Topics tagged with 'Politics'
Local council shakeup will weaken environmental protection, say critics
Today 11:45am
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government’s sweeping overhaul of local councils threatens to erode hard-won environmental protections, warning that stripping regional councils of directly elected governance will weaken oversight of freshwater, biodiversity and land-use decisions.
Elevated volatility continues for carbon market despite govt reassurances
Today 11:45am
By Liz Kivi | While carbon prices have recovered somewhat from recent lows, the market is still plagued by low prices and volatility, despite soothing words from the government intended to calm rattled participants.
Cheaper power and lower emissions for Chatham Islands funded by ETS revenue
Today 11:45am
By Liz Kivi | The government has hailed the success of a wind turbine project for the Chatham Islands paid for by Emissions Trading Scheme revenue from a fund the Coalition Government has since canned.
Councils call for action on sweltering new homes
Today 11:45am
Media release | The New Zealand Green Building Council and Auckland Council are calling for Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk to take steps to address the problem of new homes overheating.
Experts dismiss coalition claims Chris Bowen cannot remain minister while leading COP31 negotiations
Today 11:45am
Experts have dismissed claims Chris Bowen cannot remain a senior minister while playing a leading role in international climate negotiations, with one describing the argument as evidence of an Australian “culture cringe”.
Govt slashes environmental funding by $1 billion
Tue 25 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Central government funding for the environment is set to fall by a quarter in 2025/26, prompting warnings that hard-won environmental improvements may now stall or reverse.
Minister warned over lack of rationale for climate policy
Tue 25 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ formal explanation of why the Government isn’t going to follow the independent Climate Change Commission’s advice on climate targets is still in the pipeline, the Minister has confirmed.
COP30: Summary and what it means for New Zealand
Tue 25 Nov 2025
Media release: Lawyers for Climate Action NZ | COP30 wrapped up over the weekend - the first COP since the International Court of Justice (ICJ) released its landmark Advisory Opinion on states’ obligations on climate change.
Simon Watts was right about Pacific climate support at COP30, now we must deliver
Tue 25 Nov 2025
Media release: Oxfam Aotearoa | At COP30 in Brazil, New Zealand has joined other higher-income countries in reaffirming their pledge to triple climate funding for lower-income countries by 2035.
There can be no information integrity without scientific and political integrity
Tue 25 Nov 2025
Opinion: I'm just back from COP30 in Belém and it is making me feel crazy to watch so many climate advocates and reporters declare the final text coming out of it a victory.
G20 summit declaration stresses seriousness of climate change in snub to Trump
Tue 25 Nov 2025
The Leaders' Declaration from a Group of 20 summit in South Africa on Saturday stressed the seriousness of climate change, in a snub to U.S. President Donald Trump, who boycotted the gathering and doubts the scientific consensus that global warming is caused by human activities.
NZ fails to back ‘roadmap’ to phase out fossil fuels at COP
Mon 24 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Eighty-six countries including Australia, the UK, Germany, and Ireland backed a proposal at COP30 for national plans on how to quit oil, gas and coal – but New Zealand wasn’t one of them.
COP30 in a multipolar world
Mon 24 Nov 2025
COMMENT: As the gavel comes down on the final negotiations at COP30, New Zealand seems to be heading for the sidelines of global transitions, increasing our dependency on imported solutions and neglecting the economic opportunities in generating our own, writes David Hall.
Greenpeace slams Govt climate and environment policy rollbacks
Mon 24 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Greenpeace is 'celebrating' the current Government reaching the two-year mark with an updated timeline of what it calls the Luxon Government’s “war on nature,” saying the week-by-week record shows the scale of environmental rollbacks – and the growing public pushback against them.
Trump, war, absent media: five threats to climate progress that dogged COP30
Mon 24 Nov 2025
Did the talks succeed or fail? The verdict must take account of the geopolitical minefield they took place in.
