Topics tagged with 'Science'
Climate change can be beaten - why some scientists are hopeful
20 Dec 2022
Can our planet recover from climate change? The Conversation commissioning Editor, Kofoworola Belo-Osagie, asked scientists to share the reasons they believe there is hope.
Climate action delivers air quality & health gains in India
20 Dec 2022
New research shows how city actions to address climate change in India can deliver health benefits from cleaner air.
Whales could be a valuable carbon sink: scientists
16 Dec 2022
Whales influence the amount of carbon in our air and oceans, and may help reduce the amount of carbon in the atmosphere, according to new research by US and New Zealand scientists.
Climate change will impact mountains on a global scale
16 Dec 2022
According to research, climate change will have a severe effect on mountain landscapes and human activities, increasing the likelihood of avalanches, river floods, landslides, debris flows, and lake outburst floods.
Can sending fewer emails or emptying your inbox really help fight climate change?
16 Dec 2022
The massive carbon footprint left behind by emails has been widely discussed by the media, but most of the time these discussions are exaggerated.
‘Half the world’s languages could be lost to climate change’
15 Dec 2022
By 2100, at least half the world’s 7,000 languages could go extinct due to climate change.
Researchers chart a path to carbon-negative plastic
15 Dec 2022
If current trends and policies continue, global plastic demand will double by 2050 and triple by 2100, with similar increases in greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new study.
Fusion breakthrough could be climate, energy game-changer
14 Dec 2022
Scientists announced Tuesday that they have for the first time produced more energy in a fusion reaction than was used to ignite it — a major breakthrough in the decades-long quest to harness the process that powers the sun
Large wild herbivores may help slow climate change
14 Dec 2022
Large animals, especially herbivores such as elephants, are often seen as being destructive of vegetation, so are not thought of as a nature-based climate solution. Scientists are proving otherwise.
The world's permafrost is rapidly thawing and that's a big climate change problem
13 Dec 2022
An international study has predicted that permafrost thaw could contribute as much greenhouse gases to our atmosphere as a large industrial nation by the end of the century.
Climate change stokes new norm of extreme Australia weather
12 Dec 2022
Extreme weather events such as bush fires and flooding are set to become the norm in Australia, a new report shows.
Rising temperatures causing distress to foetuses: study
9 Dec 2022
Rising temperatures driven by climate breakdown are causing distress to the foetuses of pregnant farmers, who are among the worst affected by global heating.
New marine research and education facility for Tauranga brings climate into focus
8 Dec 2022
A newly approved marine research and education facility for Tauranga will support study into Aotearoa New Zealand’s marine environment and the effects of climate change.
The 30% goal: is bigger always better for biodiversity?
8 Dec 2022
The UN biodiversity conference now meeting in Montreal is considering a proposal to commit to putting 30 percent of land and sea under protection by 2030. Some ecologists warn that focusing too much on the size of protected areas risks missing what most needs saving.
Scientists should ditch terminology that obscures climate change’s true dangers
6 Dec 2022
A lot of today’s widespread confusion about climate change – some of it unwitting, some of it deliberately cultivated – stems from the critical miscommunication of two little words: risk and uncertainty.
Does marine conservation mitigate climate change?
5 Dec 2022
Marine protected areas act as a safeguard for oceans, seas, and estuaries. These regions help in the preservation of the plants and animals that are native to these waters, but the advantages of protected areas go well beyond their boundaries.
Climate change amplifies risk of ‘insect apocalypse’
2 Dec 2022
For most of us, the world’s insects are doubly vital to our well-being, a growing body of research is finding. But warnings by scientists of a probable insect apocalypse are steadily growing more frequent and urgent.
Earth Is “unequivocally” in midst of climate emergency: scientists
1 Dec 2022
The Earth’s vital signs have deteriorated to the point that “humanity is unequivocally facing a climate emergency,” according to a study recently released by a worldwide coalition of scientists.
An ecological rule breaker shows the effects of climate change on body size
30 Nov 2022
The Northern Treeshrew, a small, bushy-tailed mammal native to South and Southeast Asia, defies two of the most widely tested ecological “rules” of body size variation within species, according to a new study coauthored by Yale anthropologist Eric J. Sargis.
Australians shun climate-led diet changes
30 Nov 2022
Most Australians are refusing to say goodbye to meat despite a growing concern about climate change.
Land use change could improve climate, health, and food insecurity: research
29 Nov 2022
Growing more grains and vegetables could decrease greenhouse gas emissions, increase water quality, and solve looming food insecurity and health problems for millions of New Zealanders, according to new research from two National Science Challenges.
