Topics tagged with 'Politics'

Govt accused of kicking can down the road on ag emissions
12 Nov 2024
The Climate Change Response (Emissions Trading Scheme Agricultural Obligations) Amendment Bill completed its second reading in Parliament with Opposition parties saying it was a step backwards.

NZ and Irish govts partner to support farming through research
12 Nov 2024
Media release | New Zealand and Ireland are investing $9.6 million in targeted research to deliver practical solutions that reduce emissions for New Zealand’s primary producers, announced Agriculture Minister Todd McClay.

Insurance crisis looming, new report warns
11 Nov 2024
Thousands of residential properties in New Zealand are at risk of ‘insurance retreat’ as climate-related extreme weather events escalate in frequency and intensity, warns a new report

COP29 chief exec filmed promoting fossil fuel deals
11 Nov 2024
A senior official at COP29 climate change conference in Azerbaijan appears to have used his role to arrange a meeting to discuss potential fossil fuel deals.

Govt could make significant domestic reductions towards second NDC - but needs to hurry up
8 Nov 2024
The government could find much of the needed emissions reductions for its next Paris Agreement pledge at home – but needs to get on with it, says new analysis from the Climate Change Commission.

NZ can do better on climate policy, says auditor general
8 Nov 2024
New Zealand’s legislative framework is a strength of its response to climate change, however it is not doing so well in other areas, according to a new report.

Constraints on forestry set to slash unit supply
8 Nov 2024
COMMENT: Carbon unit supply from forestry looks set to be limited by multiple factors - and by 2040 NZUs from new forestry are likely to fulfill only a fraction of demand, writes Ollie Batelier-Belton.

Trump stranglehold adds to growing doubts at climate talks
8 Nov 2024
Nearly 200 nations will soon gather for the annual COP29 summit, where efforts to increase funding for poor countries and slash emissions will run against the reality of a hostile American president.

Carbon price inching up as auction looms
7 Nov 2024
The carbon price is still inching up towards the auction floor, with the final auction for 2024 less than a month away. But the US election result means uncertain times for global environmental markets, according to an expert.

‘Drill, baby, drill’: What Trump’s victory could mean for the future, according to climate experts
7 Nov 2024
Trump's victory could be a 'major blow' for global climate action but experts say it may not slow the roll of the green transition.

Why didn’t climate change come up more in the presidential campaign?
7 Nov 2024
Climate change has dangerously supercharged fires, hurricanes, floods and heat waves. Why didn’t it come up more in the presidential campaign?

Strategy, regular reporting key to councils’ climate response – Auditor-General
6 Nov 2024
Councils will need clear climate strategies, strong community engagement, and robust reporting to meet the challenges posed by a changing climate, according to a new report from the Auditor-General.

‘The world is watching’: Why US election result could dictate global progress on climate action
6 Nov 2024
The US presidential election comes just days ahead of the world’s most important climate negotiations at COP29. Experts say the outcome will have a profound impact on the US’ leadership role at the talks, and beyond.

Authoritarianism is on the rise. Is climate change to blame?
1 Nov 2024
There's evidence that global warming creates fertile ground for political strongmen to come to power.

Govt should expect scrutiny over international climate targets
31 Oct 2024
The government should expect international scrutiny over progress towards its climate pledge, according to its own advisors.

NZ adopts 'underwhelming' Commonwealth Ocean Declaration
30 Oct 2024
Commonwealth nations including Aotearoa and Pacific Island states have adopted the Apia Commonwealth Ocean Declaration.

Govt to invest $20 million for Pacific disaster and climate resilience
29 Oct 2024
New Zealand will contribute $20 million to the Pacific Resilience Facility.

Upcoming auction pivotal for carbon market
29 Oct 2024
With the final carbon auction of the year less than six weeks away, experts are watching keenly to see if any carbon units are likely to enter the market at auction.

RMA reform structure ‘teasers’ revealed
29 Oct 2024
A Cabinet paper on replacing the Resource Management Act offers a “glimmer of hope” for environmentalists, says Environmental Defence Society chief executive Gary Taylor.

UK’s next Paris pledge should commit to ‘81% emissions cut by 2035’: govt advisors
29 Oct 2024
The UK should make an international pledge to cut its greenhouse gas emissions to 81% below 1990 levels by 2035, according to the government’s advisory Climate Change Committee.

Offshore wind energy company pulls out of NZ
25 Oct 2024
Spanish offshore wind energy company Bluefloat has announced it is pulling out of its New Zealand projects, citing the potential clash with seabed mining off Taranaki.

Germany and New Zealand partner to support agriculture and tackle global emissions
25 Oct 2024
Media release | New Zealand and Germany have announced the official start of a partnership aimed at supporting the agriculture sector and tackling global agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, agriculture minister Todd McClay announced today.

Why the time is right for Australia’s second shot at carbon pricing
25 Oct 2024
By Ross Garnaut | OPINION: Australia now has a government and parliament wanting to build Australia as the renewable energy superpower of the zero-carbon world economy.

Environmental management failing to hold the line - Upton
24 Oct 2024
Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Simon Upton is not confident New Zealand’s efforts are making a difference to environmental quality.

Government consulting on ETS charges for forestry
23 Oct 2024
The government is proposing setting an annual per hectare charge for forestry in the ETS at $14.90 - about half the price set by the previous government, but still a significant increase on what foresters formerly paid.

