Topics tagged with 'Politics'
Govt invests in biomass research and bioenergy plant for Tairāwhiti
12 Jun 2023
The government is investing in a bioenergy plant, as well as research into biomass and better forestry practices, with the aim of making the forestry industry more sustainable.
Fuel bills get differing responses
12 Jun 2023
Two fuels sector bills made progress in Parliament last week.
Best by the rest...
9 Jun 2023
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in local media: Climate scientist James Renwick says, on a finite planet, never-ending growth of anything is unsustainable; National says He Waka Eke Noa is “dead”; and Taranaki council wants seabed mining banned.
New report: regional plans could transform freshwater quality
9 Jun 2023
Media release | A report laying out weaknesses in planning that have seen the deterioration of our high-country lakes should be compulsory reading for all regional councils as they develop their new regional plans according to academics.
Call for moratorium on new mines on conservation land after Labour fails to fulfil its promise
8 Jun 2023
Media release | The Government has failed to support a Bill which would have ended new mines on conservation land. Forest & Bird says that is a broken promise which will threaten native species and allow further extraction of coal in the middle of a climate emergency.
No FERT tax - govt running out of time and patience with agri sector
2 Jun 2023
With an election looming the Government is running out of time to lock in an alternative pricing mechanism for agricultural emissions. More than running out of time, the government is reportedly running out of patience as the agricultural sector pushes back again and calls for more delay. Meanwhile, emissions keep fueling climate catastrophes.
‘Systemic vulnerabilities’ led to insufficient protection of Canterbury lakes
30 May 2023
A new report from the ministry of environment has found “no systems were in place that allowed a timely response” to the decline of the Ōtūwharekai/Ashburton Lakes area of Canterbury.
DeSantis accused of ‘catastrophic’ climate approach after campaign launch
29 May 2023
Florida Governor, Ron DeSantis, accused of a “catastrophic” approach to the climate crisis after he launched his campaign for US president saying he rejects the “politicization of the weather”.
COP28: Government defends oil boss Jaber to head talks
29 May 2023
The UK government has defended the United Arab Emirates' appointment of oil executive Sultan al-Jaber as head of this year's UN COP28 climate summit.
Climate change: most significant threat to Pacific lives and livelihoods
24 May 2023
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins this week met with Cook Islands Prime Minister, Mark Brown. The leaders met in Papua New Guinea to discuss the ongoing recovery from the impacts of COVID-19.
Govt, NZ Steel to take action towards a low emissions economy
22 May 2023
The government will invest up to $140 million to subsidise one of the country’s largest greenhouse gas emitters, making it New Zealand’s biggest decarbonisation plan to date.
G7 Nations Wrangle Over Ambitious Climate Commitments
22 May 2023
The U.S. finds itself caught between defending President Biden’s climate change agenda and aiding allies intent on increasing their access to fossil fuels.
Government account green hydrogen rebate as part of Budget 2023
19 May 2023
The Government cements its long term commitment to green hydrogen playing an intrinsic role in New Zealand’s low emissions future with the Budget announcement of $100 million being set aside for the introduction of a green hydrogen rebate, with $32.5 m allocated for the first four years.
Cop28 host UAE’s approach is ‘dangerous’, says UN’s ex-climate chief
18 May 2023
The United Arab Emirates’ approach to the Cop28 climate summit it will preside over in November is “very dangerous” and a “direct threat to the survival of vulnerable nations”, according to the UN’s former climate chief.
UNESCO study: climate change impact on education in Asia-Pacific region
18 May 2023
UNESCO has published a new regional report analysing the impacts of climate change and displacement on the right to education in the Asia-Pacific region.
Land Use Inquiry does not safeguard against climate change: Forestry owners
15 May 2023
The Forest Owners Association says the Ministerial Inquiry into Land Use will not safeguard forest owners against the long-term impacts of climate change.
Carbon capture key to Biden’s new power-plant rule: is the tech ready?
15 May 2023
The administration of US President Joe Biden has proposed a landmark regulation that aims to curb emissions from the power sector in the United States over the next two decades.
Youth-led climate change lawsuit challenging Montana's pro-fossil fuel policies heads to trial
15 May 2023
A US judge says a climate change lawsuit from young people challenging Montana's pro-fossil fuel policies will proceed to trial despite efforts by the state to derail the case.
Select committee waters down bill designed to balance profit with environmental and social outcomes
12 May 2023
A private members bill that could have seen the climate recognised as a stakeholder in private companies has been watered down at select committee.
Government in the dock over ETS decisions
10 May 2023
Lawyers for Climate Action New Zealand (LCANZI) has filed high court proceedings challenging Cabinet’s rejection of the Climate Change Commission’s advice on the emissions trading scheme settings.
