Topics tagged with 'Politics'
EMA: "Carbon trade proposals could destroy economy"
29 Apr 2008
For common sense to prevail the Employers and Manufacturers Association (Northern) is urging our law makers to think long and hard about the effects of the Climate Change (Emissions Trading and Renewable Preference) Bill.
Tackling drought crucial in finding food crisis solution - UN
29 Apr 2008
Addressing drought is essential in resolving the food crisis the world faces, the United Nations agency tasked with minimizing the threat posed by natural disasters sid yesterday.
Scientists: Stop doubting and let us all get on with it
28 Apr 2008
Scientists are going on the offensive against climate-change “denialist spin”, saying that too much time is being spent arguing about whether climate change is real when the real effort should be going into finding solutions.
We're five times greener than the Aussies
28 Apr 2008
New Zealand businesses are almost five times "greener" than their Australian counterparts, with a new white paper finding more than half of Australian businesses have no policy to reduce energy use.
Greens cool down on coal, but still hot on emissions
24 Apr 2008
The Green Party says that closing down the coal industry will not be a bottom-line issue in post-election coalition talks - but genuine measures to cut greenhouse gas emissions will be.
ACT leader dismisses ETS legislation as ‘a rort’
24 Apr 2008
The emissions trading scheme (ETS) is just a government money-making rort, according to ACT Party leader Rodney Hide – and his party members agree.
Whitehall issues security warning over changing climate
24 Apr 2008
The international response to climate security threats has been “slow and inadequate” and nations need to integrate climate change into their security policy to prepare for worst-case scenarios, a Whitehall report says.
Blame it all on climate change, says Annan
24 Apr 2008
Former United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan has blamed climate change for a fistful of ills - and hopes world leaders can sort out the problems at an international forum in June.
Carbon storage in soil being researched: Major benefits possible for landowners
23 Apr 2008
A new move to store carbon in New Zealand soil is being formally researched and could be worth hundreds of millions to New Zealand farmers and other landowners.
Green Party pledges to shut Huntly, hobble coal industry
23 Apr 2008
The Green Party is threatening to end thermal coal exports and close the Huntly coal-fired power stations.
ANALYSIS: Potential political fall out from Green’s shock coal policy
23 Apr 2008
The Greens are viewed by many New Zealanders as “extreme” and offering policies which are too restrictive.
Nashville boffins to probe your carbon footprint
23 Apr 2008
A diverse group of experts has been brought together in the United States to investigate one of the most important and most widely overlooked sources of greenhouse gases: individual behavior.
Climate change 'a problem for now'
22 Apr 2008
New Zealanders in the primary production sector believe that climate change is an urgent problem which needs addressing now.
Democracy undermined by spying
22 Apr 2008
Greenpeace says it is shocked at the arrogance shown by Gavin Clark, of Thompson and Clark Investigations (TCIL) after they were exposed for the second time trying to pay someone to spy and undermine the activities of the Save Happy Valley group.
Wellington City decides on carbon credit revenue plan from town belts, forests
21 Apr 2008
Wellington City is looking to earn large annual revenues from emission credits by turning its town belts and forests into carbon sinks.
Parker: Industry protection under ETS being considered
21 Apr 2008
Designing an emissions trading scheme which effectively reduces greenhouse gas emissions while being fair to industry is an important matter which requires careful consideration, Climate Change Minister David Parker says.
World ETS expert: global trading needed or ETS unsustainable
21 Apr 2008
The costs of combating climate change are much lower than they might seem, because there are real business opportunities wherever you look, according to Henry Derwent, President and CEO International Emissions Trading Association (IETA).
THE FOOD CRISIS: Long term challenges says Rice
21 Apr 2008
By Merle D. Kellerhals, Jr., Staff Writer,USINFO. Washington - President Bush is seeking an additional $350 million from Congress to provide immediate emergency food assistance, but the current food crisis has long-term global challenges, says Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
Genesis to build new $420m thermal plant unless regulations say not to
18 Apr 2008
The absence of legal definitions of base-load and peaking power supply is behind Genesis Energy’s seeking resource consent for a new thermal power station north of Auckland, the Government’s planned 10-year ban not withstanding.
ANALYSIS: World food problem: Business as usual not an option
18 Apr 2008
By Lester R. Brown - A fast-unfolding food shortage is engulfing the entire world, driving food prices to record highs.
Bush sets 2025 as year for nil US emissions growth
17 Apr 2008
US President George Bush this morning announced a new national climate change goal – to stop the growth of US greenhouse has emissions by 2025.
State landlords must go green
17 Apr 2008
Go Green or flag away your state tenants. The massive over-building of state office accommodation in Wellington is designed to ensure that public servants from 2010 onward will toil only in green buildings.
