Topics tagged with 'Politics'
Biden says he will ditch subsidies for fossil fuels
21 Aug 2020
United States presidential candidate Joe Biden says he is committed to ending fossil-fuel subsidies after a backlash from environmentalists over the removal of the issue from a Democratic Party policy document.
Net Zero: How we stop causing climate change
20 Aug 2020
The world is nowhere near tackling the climate crisis, says a new book by an Oxford scholar, Net Zero: How we stop causing climate change. But at least we know how to.
SHAW: Next government all about emissions cuts
12 Aug 2020
Climate policy in the next government will focus on tangible ways to cut emissions, Green Party co-leader James Shaw says.
WORTH NOTING ...
12 Aug 2020
The dissolution of Parliament today has been postponed until at least Monday because of the new covid-19 pandemic lockdown imposed last night.
Carbon tax back before US lawmakers
12 Aug 2020
For years, the idea of putting a price on carbon emissions seemed like a no-brainer — economists claimed that it would cut fossil fuel pollution quickly and efficiently, and at the same time, could even give money back to the American public. Over the past few months, as Democrats have rolled out multiple comprehensive plans to slow down climate change and turbocharge renewable energy, the idea of a “carbon tax” has been notably absent.
WORTH NOTING ...
10 Aug 2020
Parliament’s Environment Select Committee meets today to hear submissions on the Building (Building Products and Methods, Modular Components, and Other Matters) Amendment Bill.
FRIDAY POLITICS: It's a choice of slow or slower
7 Aug 2020
Young protesters are targeting both Labour and National with sit-ins in Dunedin today, saying both have failed to address the climate crisis.
EMISSIONS DOWNER: We must make them lower
5 Aug 2020
New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions could be about a fifth lower this year than last year because of covid-19, an international science consortium says.
WORTH NOTING ...
5 Aug 2020
Submissions on proposals to introduce a permitting system for the trade in mercury and to ban mercury from batteries, switches and relays, lamps and other equipment close today.
Count climate in insurance risk, says Robertson
3 Aug 2020
The Reserve Bank should be required to take climate change into account when assessing threats to the insurance industry, the finance minister says.
WORTH NOTING ...
3 Aug 2020
The 52nd Parliament sits this week for the last time, before being dissolved on August 12.
WORTH NOTING ...
31 Jul 2020
Today is the last day for submissions on new air-quality standards to reduce the amount of small particulate matter New Zealanders breathe.
WORTH NOTING ...
30 Jul 2020
The Environment Committee is sitting today to discuss the Crown Pastoral Land Reform Bill.
New law needed for managed retreat, says review
29 Jul 2020
Authorities could have the power to seize land threatened by climate change under a proposed new Public Works Act-type law.
WORTH NOTING ...
28 Jul 2020
Today is the last day to enter the Sustainable Business Awards – get yours in by 5pm.
OPINION: I’m bewildered that Trump would imperil America by abandoning the Paris Agreement
28 Jul 2020
By BAN KI-MOON | The Paris agreement to tackle climate change is an extraordinary opportunity. In a remarkable display of unity, almost every nation on Earth has agreed to make critical changes that will help humanity avoid disaster. But Donald Trump is walking away.
Replace RMA with new law, says EDS
27 Jul 2020
New Zealand's primary planning law, the Resource Management Act should be scrapped and replaced with totally new legislation, the Environmental Defence Society says.
FRIDAY POLITICS: Ready and willing
24 Jul 2020
In a week that saw the end of the political careers of a Cabinet minister and yet another Opposition MP, a political drama of a climate sort has been playing out in suburban Auckland.
Is corona a crisis too far for far-right outsiders?
22 Jul 2020
In recent years, far-right political parties in Europe have capitalised on crises to build their support bases.
We might meet Paris, say officials
21 Jul 2020
New Zealand’s 2030 emissions reduction target might be consistent with the Paris Agreement – it all depends on how you look at it, officials have told the Government.
Pandemic delays ClimCom's first report
16 Jul 2020
The Climate Change Commission is under pressure from the impacts of the covid-19 pandemic and could be up to three months' late filing New Zealand's first emissions-budget recommendations.
Collins will keep zero-carbon law
15 Jul 2020
New National Party leader Judith Collins says zero-carbon legislation will stay in place under a government led by her, but there will be changes.
Future of Big Industry uncertain, warns minister
13 Jul 2020
The future of the Marsden Point oil refinery, the Glenbrook steel mill and large-scale wood processing are all at risk as New Zealand decarbonises, infrastructure and regional development minister Shane Jones is warning.
Fast-track panel chief appointed
8 Jul 2020
Environment Court head Judge Laurie Newhook will oversee the resource consent fast-tracking process under special covid-19 recovery legislation.
