Topics tagged with 'Politics'
NZ agrees to help finance Samoa's climate goals
16 Jun 2022
New Zealand has agreed to help Samoa finance its climate goals, including its Nationally Determined Contribution, national climate adaptation plan, and a goal of 100% renewable energy generation by 2025.
He Waka Eke Noa all talk no action: NZIEF
13 Jun 2022
The NZ Institute of Forestry has declared last week’s He Waka Eke Noa emissions pricing proposal all talk and no action.
Transport minister off to Norway to check out EVs
13 Jun 2022
Transport minister Michael Wood is off to Norway today to attend the International Electric Vehicle Symposium and Exhibition in Oslo.
Fiji says climate change, not conflict, is Asia's biggest security threat
13 Jun 2022
Fiji's defence minister said on Sunday that climate change posed the biggest security threat in the Asia-Pacific region, a shift in tone at a defence summit that has been dominated by the war in Ukraine and disputes between China and the United States.
Best by the rest...
10 Jun 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: Climate change driving extreme autumn weather; the view from Tuvalu on the climate crisis; and how the government broke its own climate rules to subsidise airlines.
Vulnerable nations demand funding for climate losses, fearing UN 'talk shop'
10 Jun 2022
Developing countries are losing wealth as they are hit by extreme weather and rising seas, says V20, amid calls for a new fund to direct money to repair the damage fast
Climate Change Commission backs incentivising farmers to cut emissions
9 Jun 2022
The Climate Change Commission has told the government that financial assistance should be used to encourage farmers to invest in low emission practices.
Auckland Council approves Climate Action Budget
8 Jun 2022
Auckland Mayor Phil Goff’s Climate Action Budget was approved yesterday, with a clear majority of councillors supporting it at a Finance and Performance Committee meeting.
Gas pipeline decision leaves their future open ended
7 Jun 2022
By Ian Llewellyn - Energy and Environment | The Commerce Commission’s decision to tone down its approach to the future of gas pipeline businesses reflects that Government policy in the area is still developing and the possibility the infrastructure may have a use beyond the demise of natural gas.
Russia's war is the end of climate policy as we know it: Ted Nordhaus
7 Jun 2022
Four days after Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine, the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released its latest assessment of the impacts of global warming. Leading media outlets did their best to pick out the most dire scenarios and findings from the report. But the outbreak of the first major European war since 1945 kept the report off the front page or, at the very least, below the fold.
Global consumers demanding a low emissions economy: Stuart Nash
3 Jun 2022
Minister for economic and regional development Stuart Nash says manufacturers shouldn’t underestimate the power of global consumers and their desire for truly sustainable goods.
Best by the rest...
3 Jun 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: The farming lobby split over climate policy; the Reserve Bank takes on fuel prices; and Australia pledges climate action in the Pacific.
Reserve Bank seeks feedback on climate change’s place in monetary policy
2 Jun 2022
The Reserve Bank is seeking feedback on whether climate change should be taken into account when setting interest rates.
Wetland regulations welcomed by industry, attacked by Forest and Bird
2 Jun 2022
Forest and Bird says the government’s announcement that it will allow coal mining and other industries to operate on remaining wetlands is disastrous for the climate and biodiversity.
Auckland's billion-dollar climate budget
2 Jun 2022
Auckland Council's billion-dollar package to help tackle the climate crisis is a step closer, with the proposed annual budget for 2022-2023 released yesterday.
Anthony Albanese to create climate super-department in bureaucratic shake-up
2 Jun 2022
Anthony Albanese will create a new mega-department of climate change, energy, environment and water to drive the new Labor government’s policy agenda.
Pacific Island climate change mitigation could benefit from new cold war
1 Jun 2022
The US and New Zealand have committed themselves to supporting Pacific Island countries combat climate change in a joint statement released following a meeting between president Joe Biden and prime minister Jacinda Ardern in the White House yesterday.