Govt’s rejection of CCC’s advice on climate targets undermines independent watchdog’s role, says opposition
Fri 21 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s latest dismissal of Climate Change Commission advice shows they have their heads in the sand about the reality of meeting climate targets, according to the Labour Party, while the Greens say Government decisions were an embarrassment on the world stage at COP30 this week.
Trump’s anti-climate agenda could result in 1.3m more deaths globally, analysis finds
Fri 21 Nov 2025
Fallout from increased emissions linked to president’s ‘America First’ policies expected to most affect those in poor, hot countries.
Govt rejects CCC’s advice on net-negative 2050 but makes no official announcement
Thu 20 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government has rejected the Climate Change Commission’s advice to strengthen the country’s net zero 2050 target, but appears to have buried the news with its announcement about methane targets last month.
Mounting emissions due to Government decisions
Thu 20 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Coalition Government’s climate policies have added a whopping 26 million tonnes of emissions out to 2030, according to new analysis of Government projections.
NZ and Iceland collaborate on geothermal energy
Thu 20 Nov 2025
Media release: New Zealand Government | New Zealand and Iceland today signed an agreement to deepen cooperation on geothermal energy development.
China’s top envoy blasts EU climate goals and Trump’s ‘bad example’
Thu 20 Nov 2025
The European Union’s new pollution-cutting targets are insufficient, China’s climate envoy told POLITICO on the sidelines of this year’s COP30 conference while also condemning the “bad example” set by the absent United States.
NZ drops in global climate rankings as govt 'propels country backwards'
19 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand has fallen to 44th place in global climate rankings, with the country’s climate policy rated “very low” amid widespread rollbacks of environmental protections.
‘We must keep 1.5 alive’ – Minister’s statement to climate summit
19 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts has delivered New Zealand’s National Statement to this year’s United Nations climate summit, affirming the country’s commitment to international climate targets and saying “we must keep 1.5 alive.”
Fast-track rewrite triggers procedural clash in Parliament
19 Nov 2025
The Government has entangled itself in a procedural dispute as it tries to push amendments to its fast-track regime through Parliament before Christmas.
Ecuador’s voters protect rights of nature, reject proposal to rewrite constitution
19 Nov 2025
Ecuadorians handed their Trump-allied president a resounding defeat, choosing to maintain their “ecological constitution” and rejecting an attempt to allow foreign military bases in the country.
Methane U-turn earns NZ ‘Fossil of the Day’ at COP30
18 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand has been handed an unwanted ‘Fossil of the Day’ award at COP30 in Brazil after the Government weakened its methane-reduction targets, drawing international criticism for backtracking on climate commitments and undermining global efforts to curb the potent greenhouse gas.
Greens put miners ‘on notice’, pledge to revoke fast-track approvals
18 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Greens have pledged to revoke fast-track consents for coal, hard-rock gold, and seabed mining projects if elected to government next year.
Foresters warn ETS reforms could fell innovation
17 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Elizabeth Heeg, chief executive officer for the Forest Owners Association, says forestry must not be stripped from the Emissions Trading Scheme, arguing that carbon income underpins forest management and rural resilience.
Rural Wairarapa communities on climate change frontline
17 Nov 2025
By Sue Teodoro, Local Democracy Reporter | Droughts, long hot days, more pests and invasive plants and increasingly severe weather are all risks faced by the Wairarapa rural community, leaders heard this week.
Act-NZ First split over future of the energy sector
14 Nov 2025
Act leader David Seymour has set out an energy policy platform that diverges sharply from coalition partner NZ First, arguing New Zealand must accept coal-fired backup generation, consider nuclear power, remove political interference from the electricity sector and sell down the government’s majority stakes in the gentailers.
Media round-up
14 Nov 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Simon Watts acknowledges he may face ‘challenging’ conversations with Pacific nations at COP30, New Zealand's climbdown on its methane emissions target is "embarrassing", and corporates are the real winners of the gutting of the Zero Carbon Act this week.