ANALYSIS: High hopes for the Lieberman-Warner ETS bill in the US
17 Apr 2008
By Emily Farnwort. - The °Climate Group recently held its first North American members meeting with attendance from over 50 leading businesses, states and cities. The conversation was centered on action from the US on climate change. It was a far-ranging and optimistic conversation with a striking focus on the need for leadership and a robust carbon market.
Government working on eco claim system, Mallard may look at new accord on packaging
16 Apr 2008
Environment Minister Trevor says the government is on a system to verify eco-claims being made on all goods and services.
MP: Parachutes coming out on bio fuel imports
15 Apr 2008
Special correspondent.- Members of Parliament on all sides of the fence are seeing the political fishhooks in the government’s desire to import biofuels.
A good new corporate v green group spy story
15 Apr 2008
If you’re up for a good conspiracy story on big corporates employing former secret service officers to spy on green groups, here’s the best of the week - so far (not that we'd dream of anything like this happening here)..
US Government ETS revenue windfall $1.13 trillion: new official estimate
14 Apr 2008
US officials have just released a new report estimating emission trading there will increase Government revenues by about $1.21 trillion over the 2009-2018 period.
Clark: Jury out on opponents' support for ETS, climate change policies
14 Apr 2008
In her speech to the Labour Congress at the weekend, Prime Minister Helen Clark defended her Government’s research and development funding, aimed at the pastoral and food sectors - and laid down a challenge to her political opponents to back the ETS legislation now before Parliament.
No need for NZ to drag feet on biofuels
14 Apr 2008
New Zealand shouldn’t delay bringing in biofuel sales obligations and miss out on cutting greenhouse gas emissions by reducing the use of fossil fuels says a major potential investor.
EXCLUSIVE: $18b windfall for NZ government from ETS
11 Apr 2008
CARBON NEWS INQUIRY - The New Zealand Government’s coffers will be boosted by $18b in windfall revenues from sales of carbon credits between 2013 and 2024, according to privileged information obtained by Carbon News.
ETS will hit steel mill profits by $60m a year - $1 billion investment deferred
11 Apr 2008
MPs have been told a $1 billion decision to invest in New Zealand’s Glenbrook steel mill depends on the shape of the final emissions trading legislation, and the new regime might also lead to the mill’s closure.
New price control and investment law for utilities
11 Apr 2008
Infrastructure businesses like electricity lines companies and airports will gain improved incentives to innovate and invest while giving consumers protection from excessive prices and poor quality, under a Bill amending the Commerce Act introduced to Parliament yesterday.
Mexico gets World Bank’s first climate change loan
10 Apr 2008
Washington -- The World Bank Board of Directors yesterday endorsed its first climate change lending operation, for Mexico, worth US$501.25 million.
The scrap is still on over who gets new $10m a year waste tax revenue
8 Apr 2008
The Waste Minimisation Bill, in the name of Green MP Nandor Tanczos, has been reported back from select committee with unanimous support. It will usher in a new tax raising $30 million a year, if passed
GreenAir Fund pitches for major new forestry emision unit business
8 Apr 2008
With new forestry in New Zealand eligible for NZUs (New Zealand carbon offset units) from January 1 this year, the Sydney-based GreenAir Fund is bidding for new business here by offering up-front funding to complete the qualification design and certification of a potential carbon credit project.
UK Trade Minister: tariffs threat could gain momentum if market doesn’t work
7 Apr 2008
Britain’s Trade and Investment Minister, Lord Digby Jones, has told business executives in Auckland that if the market has not got carbon priced right by 2012, the calls to impose border taxes on goods from countries not paying for emissions could gain momentum.
Emissions specialist: manadatry rules needed on emissions calculations
7 Apr 2008
New Zealand’s emissions compliance processes need to be re-examined to see whether they are globally compatible, according to PriceWaterhouseCoopers’ emissions specialist consultant Julia Hoare.
Carbon News discovers "book-and-claim" scheme answer to bio-fuels impasse
4 Apr 2008
A Dutch-style book-and-claim scheme might be the best way through the bio-fuels impasse in the emissions trading scheme (ETS) debate, according to both Bio-fuels Manufacturers Association chairman Dickon Posnett and the New Zealand chief executive of British Petroleum (BP), Peter Griffiths.
Simple standard will deliver net bio-fuel gains - Fitzsimons
4 Apr 2008
A single sustainability standard written into the emissions trading scheme (ETS) legislation would ensure bio-fuels sourced from overseas represented a net benefit to the environment, Green Party co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons said.
‘Green’ car conference a sham – expert
4 Apr 2008
New Zealanders shouldn’t be fooled by quick fixes to the current energy crisis, says the car buyers’ Dog & Lemon Guide.