China’s climate change Pacific reset
31 May 2022
By Jeremy Rose | Last month saw the opening of the China-Pacific Island Countries Climate Action Cooperation Centre in Liaocheng City, Shandong Province. It’s opening, perhaps not surprisingly, barely rated a mention in the New Zealand and Australian media.
Watchdogs tackle the murky world of greenwash
31 May 2022
From dubious claims about bamboo-based products to climate funds that are not quite what they seem, regulators have been increasing their scrutiny of corporate claims to be green.
Public transport missing from NZ California climate MOC
30 May 2022
The New Zealand California climate change memorandum of cooperation, signed over the weekend, makes no mention of public transport unlike an earlier deal between Japan and California.
How mass shootings, ecofascism and climate change got tied together
30 May 2022
Two recent mass shootings in communities of color are renewing fears among environmental groups and climate activists that a growing number of young men are adopting racist right-wing ideologies to explain the worsening climate crisis and justify extreme violence.
Taranaki protest against seismic survey to be held tomorrow
27 May 2022
A rally is being held at Waitara Marine Park to protest the resumption of seismic testing for oil and gas tomorrow afternoon.
Best by the rest...
27 May 2022
In our weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: How will the country meet emissions budgets? Different approaches to mode shift; and the disastrous effects of rising sea temperatures are already being felt.
Climate change was the defining issue of Australian election. So what will more ambitious action look like?
27 May 2022
Despite Labor and the Coalition being conspicuously quiet about climate change during the campaign, it was in many ways the defining issue of this historic change of government.
Climate burns the right
27 May 2022
Climate change is heating up elections — and the right is getting torched
Finland's nuclear free moment
27 May 2022
Finland could soon become the first country in the world to legally commit to carbon negativity.
Island states back Vanuatu’s quest for climate justice at the UN
25 May 2022
Pacific and Caribbean nations have joined Vanuatu in calling for an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on countries’ legal obligations to protect people from climate harm.
UK’s net zero target is under threat because there’s no plan to pay for it
25 May 2022
The UK government’s plan for achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 is at a serious risk of sinking before it’s been fully launched. With the Treasury having rejected a request by MPs to come up with a “clear funding plan”, there’s now every chance that an already bad plan will turn into no plan at all.
Environment committee calls for submissions
24 May 2022
The Environment Committee Komiti Taiao is inviting public submissions on the government’s emissions budgets and Emissions Reduction Plan.
Shift to whole of energy system targets confirmed
23 May 2022
By Ian Llewellyn - editor Energy and Environment | The government’s shift to considering the energy system as a whole rather than focussing solely on getting electricity generation to 100% renewable by 2030 was confirmed by the Emissions Reduction Plan released last week.
Australian climate election leaves Liberal Party demolished in the capital cities
23 May 2022
Australians have voted overwhelmingly for stronger action on climate change, with stunning results across the country for both teal independents and the Greens delivering a harsh rebuke to the Morrison government’s years of foot-dragging on emissions reduction.
UK carbon tax on imports could stop firms from outsourcing CO2 emissions as nations tackle climate crisis
18 May 2022
The UK has moved a step closer to imposing a carbon tax on all imports to stop companies from outsourcing their CO2 emissions to foreign countries.
ERP: Experts respond
17 May 2022
Some experts welcomed yesterday’s Emissions Reduction Plan as a positive step, however others see it as full of missed opportunities.
Australian election 2022: What the manifestos say on energy and climate change
17 May 2022
As Australians head to the polls on 21 May, voters face a decision that could have significant consequences for the nation’s efforts to cut emissions and transition its energy system.
$2.9 billion allocated to reducing emission over the next four years
16 May 2022
Critics will dismiss it as little more than a speed bump on the highway to climate catastrophe while its supporters will welcome it as a multi-modal map to a net carbon zero New Zealand in 2050.
Shaw worried carbon budgets don’t go far enough
13 May 2022
“I know that there are those who will be worried that these emissions budgets do not go far enough. I'm one of them,” climate change minister James Shaw told Parliament yesterday in the opening speech of a special debate on the government’s recently announced emission budgets.
Best by the rest...