FRIDAY POLITICS: Draw your hammer
3 Jul 2020
Climate minister James Shaw is nailing his colours to the mast of the Climate Change Commission.
Let's feed the people first, say ag leaders
2 Jul 2020
Agricultural industry leaders say they need to feed New Zealanders before the rest of the world.
Parker whips home third leg of climate trifecta
26 Jun 2020
The third leg of the Government’s climate change legislation trifecta came home this week.
Green recovery was the great hope of 2009
25 Jun 2020
When the Obama administration entered the White House in January 2009, the first hope was to put people back to work and also accelerate transition to a clean-energy economy.
Make climate-risk a must, urges Carr
24 Jun 2020
The Climate Change Commission has again told the Government that assessing the climate impact of projects should be mandatory under a new fast-track consenting process.
No carbon-zero without new forests
23 Jun 2020
Government suggestions that it will limit forestry conversions to 40,000 hectares a year could prevent the country being carbon-neutral by 2050, forest owners says.
Porritt slams 'staggering ignorance' of markets
22 Jun 2020
Capital markets have consistently devalued the natural world, displaying “staggering ignorance over decades” as they have profited from exploiting it, says the head of Air New Zealand’s sustainability board, Sir Jonathon Porritt.
Financial disclosure no stand-alone fix, says uni
18 Jun 2020
Financial disclosure of companies’ climate and carbon risk won’t drive change without other measures, new research warns.
Parliament does major job on ETS
17 Jun 2020
Parliament has passed major changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme, bringing agricultural emissions into the scheme and, for the first time, setting a cap on emissions.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ...
17 Jun 2020
Anyone wanting to have a say on the Government’s resource consent fast-tracking legislation has got until the end of the week to do it.
Nats should have done more, admits Muller
15 Jun 2020
New National Party leader Todd Muller has admitted his party should have done more about climate change when it was in power.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ...
15 Jun 2020
The overhaul of the Emissions Trading Scheme is due to have its third reading in Parliament this week.
Residents fght to keep compost getting trashed
15 Jun 2020
Just this past March, New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson proposed making composting mandatory for city residents to help combat climate change. Now, with the coronavirus taking an immense financial toll on New York, even food waste recycling programs that existed before that proposition have become casualties of covid-19.
POLITICS: Caution and confusion rules
5 Jun 2020
By ADELIA HALLETT | This week’s political action has seen carbon prices surging forward again.
Shaw sings songs of praise for trading scheme
3 Jun 2020
Climate minister James Shaw – who three years ago was calling for the Emissions Trading Scheme to be scrapped – was singing its praises in Parliament yesterday.
Govt opposed ClimCom in cash-or-credits case
3 Jun 2020
The Government went against the advice of its own Climate Change Commission in allowing companies to continue to pay money instead of surrendering carbon credits to atone for their greenhouse gas emissions.
Effective carbon price-cap will hit $35 this year
2 Jun 2020
The effective price cap on carbon prices in New Zealand will go to $35 this year.
Cities critical to climate, Wellington tells Govt
26 May 2020
One of the country's largest local authorities says the Government 's plans for urban development are at odds with its programme for combatting climate change.
Why a bullet train could increase greenhouse gas emissions
26 May 2020
Bullet trains are back on Australia's political agenda. As the major parties look for ways to stimulate the economy after the COVID-19 crisis, Labor is again spruiking its vision of linking Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra and Brisbane with high-speed trains similar to the Eurostar, France’s TGV or Japan’s Shinkansen.
Muller's got 'very strong views' on cutting carbon
25 May 2020
New National Party leader Todd Muller says the drive toward a low-emissions economy should continue despite the effects of the covid-19 pandemic on the economy.
Green New Deal turns South Korea from climate villain to model
25 May 2020
The country’s youngest MP is on a mission, inspired by Greta Thunberg, as climate moves up political agenda.
POLITICS: It looks like more of the same
22 May 2020
The outcome of National’s leadership stoush today is unlikely to affect the party’s approach to climate policy.
Everybody hold hands and get on with it, says SBC
18 May 2020
The Sustainable Business Council is calling for aa cross-party consensus over the spending of covid-19 pandemic recovery money on decarbonising the economy.
Media round-up
Fri 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.
Kaicycle celebrates ten years of collective climate action in Pōneke
Fri 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.
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.
NZ’s shameful new role as ‘international climate pariah’
Thu 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.
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.
ETS price spike fears drove NDC decoupling
Thu 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.
Australia's green energy push, Pacific ties face setback from COP31 impasse
Fri 14 Nov 2025
Australia risks undermining efforts to establish itself as a leader in the green energy transition and letting down its vulnerable Pacific island neighbours if its bid to host next year's biggest climate summit fails, diplomats and analysts say.