Parliamentary Commissioner: Biofuel Bill should not proceed
4 Apr 2008
The Biofuel Bill currently before Parliament should not proceed in its current form, says Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Dr Jan Wright.
Smith: End the mad rush on the bio fuels bill
4 Apr 2008
The Government must heed the message of the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment that its biofuels bill is flawed and a risk to New Zealand’s clean, green brand, says National’s Environment spokesman, Dr Nick Smith.
Dunne: slam the brakes on biofuels
4 Apr 2008
UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne has joined the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment in urging the Government and all parties to slow down and consider the real effects of the Biofuel Bill currently before Parliament.
Climate change "motorway" to higher value production
4 Apr 2008
The effects of climate change are one of the greatest threats we face, Agriculture Minister Jim Adnerton has told the Large Herds Association conference at New Plymouth. If we handle it the right way, it will also be our motorway to higher value production.
Mallard speech: Sustainable development at a sustainable price
4 Apr 2008
Here is the full keynote speech of Environment Minister Trevor Mallard, presented yesteray to Planning Institute members conferencing in Greymouth.
Nine major ETS risks indetified in UK report
4 Apr 2008
The UK Financial Services Authority's Commodities Group published a summary of their perspective of the emissions trading market.
A slippery sort of "come out of the closet day" of climate change politics
3 Apr 2008
While the select committee opened up its hearings on the climate change bill at Parliament yesterday, senior Ministers launched a fusillade of statements questioning National’s position on climate change, including trying to get some “slippery” mud to stick to John Key.
Consultation on climate change measures continues
3 Apr 2008
Climate Change Minister David Parker has welcomed the start of the next round of public engagement on the Labour-led government's important climate change policy of emissions trading.
Professor reviewing forestry offset scheme proposal
3 Apr 2008
The Flexible Land Use Alliance has appointed Professor Lewis Evans to review a draft report by the University of Waikato and Covec on proposed changes to the forestry components of the Climate Change (Emissions Trading and Renewable Preference) Bill, including the introduction of a Forestry Offset Scheme.
No timeframe on exploiting southern lignite fields
2 Apr 2008
Solid Energy (SE) is going to use its huge Otago-Southland lignite coal resource eventually – it’s just not sure when, according to the state-owned collier’s chairman, John Palmer.
‘The effects are already here’: Northland communities face the realities of a changed climate
Fri 5 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Te Taitokerau Northland is facing more intense storms, rising temperatures and shifting seasons – pressures that are reshaping communities, ecosystems, infrastructure and livelihoods across the region, according to a new case study from the Climate Change Commission.
Media round-up
Fri 5 Dec 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Labour’s chronic evasiveness as the Government reneges on climate change; newly released documents reveal the country's new methane target is associated with 'perilous' 2.7C of warming; and New Zealand's 'pitiful' decision on emissions targets comes with costs.
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.
NSW government, energy company under fire after native bird habitat cleared for renewables project
Fri 5 Dec 2025
A New South Wales government-backed renewable energy project has been accused of environmental vandalism after dozens of threatened birds were found in native trees it had cleared.
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.
Govt ‘scaremongering’ over co-operation – former climate ambassador
Fri 5 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand’s former top climate diplomat, Kay Harrison, says the Government’s recent comments ruling out buying climate mitigation offshore amount to scaremongering, and the country is missing a chance to give our businesses a boost.
Rare win for renewable energy: Trump administration funds geothermal network expansion
Fri 5 Dec 2025
A first-in-the-nation heating and cooling network in Massachusetts is set to double in size.
Carbon auction tipped to be a non-event
Tue 2 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | Tomorrow’s Emissions Trading Scheme auction is all but certain to fail, with participants blaming the government for destroying confidence as NZUs continue to change hands on the secondary market at a 40% discount on the $68 auction floor.
Hello, foreign oligarchs and corporations! Please come and sue the UK for billions
Wed 3 Dec 2025
COMMENT: The case of a planned Cumbrian coalmine shows how governments around the world are being threatened by litigation in shadowy offshore courts.
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.
$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.
Analysis: Why COP30’s ‘tripling adaptation finance’ target is less ambitious than it seems
Fri 5 Dec 2025
One of the headline outcomes to emerge from COP30 was a new target to “at least triple” finance for climate adaptation in developing countries by 2035.
Climate comments ‘outrageous’ – former top climate negotiator
Wed 3 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand’s former climate ambassador, Kay Harrison, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis’ recent statements that the Government had ruled out buying offshore climate mitigation are “outrageous”.
Market rewards firming over renewables in gentailer split
Wed 3 Dec 2025
A clearer valuation divide is emerging across the gentailer sector, with the market increasingly rewarding companies positioned for flexibility and firming rather than renewable build-out.