More flash floods set to hit Greater Wellington due to climate change
29 Nov 2022
A new report paints an alarming picture of climate impacts for Greater Wellington, with damaging downpours and potential floods becoming increasingly frequent, and seasonal rainfall likely to increase by up to 16% in some areas.
Cannabis plants could help in the fight against climate change
28 Nov 2022
A team of scientists from Hudson Carbon – a research center based in New York which studies carbon storage – cannabis plants could be the missing player in humanity’s fight against climate change, as hemp can absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere more than twice as effectively as trees.
What “longtermism” gets wrong about climate change
24 Nov 2022
In his new book What We Owe the Future, William MacAskill outlines the case for what he calls “longtermism.” That’s not just another word for long-term thinking. It’s an ideology and movement founded on some highly controversial ideas in ethics.
Take climate-changing aerosols seriously, scientists say
23 Nov 2022
The dangerous impacts of aerosol changes on vulnerable regions should have been a priority at COP27 after climate policymakers agreed a breakthrough deal to support these parts of the world, scientists have claimed.
Tracking CO2 emissions from space could help support climate agreements
23 Nov 2022
A global network of ground-based CO2 measurements began in 1957 and now consists of over one hundred stations around the world. Accurate and precise measurements from these stations have revealed a lot about changes in global atmospheric CO2 and Earth’s overall carbon cycle, but we can’t place these stations everywhere on Earth.
A climate scientist’s personal reckoning
22 Nov 2022
By Adam Sobel - Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists | A decade ago, Hurricane Sandy changed New York City, forever. New Yorkers now viscerally understand our vulnerability in a way we didn’t before, and the barriers being built to protect us from future storms and sea level rise will reshape the city’s topography. But for me—a scientist who studies hurricanes and climate change, a New Yorker, and a human being—Sandy was a different kind of watershed moment.
New research reveals climate change origins of great barrier reef
15 Nov 2022
Media release - University of Canterbury | Sea-level changes caused by melting ice sheets hundreds of thousands of years ago triggered the formation of K’gari (Fraser Island) – the world’s largest sand island – and the creation of Australia’s iconic Great Barrier Reef, a new study has found.
Global carbon emissions at record levels with no signs of shrinking, new data shows
14 Nov 2022
Global carbon dioxide emissions from all human activities remain at record highs in 2022, and fossil fuel emissions have risen above pre-pandemic levels, according to a new analysis by an international body of scientists.
Belching lakes, mystery craters, ‘zombie fires’: How the climate crisis is transforming the Arctic permafrost
14 Nov 2022
Four years ago, Morris J. Alexie had to move out of the house his father built in Alaska in 1969 because it was sinking into the ground and water was beginning to seep into his home.
Growing rooftop spinach in CO2 recycled from building ventilation quadruples growth
10 Nov 2022
Researchers have grown a farm of rooftop vegetables bathed in the CO2-rich exhaust air from city buildings—a somewhat dystopian idea which nevertheless boosted plant growth by an incredible 400%.
Eight warmest years on record witness upsurge in climate change impacts
7 Nov 2022
The past eight years are on track to be the eight warmest on record, fuelled by ever-rising greenhouse gas concentrations and accumulated heat. Extreme heatwaves, drought and devastating flooding have affected millions and cost billions this year, according to the World Meteorological Organization’s provisional State of the Global Climate in 2022 report.
Climate change will force up to 113m people to relocate within Africa by 2050: new report
7 Nov 2022
Adapting to a world that is warmer than today is a huge undertaking, even if the most ambitious temperature ceiling is met. Increasing climate risks mean that millions of Africans could be uprooted or trapped where they are due to climate change.
Carbon removal mustn’t become a new frontier for injustice
7 Nov 2022
As preparations accelerate for the UN climate negotiations in Egypt, Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR), a largely under-acknowledged issue with widespread, widely varying implications, must be addressed.
What is blue carbon and why is it vital for mitigating Canada's carbon emissions?
7 Nov 2022
Marlow Pellatt spent time on Vancouver Island, taking samples of soil from deep underground and wading through water to understand the biodiversity in the area. To an onlooker, it may seem like he’s playing in mud, but he’s actually researching how important coastal ecosystems are in Canada’s fight against climate change.
Scientists look at biogas potential of partly digested grass
4 Nov 2022
Kiwi scientists are converting partly digested grass from the stomachs of slaughtered cattle into biogas, which they hope could be used to heat commercial greenhouses.
One third of glaciers in World Heritage Sites will disappear by 2050: new study
4 Nov 2022
A third of all glaciers in World Heritage Sites are on course to melt away by 2050, according to new research.