ETS price spike fears drove NDC decoupling
13 Nov 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Fears about the economic and fiscal costs of failure to buy enough offshore carbon credits to meet New Zealand’s Nationally Determined Contribution drove last week’s key climate change policy decision.
NZ backs international government push for high-integrity carbon markets
13 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand has joined a coalition of governments aiming to strengthen corporate demand for voluntary carbon credits.
NZ’s shameful new role as ‘international climate pariah’
13 Nov 2025
OPINION: New Zealand has ratcheted up its climate backsliding in the past month – losing any shred of climate credibility we once had and showing the world we’re giving up on a net zero future, writes Kayla Kingdon-Bebb.
Carbon price’s dead cat bounce
12 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The carbon price rebounded briefly in what looked like a ‘dead cat bounce’ last week, following the Government’s announcement it was unlinking the Emissions Trading Scheme from international climate targets.
Oxfam urges NZ to renew climate funding as Pacific projects face closure
12 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Oxfam Aotearoa is calling on the Government to urgently renew New Zealand’s climate finance commitments, warning that vital projects supporting Pacific communities’ resilience are running out of funding.
COP30: Climate law changes mean NZ could retreat from its international obligations
12 Nov 2025
By Cathrine Dyer, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington | As this year’s UN climate summit (COP30) gets underway in Belém, Brazil, the New Zealand delegation will be attending beneath a cloud of scepticism about the government’s seriousness in addressing carbon emissions.
Farmers rep loses seat on Taranaki environment committee
11 Nov 2025
By Craig Ashworth, Local Democracy Reporter | Federated Farmers has lost its seat on the Taranaki committee that monitors pollution and consent compliance and looks after rivers and streams.
Nation-building projects and the energy transition
10 Nov 2025
By Ian Mason | COMMENT: Last month, the Labour Party announced its first key election policy: to create a ‘New Zealand Future Fund’ to deliver “lasting national value, stronger communities, lower costs, more resilient industries, and opportunities that keep talent and ideas in New Zealand”.
Cost gaps in Fast-Track law could silence environmental voices – EDS
10 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Environmental Defence Society is warning that flaws in the Fast-Track Approvals Act 2024 could shut out critical conservation input, after legal advice found key statutory bodies can’t recover costs for participating in the process and councils face uncertainty over which costs are covered.
Does NZ's 2035 NDC meet Paris Agreement obligations?
7 Nov 2025
By Christina Hood | COMMENT: New Zealand’s 2035 Paris Agreement Target needs strengthening, with multiple reasons the 51 to 55% emissions reduction target does not meet our obligations under the accord.
Why I’m not outraged at the Govt’s latest climate backsliding
7 Nov 2025
COMMENT: The Government’s latest climate rollbacks underline New Zealand’s long history of a lack of genuine desire to cut emissions, writes Geoff Bertram.
Govt gas expansion 'climate vandalism' – Greens
7 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Green Party has labelled the Government’s move to broaden the scope of its $200 million fossil gas investment fund as vandalism, accusing Prime Minister Christopher Luxon of breaking trust with New Zealanders.
Undermining the ETS is poor policy – Mindful Money
7 Nov 2025
Politicising settings for the Emissions Trading Scheme creates uncertainty for investors at a time when we need clear and stable policy, says Mindful Money's Barry Coates.
New York climate advocates celebrate Mamdani’s victory, prepare to hold him accountable
7 Nov 2025
For the first time in years, New York’s environmental justice advocates say they’ll be working with the city’s government – rather than against it.
Carbon market tanks off the back of Govt’s proposed climate law changes
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.
NZ off-track for 2030 methane target
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.
Is climate law change a first nail in the coffin for Climate Commission?
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.
Govt climate policy set by vested interests to delay emissions cuts - Carr
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.