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.
Uncertainty eroding confidence in forestry sector
Fri 5 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Warnings are mounting that tree planting is set to plunge to “very close to zero”, as new Ministry for Primary Industries data shows ETS registration applications falling sharply as confidence in forestry declines.
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.
Tairāwhiti unveils $359m plan to cut storm damage and stabilise erosion-prone land
Thu 4 Dec 2025
Gisborne District Council has released a 30-year transition plan to protect Tairāwhiti from escalating climate-driven erosion and storm damage, outlining a $359 million proposal for Crown co-investment to stabilise 100,000 hectares of vulnerable land and slash the region’s long-term clean-up costs.
Open letter urges govt to abandon plans to subsidise LNG terminal
Thu 4 Dec 2025
Climate and renewable energy advocates have joined forces calling on the Government to ditch its plan to subsidise an LNG import terminal.
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 rolls out interest-free finance for climate-proofing homes as weather risks rise
Wed 3 Dec 2025
Westpac NZ has unveiled a new interest-free lending package aimed at helping households strengthen their properties against flooding and extreme weather, as climate risks intensify across the country.
Govt’s rejection of CCC’s advice on climate targets undermines independent watchdog’s role, says opposition
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.
Tribunal warns govt geothermal strategy risks Treaty breach
Tue 2 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The government's geothermal development strategy risks breaching the Treaty of Waitangi, according to a report from the Waitangi Tribunal released last week.
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.
Amy Westervelt: It’s time we stopped treating corporations as people
Thu 4 Dec 2025
COMMENT: Treating corporations as people and granting them First Amendment rights has warped US politics and harmed the climate. We need to overturn Citizens United.
NZ fails to back ‘roadmap’ to phase out fossil fuels at COP
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.
Media round-up
28 Nov 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: How the oil and gas industry helped rewrite New Zealand’s drilling rules, confusion reigns as the climate minister appears unaware of his own announcement, and the fierce battle over mining on Denniston Plateau.
Govt's emissions ‘buffer’ an illusion with all NZ's carbon budgets off track
28 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Dr Christina Hood, head of consultancy Compass Climate, says the Government’s claim that New Zealand has a comfortable emissions “buffer” to absorb higher agricultural pollution is misleading, with projections showing emissions budgets are actually set to be missed in real terms.
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.
Heatwaves, downpours and droughts – Auckland on track for more extreme weather
Mon 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.
Govt rejects advice on international aviation and shipping emissions
Thu 4 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government has rejected all the Climate Change Commission’s recommendations to strengthen emissions targets.
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.
Govt green lights rural recycling scheme
Thu 4 Dec 2025
The Government has approved new regulations to bring rural waste schemes under one unified framework.
NZ's ‘missed opportunity’ on aviation and shipping emissions
Fri 5 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government’s refusal to include international aviation and shipping in New Zealand’s 2050 climate target has been met with disappointment from climate experts, who say the decision undermines accountability for a transport-reliant nation, and misses a critical opportunity to strengthen New Zealand’s climate leadership.
Shipping movements disrupted as climate change protesters block coal ships
Tue 2 Dec 2025
NSW police have arrested 141 people who attempted to block the shipping channel in Newcastle Harbour during Rising Tide protests, which began on Thursday.
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.
NZ and US deepen Antarctic science partnership
Thu 4 Dec 2025
Media release: New Zealand Government | New joint research initiatives focused on climate and ecosystem change expand on the long-standing collaboration between New Zealand and the United States on Antarctic science and logistics, says Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Dr Shane Reti.
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.
Pollution from coal plants was dropping. Then came Trump and AI.
Mon 1 Dec 2025
Data centres’ hunger for electricity is prompting some states to keep their coal-burning power plants from closing – while DC relaxes air pollution limits.
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.
Spain announces $1.5 billion package to boost electric vehicle market
Fri 5 Dec 2025
Spain's plan includes 400 million euros in direct subsidies in 2026 for consumers to buy EVs.
Treasury to offer first stab at climate liabilities pre-election
Thu 4 Dec 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | The Treasury will make a first attempt at accounting for Crown liabilities arising from New Zealand’s international climate change commitments in next year’s pre-election economic and fiscal update.
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.
Study provides a step-change in understanding NZ’s groundwater
28 Nov 2025
Media release | Earth Sciences New Zealand has developed a world-first National Groundwater Age Map and a powerful suite of tools to support the sustainable management of our hidden groundwater resources, from national through to local scales.
Amid the ashes
26 Nov 2025
This year the LA wildfire came for my hometown. What happened next is a warning for us all.
NZ’s energy system at a crossroads – report
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.
