected, with tropical fish and plankton moving south as waters warm.
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.