Green Investment Finance gets $300m govt boost
10 May 2023
In a pre-budget announcement yesterday, Climate Change minister James Shaw said New Zealand Green Investment Finance will receive an additional $300 million in investment capital from the government.
El Paso voters soundly reject Proposition K Climate Charter
9 May 2023
El Paso voters on Saturday shot down the controversial Proposition K measure that sought to install policies designed to address climate change into the city’s charter. The Climate Charter was rejected by almost 82% of voters.
Agriculture minister attends US/UAE sponsored summit
8 May 2023
Agriculture minister Damien O’Connor is in Washington DC attending the Agricultural Innovation Mission for Climate Summit organised by the US and the United Arab Emirates.
Australian government's new ‘net zero’ body gets green light from key union and Climate Council
8 May 2023
The Albanese government’s new ‘National Net Zero Authority’ – a body that will help workers in fossil fuel industries to transition into other employment – has won high praise from two key bodies that savaged past governments over their climate change policies.
Haere rā to unhealthy hospital coal boilers
4 May 2023
Coal boilers will be a thing of the past in nation’s hospitals and tertiary institutions by the end of 2025.
Market indifferent to commission’s advice
3 May 2023
By Jeremy Rose | Last Wednesday, journalists covering the release of the Climate Change Commission’s draft advice on the second emissions plan had to surrender their cellphones during a seven-and-a-half hour lock-up, and were under a strict embargo to coincide with the closing of the secondary carbon market.
Momentum grows over a 'just' climate transition in Japan
1 May 2023
It is perhaps fitting that April’s Group of Seven Ministers’ Meeting on Climate, Energy and Environment was held in Sapporo, because the view on final approach to New Chitose Airport provides a good education on the trickier aspects of Japan’s climate challenge.
Forestry issue lobbying intensifies
26 Apr 2023
As the deadline for the Ministerial Inquiry into Land Use in Tairāwhiti to report draws closer, lobbying over the issue has become more intense, especially with a new minister at the helm.
Barn-fed animals will have far lower emissions than NZ produced meat: Rod Carr
26 Apr 2023
Climate Change Commission chair Rod Carr says Europe's barn-fed livestock will increasingly have a far lower carbon footprint than meat produced in New Zealand.
Climate emergency lacks urgency: Rod Carr
24 Apr 2023
Climate Change Commission chair Rod Carr tells Carbon News New Zealand's climate emergency lacks urgency, and while he loves markets it should be acknowledged they're myopic, reckless, and selfish.
Why the debt ceiling debate is also a climate fight
24 Apr 2023
Congress is once again fighting over the nation’s debt ceiling, the legal limit on how much the United States can borrow.
Who's going to pay for the Government’s climate sweeteners now?
21 Apr 2023
The government has announced the latest round of its decarbonisation of industry fund, despite the very real possibility that the revenues from the Emissions Trading Scheme that pay for it could be non-existent this year.
Best by the rest...
21 Apr 2023
In our weekly round-up of the best climate reporting in local media: how the Environment Minister failed to stop a major polluter getting ahead of a climate law change; why the Climate Change Commission’s advice could increase costs for Kiwis; and crowdsourcing for Papatūānuku - Te Tairāwhiti style.
Govt plans to speed up consenting of renewable energy projects
20 Apr 2023
UPDATED: The government is proposing changes to the RMA to fast-track renewable electricity projects.
EU Parliament adopts 'holy trinity' of climate laws
19 Apr 2023
The European Parliament has approved three climate laws that form the heart of EU efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030.
Solar energy projects to get fast-track consenting
18 Apr 2023
Two solar farms with the potential to cut over 200 million kilograms of carbon pollution a year are having their consenting processes fast tracked.
NZ gives $15 million to Solomon Islands climate fund
18 Apr 2023
The government has committed $15 million dollars to a Solomon Island climate adaptation fund.
Climate council warns Germany against 'pushing off' responsibility to Europe
18 Apr 2023
Germany must increase efforts to reduce emissions even as the European Union introduces stricter climate legislation, said Brigitte Knopf, deputy chairwoman of the country’s Council of Experts on Climate Change.
EU exit from climate-killing energy treaty looms
18 Apr 2023
Denmark joins a spate of EU nations including Germany, Spain, France and the Netherlands who are exiting the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), an investment pact weaponised by big emitters to sue governments — most recently for phasing out fossil fuels.
Can US automakers meet EPA’s tough new standards?
17 Apr 2023
One big question keeps surfacing after the Biden administration announced plans to raise auto standards so sharply they would likely boost electric vehicle production to 67% of all new passenger vehicle sales in under a decade: Can automakers pull that off?