Stockpile and forestry set to drive carbon price
23 Oct 2024
Stockpile holders will have the power to set the NZU price in future, as the importance of the government’s carbon auctions wanes, Emissions Trading Scheme participants were told last week.

Auckland remains off track to meet climate target
22 Oct 2024
Auckland Council remains off track to reach its own climate targets, according to a new progress report, which shows emissions are rising rather tracking down to zero by 2050.

Govt policy statement urges Electricity Authority to keep up the pace
21 Oct 2024
The Government policy statement sent to the Electricity Authority puts an emphasis on implementing its past and current work programme as quickly as possible, while maintaining the market fundamentals.

Political candidates who fight climate change stand to benefit in election
21 Oct 2024
A majority of Floridians expressed support for political candidates who fight climate change in a new Florida Atlantic University survey.

Govt finances still don’t recognise climate liability
17 Oct 2024
Treasury has failed to recognise a liability for New Zealand’s international climate commitments in its latest financial statement, with its position unchanged on the multibillion dollar price tag of purchasing offshore mitigation.

Legal action filed against minister of transport over Clean Car Standard
14 Oct 2024
The Better New Zealand Trust, with the support of Lawyers for Climate Action NZ Inc, is taking the Government to court over what it says is an unlawful decision to weaken the Clean Car Standard.

NZ must work with other countries to reach climate goals: new research
14 Oct 2024
By Liz Kivi | Aotearoa’s international climate targets can only be met through funding significant emissions reductions in other countries. But a lack of public support to spend this money overseas is paralysing New Zealand’s progress towards its goal, according to researchers.

UN carbon trading expert group agrees deal on market framework
14 Oct 2024
A UN expert group has reached a compromise on key elements of a global carbon trading system, in a bid to resolve nearly a decade of talks on what is seen as an important tool for raising climate finance.

Indigenous groups in Brazil: We were not consulted on carbon credits
14 Oct 2024
Indigenous organizations in the Brazilian state of Para said they were not consulted by the government before it signed a deal with multinational companies to sell carbon offset credits to support conservation of the Amazon rainforest in the state.

Increased volatility as carbon price inches up towards auction floor
11 Oct 2024
The secondary carbon market saw a slight increase in volatility last week, with carbon trading platform Jarden noting higher volumes above the $62 mark.

Amazon state that will host COP30 strikes largest carbon credit sale in history
9 Oct 2024
A coalition of developed countries and corporations has agreed to a massive purchase of carbon credits from the Amazon rainforest worth $180 million.

Environment the loser in govt's fast-track announcement, say critics
7 Oct 2024
Environmental groups and opposition parties are irate over the government's list of fast-track projects, with activists saying they will be "disasters" for the planet.

Gisborne cross-sector group established to guide landowners of highly erodible land
7 Oct 2024
By Zita Campbell, Local Democracy Reporter | As the Government looks to take control of national forestry regulations from councils, questions linger on what it will mean for Gisborne.

Revealed: how the fossil fuel industry helps spread anti-protest laws across the US
7 Oct 2024
Fossil fuel lobbyists coordinated with lawmakers behind the scenes and across state lines to push and shape laws that are escalating a crackdown on peaceful protests against oil and gas expansion.

Reversing oil and gas ban is a risky political choice: Upton
4 Oct 2024
Reversing the ban on fossil fuel exploration risks promoting more environmental damage as well as burdening taxpayers with clean-up costs, according to the environment commissioner.

What’s in it for us? Pātea pledges to mess with miners
3 Oct 2024
Seabed miners will face direct action on the waves if they are given Government fast-track approval, says Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer.

Cross party consensus needed to prepare NZ for increased climate risk
3 Oct 2024
A parliamentary report on climate adaptation is an important signal of the need to urgently tackle the impact of climate change on communities and protect people lives and property, the Insurance Council of New Zealand Te Kāhui Inihua o Aotearoa (ICNZ) says.

Climate was a top question at the vice presidential debate
3 Oct 2024
Both candidates actually answered — sort of.

Climate adaptation report lacks detail, urgent action required
2 Oct 2024
The Environmental Defence Society says the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee's report on climate adaption lacks detail, while Forest & Bird calls for urgent action to help adapt to the challenges posed by climate change.

Work needed for cross-party consensus on critical climate issues
1 Oct 2024
Consensus on critical climate issues among New Zealand political parties is proving challenging, according to the Finance and Expenditure Committee’s inquiry into climate adaptation.

Select committee recommendations on Resource Management Amendment Bill disappoint
1 Oct 2024
Media release | The Environmental Defence Society says proposals enable a full-blown assault on freshwater and indigenous biodiversity and take the country further off-track from meeting future climate goals.

Energy rationing proposal shot down by MfE
30 Sep 2024
By Shannon Williams | Tradable energy quotas must be in place before New Zealand has a fuel shortage crisis, Degrowth Aotearoa told a select committee.

Minister to meet Pacific Islands climate leaders
30 Sep 2024
Climate change minister Simon Watts is travelling to Fiji today to attend a Ministerial Meeting (Talanoa) with Pacific Island Countries, Australia, and New Zealand.

Govt allows only five days for submissions on repeal of oil and gas ban
27 Sep 2024
By Liz Kivi | The government is allowing only five days for the public to make submissions on legislation to restart oil and gas exploration.