Carbon price’s dead cat bounce
Wed 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.
Act-NZ First split over future of the energy sector
Fri 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.
COP30: Brazil tries to find a home for tricky issues
Fri 14 Nov 2025
Brazil is trying to craft a compromise package on several contentious issues and has dismissed the idea of a roadmap away from fossil fuels.
NZ backs international government push for high-integrity carbon markets
Thu 13 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand has joined a coalition of governments aiming to strengthen corporate demand for voluntary carbon credits.
Clean energy could become a huge political winner
Wed 12 Nov 2025
Rising power bills quietly shaped this year’s races – and gave Democrats a new attack line on climate.
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.
Coastal roads in the climate spotlight
Fri 14 Nov 2025
By Sue Teodoro, Local Democracy Reporter | Vulnerable coastal roads across New Zealand, including in Masterton district, are coming under the spotlight as the Government works on a plan to address the cost of climate-related damage.
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.
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.
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.
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.”
Oxfam urges NZ to renew climate funding as Pacific projects face closure
Wed 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.
Building resilient cities in a time of climate change
Thu 13 Nov 2025
Media release: Otago University | Local and international experts are meeting in Wellington this month to share their knowledge on creating healthier, more resilient cities in the face of the challenges posed by climate change.
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.
Media round-up
31 Oct 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: A controversial seabed mining project could lead to sediment flows knocking over rigs and damaging wind turbines; weather-related insurance claims climb; and is the government playing Russian Roulette with our future over methane targets?
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.
Z Energy settles greenwashing case over ‘quitting petrol’ claims
4 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Z Energy has settled a landmark greenwashing case over claims it misled the public about moving away from petrol – a result Lawyers for Climate Action NZ says delivers long-overdue accountability.
Nelson commuters urged to ditch car once a week
22 Oct 2025
By Max Frethey, Local Democracy Reporter | Nelson has a bold carbon emission reduction target and residents are being encouraged to leave the car at home one day a week to help meet it.
Supermarket fast-track a ‘cynical ploy’, risks climate and environmental protections
5 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government’s “express lane for supermarkets” announcement has been met with fierce backlash, with critics calling the Fast-track Approvals Amendment Bill a Trojan horse that strips environmental protections, sidelines communities, and hands sweeping powers to ministers at the expense of democracy.
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.
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.
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.
Protesters and UN security clash at climate summit in Brazil
Thu 13 Nov 2025
Activist groups and United Nations security clashed in chaotic scenes late Tuesday after protesters appeared to force their way into the COP30 climate conference venue, in the most serious act of unrest seen in years inside one of the annual gatherings.
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.
Scotland's first wind farm 'supercharged' after upgrade
Tue 11 Nov 2025
Scotland's first commercial wind farm will be able to deliver five times more clean power than before after being upgraded.
New national dataset to unlock blue carbon potential in NZ’s coastal wetlands
Wed 12 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Ministry for the Environment and the Nature Conservancy have collaborated on a dataset to inform a framework to potentially include coastal wetlands into compliance and voluntary carbon credit schemes.
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.
AgriZero backs first nitrous oxide solution with $1.2m investment
6 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | A Kiwi ag-tech start-up developing a device for cows to wear to drastically cut nitrous oxide emissions has secured $1.2 million in government-industry funding.
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.
EV and hybrid sales soar in Australia as internal combustion cars fall below 70% market share for first time
Thu 13 Nov 2025
Data from peak motoring body shows battery-electric vehicles accounted for 9.7% of new cars sold in September quarter, the highest proportion on record.
EU’s new climate target lines up multibillion dollar boost for carbon markets
10 Nov 2025
Analysts estimate the EU will buy at least 50 billion euros worth of carbon credits in the 2030s to help meet its emissions-cutting goals.
Fix it, don't ditch it: University of Auckland hosts first Repair Cafe
9 Oct 2025
Media release - Auckland University | The University's first-ever Repair Cafe is bringing students and staff together to give broken items a new lease on life, while promoting a culture of repair and reuse.
Council buys dairy farm to help clean up Lake Rotorua
21 Oct 2025
Bay of Plenty Regional Council has bought a 266-hectare dairy farm in the Lake Rotorua catchment and plans to retire it from production to reduce nitrogen entering the lake.
Adaptation plan at odds with public sentiment: survey
21 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s position on climate adaptation buyouts shows a disconnect with public opinion, according to survey findings from insurer Suncorp NZ.
We have more renewable energy than ever before. Why are we switching it off?
Tue 11 Nov 2025
Experts say until more storage is installed to soak up the waves of renewable energy flooding the grid, much of that power will occasionally have to be curtailed.