Biden’s dangerous two-step on climate
17 Apr 2023
If the Biden administration is so gung ho about climate, why did it approve a big-ass oil-drilling project in Alaska a few weeks ago?
Swedish climate minister dismisses far-right’s biofuel threats
13 Apr 2023
Climate and Environment Minister Romina Pourmokhtari dismissed threats of political crisis from the far-right Sweden Democrats, who want the currently undecided government to reduce the number of biofuels that must be blended into petrol and diesel from the current 30% mandate to virtually zero.
Solving electricity’s dry year problem will cost $13 - $16 billion: Woods
6 Apr 2023
Energy and Resources minister Megan Woods says solving New Zealand’s dry year problem will cost between $13 to $16 billion.
Former Australian defence leaders urge govt to release climate change report
6 Apr 2023
The Australian government has brushed aside a call from former defence leaders who are urging it to release a secret report into the national security risks posed by climate change.
Native Americans get the $720 million for climate they deserve
6 Apr 2023
The Inflation Reduction Act directs unprecedented funding to tribes and Native communities for climate resilience and solutions.
Govt's proposed changes will dish out millions more free carbon credits
5 Apr 2023
By Liz Kivi | Proposed changes to the Climate Change Response Act would give millions more free carbon credits to big polluters and contradict Aotearoa’s emissions reduction goals, according to an expert.
Parker says RMA reforms will proceed
4 Apr 2023
Environment Minister David Parker appears confident he can get through resource management reform ahead of the election.
National Party promises to double renewables
31 Mar 2023
The National Party today announced a new energy policy that it says will double renewable energy growth.
NZ stands with Vanuatu on climate at UN
31 Mar 2023
Media release - New Zealand is welcoming a decision by the United Nations General Assembly to ask the International Court of Justice to consider countries’ international legal obligations on climate change.
Farm-level emissions cuts possible, but almost everything stands in the way
18 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Progress to slash farming emissions is being blocked by limited farmer confidence in mitigation tools, inconsistent engagement, misinformation and a lack of clear policy signals, according to a new report.
State-owned farmer drives profit growth with emissions reductions
19 Dec 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Government-owned Landcorp, trading as Pāmu, is one-third of the way to meeting its 2031 emissions reduction targets, with five years left to run to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 30.3% against 2021 emissions.
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.
‘Cali Fund’ aiming to raise billions for nature receives first donation – of just $1,000
16 Dec 2025
A major biodiversity fund – which could, in theory, generate billions of dollars annually for conservation – received its first donation of just $1,000 in November.
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.
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.
Seven quiet wins for climate and nature in 2025
19 Dec 2025
This year's environmental backdrop is familiar: emissions are rising and nature is continuing to decline. But there have nevertheless been bright spots in 2025.
Govt unveils plans for carbon storage regulations – and ETS rewards
18 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government has released plans to regulate carbon capture and storage in natural geological formations, which include Emissions Trading Scheme incentives, with the aim of introducing related legislation in 2026.
Global coal demand hit record high this year but is set to decline by 2030
18 Dec 2025
Global coal demand reached a record high in 2025 but is expected to decline by 2030 as renewables, nuclear power and abundant natural gas squeeze its dominance in power generation.
Investors must support positive climate-tech
28 Nov 2025
OPINION: We need better leadership than the current ‘climate opportunism’ that is rife in the Beehive, and we need to back a marketplace that will make it happen, writes Rob Campbell.
RMA’s successors hinge on two untested bets
17 Dec 2025
Two ideas sit at the heart of the Government’s replacement for the Resource Management Act: regulatory relief and spatial planning.
India at COP30: A mismatch between grandstanding and climate action
11 Dec 2025
Despite India’s attempt to anoint itself as the leader of the developing world, at the COP30 summit, New Delhi’s track record remains contradictory.
Govt warned that scrapping ag emission pricing comes with risks
11 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s move to halt plans for agricultural emissions pricing without replacing it with any other action will leave New Zealand facing a bigger gap to meet its third emissions budget, Environment ministry officials have warned.
NZ hydrogen regulation to catch up with the world
18 Dec 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | The government has announced a regulatory reset for New Zealand’s emerging clean tech hydrogen sector.
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.
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.
Transport dominates NZ’s rising consumer emissions
10 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Transport pollution was the biggest contributor to an increase in New Zealand’s consumption-based emissions in 2023, with emissions from household travel up 12%, and consumption-based emissions totalling 58.3 million tonnes – up 1.6% from the previous year.
Hydrogen emissions are ‘supercharging’ the warming impact of methane
19 Dec 2025
The warming impact of hydrogen has been “overlooked” in projections of climate change, according to authors of the latest “global hydrogen budget”.