13 May 2022
In our Weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: Congestion charges coming to major cities; climate politics, both here and across the ditch; and how the climate crisis is disproportionately impacting Maori.
Climate goes missing in action in Russia’s war
13 May 2022
Making big promises at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow was hard; six months later, governments are finding out that actually following through on them is even harder.
Overseas carbon liabilities to be included in Crown accounts in future
12 May 2022
Finance Minister Grant Robertson says Treasury is working on how to include the cost of meeting New Zealand’s Nationally Determined Contribution obligations in the Crown accounts, but it will take time.
Scientists rate Aussie political parties' climate policies
11 May 2022
You'd think the government and opposition would be keen to focus on the number-one issue for voters this election campaign. Yet if 2019 was the climate change election, 2022 is shaping up to be the don't-talk-about-climate-change election.
ACT proposes blitzkrieg of climate bureaucracy
10 May 2022
The ACT Party says it would scrap the Climate Change Commission and Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority and ditch all climate change related subsidies and environment-related job schemes, in its alternative budget launched yesterday.
Te Paati Maori comes out in support of permanent pine forests
10 May 2022
Debbie Ngawera-Packer, Te Paati Maori co-leader and climate change spokesperson, has come out in support of pine forests, attacking government proposals to remove exotic species from the permanent forestry category of the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).
German transport minister plans massive increase of e-car subsidies
10 May 2022
Germany’s transport ministry plans to almost double e-car subsidies to achieve climate targets, but experts and NGOs criticise the plans as hugely expensive and ineffective, reports business daily Handelsblatt
Cabinet sets emissions budget to 2035
9 May 2022
Cabinet has set New Zealand’s first three emissions budgets to take the country to 2035, in line with the plan to reach net zero emissions by 2050, Climate Change Minister James Shaw announced this morning.
Hawaii legislature calls for fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty
9 May 2022
Hawaii lawmakers put the state on the path to making history after the Legislature passed a resolution last week endorsing a document called the "Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty."
Israel advances its first Climate Bill in bid to hit emission goals
9 May 2022
After several delays, and in what Israel environmental protection minister Tamar Zandberg hailed as a “historic moment,” the Ministerial Committee for Legislation on Sunday approved Israel’s first Climate Bill
What remains of the U.S. Green New Deal?
9 May 2022
In November 2018, the Green New Deal became a rallying cry for climate activists when members of the Sunrise Movement occupied House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office and adopted the slogan as their unifying message.
All coal boilers to be removed from schools
9 May 2022
Media Release - Thanks to a $10 million dollar investment, all remaining coal boilers in New Zealand schools will be replaced with renewable woody biomass or electric heating sources by 2025 reducing carbon emissions by around 35,400 tonnes over 10 years, Climate Change Minister James Shaw announced on Friday.
Vanuatu spearheads International Court of Justice climate claim
6 May 2022
The government of Vanuatu has assembled a coalition of more than 1500 civil society organisation from 130 countries to support its plans to take a climate change claim to the International Court of Justice in the Hague.
Best by the rest...
6 May 2022
In our Weekly round-up of the best climate coverage in the local media: Sea levels are rising and Kiwi communities are sinking - who will pay for the damage? And Green MP Chlöe Swarbrick argues for collective responsibility on climate change.
Governments must vote in favour of moratorium on deep sea mining
Tue 29 Jul 2025
Media release - Greenpeace | The 30th session of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) has ended with Greenpeace saying governments are continuing to fall short in protecting the deep sea.
Does NZ need a national incentive scheme for wetlands?
25 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | An expert is calling for a national incentive programme to restore New Zealand’s wetlands and wants to stop schemes to drain these vital carbon-sequestering ecosystems.
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.
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”.
Challenges persist in bid to mine the deep sea, even after boost from Trump
Tue 29 Jul 2025
After years of delay, the deep-sea mining plans of Canadian firm The Metals Company (TMC) now appear to be progressing as it pursues a controversial new path to securing a license to mine in international waters under U.S. jurisdiction.
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
Today 11:45am
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.