Canada could eliminate oil and gas emissions cap, budget plan says
6 Nov 2025
Canada could scrap a cap on oil and gas emissions in favor of other measures like strengthened industrial carbon pricing and the deployment of carbon capture and storage technology, the government said in a budget plan unveiled on Tuesday.
Govt slashes environmental funding by $1 billion
Tue 25 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Central government funding for the environment is set to fall by a quarter in 2025/26, prompting warnings that hard-won environmental improvements may now stall or reverse.
Local council shakeup will weaken environmental protection, say critics
Today 11:45am
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government’s sweeping overhaul of local councils threatens to erode hard-won environmental protections, warning that stripping regional councils of directly elected governance will weaken oversight of freshwater, biodiversity and land-use decisions.
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.
Herds-of-interest bill clears second reading
Today 11:45am
Legislation to entrench hunter-managed herds of deer and other game animals in national parks has passed its second reading, despite opposition from Labour, the Greens and conservation groups.
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.
Elevated volatility continues for carbon market despite govt reassurances
Today 11:45am
By Liz Kivi | While carbon prices have recovered somewhat from recent lows, the market is still plagued by low prices and volatility, despite soothing words from the government intended to calm rattled participants.
This year’s climate talks saw real progress – just not on fossil fuels
Today 11:45am
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva dubbed it the “COP of Truth”. Delegates did not shy away from the urgency of the moment as climate change intensifies and emissions continue to climb.
Mounting emissions due to Government decisions
Thu 20 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Coalition Government’s climate policies have added a whopping 26 million tonnes of emissions out to 2030, according to new analysis of Government projections.
Act-NZ First split over future of the energy sector
14 Nov 2025
Act leader David Seymour has set out an energy policy platform that diverges sharply from coalition partner NZ First, arguing New Zealand must accept coal-fired backup generation, consider nuclear power, remove political interference from the electricity sector and sell down the government’s majority stakes in the gentailers.
'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.
Experts dismiss coalition claims Chris Bowen cannot remain minister while leading COP31 negotiations
Today 11:45am
Experts have dismissed claims Chris Bowen cannot remain a senior minister while playing a leading role in international climate negotiations, with one describing the argument as evidence of an Australian “culture cringe”.
Cheaper power and lower emissions for Chatham Islands funded by ETS revenue
Today 11:45am
By Liz Kivi | The government has hailed the success of a wind turbine project for the Chatham Islands paid for by Emissions Trading Scheme revenue from a fund the Coalition Government has since canned.
Councils call for action on sweltering new homes
Today 11:45am
Media release | The New Zealand Green Building Council and Auckland Council are calling for Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk to take steps to address the problem of new homes overheating.
DOC trims costs and winds down jobs for nature
10 Nov 2025
The Department of Conservation (DOC) is entering a new phase of tighter budgets and structural change as it winds down the pandemic-era Jobs for Nature programme and reshapes its operations to absorb long-term cost pressures.
Europe plans service to gauge climate change role in extreme weather
Mon 24 Nov 2025
The EU is launching a service to measure the role climate change is playing in extreme weather events like heatwaves and extreme rain, and experts say this could help governments set climate policy, improve financial risk assessments and provide evidence for use in lawsuits.
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.
Foresters warn ETS reforms could fell innovation
17 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Elizabeth Heeg, chief executive officer for the Forest Owners Association, says forestry must not be stripped from the Emissions Trading Scheme, arguing that carbon income underpins forest management and rural resilience.
NZ’s energy system at a crossroads – report
Fri 21 Nov 2025
A new report says New Zealand’s rapid shift toward a 95% renewable electricity system is at a critical turning point, urging faster consenting, stronger firming solutions and better grid planning.
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.”
European Investment Bank pledges over 2 billion euros for African renewables projects
Today 11:45am
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is pledging more than 2 billion euros ($2.3 billion) of financing for renewable energy projects on the African continent over the next two years.