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.”
Westpac NZ announces partnership to form Blue Economy hub in Nelson
17 Dec 2025
Media release | Westpac NZ has announced a new three-year partnership with the Nelson Regional Development Agency and Kernohan Engineering to help accelerate the development of a sustainable marine economy – also known as the blue economy.
NZ ‘clearly’ breaching international law on climate – Vanuatu Climate Change Minister
12 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | Vanuatu’s Climate Change Minister, Ralph Regenvanu, says New Zealand restarting fossil fuel exploration and subsidies is an obvious breach of international law, exposing the country to international and domestic litigation.
Govt slammed for weakening methane target
15 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams The Government has pushed through legislation under urgency to almost halve New Zealand’s 2050 methane target – a move Opposition parties say disregards scientific advice, breaks the country’s hard-won political consensus on climate action, and shifts the burden of higher warming and higher future costs onto the next generation.
COP30 microcosm of difficult geopolitics, says Vanuatu's Climate Minister
15 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | Despite ‘intransigent’ states blocking multilateralism and a disappointing official outcome, Vanuatu’s Climate Change Minister Ralph Regenvanu says he left the COP30 climate summit feeling more positive than after previous UN climate conferences.
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
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.
Three Greenpeace activists removed by police from Fonterra
17 Dec 2025
Media release | Three Greenpeace activists were removed by police from Fonterra’s downtown Auckland offices, following a protest on Monday at the Shareholders’ Fund meeting over the corporation’s role in the contamination of rural communities’ drinking water.
Oil and gas majors would create $78bn more value by stopping exploration
11 Dec 2025
Media release | Ten of the world’s largest oil and gas companies would create significantly more shareholder value by ending exploration and sharply curtailing upstream development, according to new analysis released today by ACCR.
Wetlands and biodiversity at risk as mining rules loosen: Greenpeace
19 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Greenpeace says Government changes to national direction instruments under the RMA paves the way for mining in wetlands and biodiversity hotspots and will expose some of Aotearoa’s most fragile ecosystems to irreversible damage.
NZ could become ‘dumping ground’ for dirty vehicles: Commissioner
16 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | Simon Upton, Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, has warned the Government that its changes to the clean car standard could turn the country into a dumping ground for high emitting cars, making future emissions budgets harder to achieve.
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.
Offshore windfarms enhance function of coastal waters and diversity of aquatic life
19 Dec 2025
Media release | A study conducted by researchers from Murdoch University in Australia and Dalian Ocean University in China has found that offshore windfarms can improve marine ecosystems and diversify aquatic food chains.
‘A shift no country can ignore’: where global emissions stand, 10 years after the Paris climate agreement
16 Dec 2025
The watershed summit in 2015 was far from perfect, but its impact so far has been significant and measurable.
Govt consulting on Pacific Resilience Facility
12 Dec 2025
The Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee is calling for submissions on its international treaty examination of the Agreement to Establish the Pacific Resilience Facility.
Govt green lights rural recycling scheme
4 Dec 2025
The Government has approved new regulations to bring rural waste schemes under one unified framework.
KiwiRail pauses coal trains amid rising climate protests
9 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Climate activists are ramping up actions this week, with a Christchurch protest leading to KiwiRail pausing some coal train operations on Saturday, and another protest against the Fast-Track Amendment Bill planned for parliament today.
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.
Could tidal energy one day power NZ?
18 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New research suggests Aotearoa holds some of the world’s strongest tidal-stream energy potential – enough to generate up to 93% of today’s electricity use – but one expert cautions that extracting energy at such a scale could have significant impacts and remains highly uncertain.
NZ could lose nearly all glaciers this century without stronger climate action
16 Dec 2025
New Zealand could see 97% of its glaciers vanish by 2100, with new international modelling projecting a rapid acceleration in glacier extinction from the 2030s onward – even under lower-warming scenarios.
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.
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.
The surprisingly convincing case against cars
19 Dec 2025
Life After Cars dares to imagine how different, and enriching, a car-free world could be.
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.
Heatwaves, downpours and droughts – Auckland on track for more extreme weather
1 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New projections show Auckland will face more heatwaves, heavier downpours, worsening droughts and growing coastal threats as climate extremes intensify, according to a new report from Earth Sciences New Zealand.
NZ just had its hottest spring in at least 116 years
10 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | This year New Zealand had its hottest spring since records began, with widespread heat, rainfall extremes and destructive wind driven by sudden stratospheric warming.
Media round-up
12 Dec 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Another offshore wind firm exits New Zealand over a clash with seabed mining; Fonterra falls behind on its climate goals as farm emissions remain flat; and the businesses trapped by the gas 'death spiral'.