The US is sitting out the most consequential climate summit in a decade. It may offer a victory to China
Today 11:45am
The Trump administration fired the last of the US climate negotiators earlier this month, helping cement America’s withdrawal from international climate diplomacy. It may also have handed a huge victory to China.
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.
Coal use drove recent emissions increase
Today 11:45am
Increased use of coal for electricity generation was a large driver for an increase in New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions in the last quarter.
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?
Today 11:45am
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.
Bill to restart oil and gas exploration clears final hurdle
Today 11:45am
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The government’s Crown Minerals Amendment Bill is set to become law after passing its third reading in parliament last night, with critics calling it humiliating for the climate minister and an embarrassment to New Zealand's international reputation.
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.
Warmer than usual weather ahead, wetter in north and east, as La Niña signals strengthen
Today 11:45am
Media release – Earth Sciences New Zealand | Seasonal Outlook Climate August to October 2025 suggests warm, damp weather, with La Niña’s possible return.
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.
Wilding pines threaten Molesworth Station
Mon 28 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Without increased support, the unchecked spread of wilding pines will continue to creep across Marlborough’s high country – putting iconic landscapes and one of New Zealand’s top five biodiversity hotspots at serious risk, according to an expert.
Last minute change to oil and gas legislation over cleanup costs
Thu 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.
A modest geothermal strategy
Thu 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.
European Central Bank to consider 'climate factor' when lending to banks
Thu 31 Jul 2025
The European Central Bank will add climate change considerations to its lending operations from late 2026, raising pressure on banks to channel financing towards greener sectors as the euro zone seeks to reduce its carbon footprint.
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.
‘Ideological sludge’: How NZ is quiet quitting climate action
17 Jul 2025
New Zealand once stood out as a world leader on climate change. In June it became the first country in the world to abandon a commitment to phase out oil, gas and coal.
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
Tue 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.
Climate catastrophes are creating a ‘new market reality’ for insurance carriers
23 Jul 2025
Raging wildfires and severe storms contributed to record-high global insurance losses — totalling an estimated US$84 billion — for the first six months of the year.
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.
Multi-day protest continues at coal mine
Wed 30 Jul 2025
Bathurst Resources has been forced to truck coal from its Stockton mine as climate activists occupy coal buckets at the mine for a third day.
Fund for low emissions transport winds up
Thu 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.
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.
Toxic algae are turning South Australia’s coral reefs into underwater graveyards
Tue 29 Jul 2025
Since March, a harmful algal bloom, fueled by a marine heat wave, has been choking South Australia’s coastline.
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.
Tipping points: Window to avoid irreversible climate impacts is ‘rapidly closing’
11 Jul 2025
In the midst of a record-breaking heatwave in Europe, the UK city of Exeter recently played host to the second international conference on “tipping points”.
‘Total infiltration’: How plastics industry swamped vital global treaty talks
Mon 28 Jul 2025
Petrostates and well-funded lobbyists at UN-hosted talks are derailing a deal to cut plastic production and protect people and the planet.
Activists sue US development bank over $4.6bn loan to massive Mozambique gas project
18 Jul 2025
Environmental groups claim loan is ‘unlawful’ in legal filing.
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.
Tilting at windmills? Trump’s claims about turbines fact-checked
Thu 31 Jul 2025
The US president has taken a swipe at wind power as the blades visible from his Turnberry golf course turn.
Ocean heatwaves may signal climate tipping point
25 Jul 2025
A recent study that tapped into satellite data has revealed that 2023 marked an unprecedented year for marine heatwaves, with record-breaking levels of duration, reach and intensity across the world's oceans.
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
Tue 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.
The ICJ’s ruling means Australia and other major polluters face a new era of climate reparations
25 Jul 2025
By Harj Narulla | OPINION: Australia has found itself on the wrong side of history.
Waste Levy risks becoming ‘slush fund’ under proposed changes – Commissioner
5 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Proposed changes to New Zealand's waste legislation risk undermining public trust in the waste levy scheme, according to Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Simon Upton.
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.