Govt’s rejection of CCC’s advice on climate targets undermines independent watchdog’s role, says opposition
Fri 21 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s latest dismissal of Climate Change Commission advice shows they have their heads in the sand about the reality of meeting climate targets, according to the Labour Party, while the Greens say Government decisions were an embarrassment on the world stage at COP30 this week.
TotalEnergies loses in Paris court, marking a turning point for fossil fuel truth-in-advertising
5 Nov 2025
TotalEnergies was found to have misled consumers about its role in the energy transition.
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.
Insurers welcome govt decision to keep NHC levy unchanged
Fri 21 Nov 2025
Media release |The Insurance Council of New Zealand | Te Kāhui Inihua o Aotearoa (ICNZ) has welcomed the Government’s decision to leave the Natural Hazards Commission levy unchanged, amid ongoing concerns around the cost-of-living.
Why I’m not outraged at the Govt’s latest climate backsliding
7 Nov 2025
COMMENT: The Government’s latest climate rollbacks underline New Zealand’s long history of a lack of genuine desire to cut emissions, writes Geoff Bertram.
Minister warned over lack of rationale for climate policy
Tue 25 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ formal explanation of why the Government isn’t going to follow the independent Climate Change Commission’s advice on climate targets is still in the pipeline, the Minister has confirmed.
NZ fails to back ‘roadmap’ to phase out fossil fuels at COP
Mon 24 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Eighty-six countries including Australia, the UK, Germany, and Ireland backed a proposal at COP30 for national plans on how to quit oil, gas and coal – but New Zealand wasn’t one of them.
Greens put miners ‘on notice’, pledge to revoke fast-track approvals
18 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Greens have pledged to revoke fast-track consents for coal, hard-rock gold, and seabed mining projects if elected to government next year.
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.
‘We must keep 1.5 alive’ – Minister’s statement to climate summit
19 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts has delivered New Zealand’s National Statement to this year’s United Nations climate summit, affirming the country’s commitment to international climate targets and saying “we must keep 1.5 alive.”
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.
Thousands march outside COP30 summit in call for action
18 Nov 2025
Marching to the beat of pounding sound systems, thousands of climate protesters have been bringing their message to the gates of the COP30 climate talks in Brazil.
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.
The strange and totally real plan to blot out the sun and reverse global warming
Tue 25 Nov 2025
A 25-person startup is developing technology to block the sun and turn down the planet’s thermostat. The stakes are huge – and the company and its critics say regulations need to catch up.
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.
Artificial intelligence sparks debate at COP30 climate talks in Brazil
Thu 20 Nov 2025
At the U.N. climate talks in Brazil, artificial intelligence is being cast as both a hero worthy of praise and a villain that needs policing.
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.
Singapore sets course for 'green' methanol ship fuel supplies
Today 11:45am
Singapore will start issuing bunkering licences next year to companies supplying methanol as marine fuel, in an effort to help global shipping cut carbon emissions.
UN warns world losing climate battle but fragile COP30 deal keeps up the fight
Tue 25 Nov 2025
Reaching agreement in divisive political landscape shows ‘climate cooperation is alive and kicking’, says UN climate chief.
Kaicycle celebrates ten years of collective climate action in Pōneke
14 Nov 2025
Media release: Kaicycle | Since 2015, Kaicycle has grown from a humble pilot project growing kai and collecting compost on bicycles into the thriving urban farm and composting hub that Wellingtonians know and love.
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.
Amid the ashes
Today 11:45am
This year the LA wildfire came for my hometown. What happened next is a warning for us all.
New partnership to fast-track grid connections for major renewable and storage projects
Fri 21 Nov 2025
Powerco Transmission Services (PTS) has signed a new agreement with Kākāriki Renewables to streamline delivering large-scale wind, solar, and battery projects across New Zealand, in a move intended to accelerate the country’s transition to a low-emissions energy system.