Half Rutherford Fellowships awarded to climate research
3 Nov 2022
Climate research is a major focus for New Zealand’s foremost scientists, with six of this year’s twelve Rutherford fellowships awarded to climate-related projects, to the tune of $4.8 million.
Whaling’s link to climate change
3 Nov 2022
Media release: Royal Society Te Apārangi | Whales can store vast amounts of carbon throughout their lifetime. When they die, they bring that carbon with them to the bottom of the sea, where they sustain the local food web or get buried, effectively trapping carbon for centuries to millennia.
Temperatures in Europe have increased at more than twice the global average
3 Nov 2022
Temperatures in Europe have increased at more than twice the global average over the past 30 years – the highest of any continent in the world.
Climate change will produce more rainbows
3 Nov 2022
If you’ve ever been to Hawaii, you know it has an abundance of rainbows. And maybe it’s no surprise that researchers at the University of Hawaii at Manoa have been studying rainbows.
Whanganui Awa’s legal personhood inspires scientists' call for recognition of rights of the Ocean
2 Nov 2022
Scientists arguing for the Ocean to be recognised as living being with intrinsic legal rights have cited the precedent of the Whanganui Awa in a recently published scientific article.
African scientists call for nature-based solution to climate crisis
1 Nov 2022
Harnessing Africa's vast natural resources, including tropical forests, coastal mangroves and peatlands, offers a cheaper and sustainable pathway to a greener and resilient future for the continent, scientists said on Monday.
96% of humans feel global warming: study
31 Oct 2022
Whether they realized it or not, some 7.6 billion people - 96 percent of humanity - felt global warming's impact on temperatures over the last 12 months, researchers have said.
Greenhouse gases reach a new record
28 Oct 2022
The three main greenhouse gases hit record high levels in the atmosphere last year, the U.N. weather agency said Wednesday, calling it an "ominous" sign as war in Ukraine, rising costs of food and fuel, and other worries have elbowed in on longtime concerns about global warming in recent months.
What would climate scientists do with $100 million
21 Oct 2022
Who’s best placed to decide which climate tech is most likely to help save the world — and therefore deserves the most funding? Climate scientists are top of the list.
Ocean warming rates to quadruple by 2090 if climate change not mitigated: study
19 Oct 2022
A new comprehensive review of global ocean temperature data has allowed researchers to paint a clear picture of ocean warming since the 1950s, and predict future warming scenarios.
Tracing anthropogenically emitted carbon dioxide into the ocean
19 Oct 2022
Researchers labeled anthropogenically emitted carbon and tracked it with an ocean circulation model to determine whether it winds up in the sky or the sea.
Climate anxiety is spreading all over the planet
18 Oct 2022
If you’re feeling anxious about climate change, the common wisdom goes, there’s an antidote: Take action. Maybe you can alleviate your worries by doing something positive, like going to a protest, becoming an advocate for mass transit, or trying to get an environmental champion elected.
Future emissions from ‘country of permafrost’ potentially devastating
18 Oct 2022
By the end of this century, permafrost in the rapidly warming Arctic will likely emit as much carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere as a large industrial nation, and potentially more than the U.S. has emitted since the start of the industrial revolution.
As the sea level rises, who will pay? Councils seek answers
Tue 15 Jul 2025
By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter | North Canterbury's councils are seeking guidance from Government over who pays for protections from sea level rise, flooding and weather events.
Farmers slam proposed guidelines for sustainable finance
Today 11:30am
By Liz Kivi | Federated Farmers is calling on the government to scrap its proposed framework for ‘green’ finance, saying it is ideologically driven, unworkable, and risks harming rural communities.
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.
Nations agree to tax premium flyers, private jets
2 Jul 2025
A group of countries, including France, Kenya, Spain and Barbados, pledged on June 30 to tax premium-class flying and private jets in a bid to raise funds for climate action and sustainable development.
Tipping points: Window to avoid irreversible climate impacts is ‘rapidly closing’
Fri 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”.
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 PRICE: NZUs $57.33
Today 11:30am
The Carbon News NZU Index closed at $57.33 yesterday, up 17 cents on the previous day's close.
Indigenous elders lose landmark climate battle against Australian government
Today 11:30am
The Australian government has won a landmark climate case against residents of islands under siege from the impacts of climate change.
Bearish sentiment lingers for carbon market
Fri 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.
EU wants to see China take more ambitious climate action
Tue 15 Jul 2025
The world needs China to show more leadership on climate action, highlighting the importance of cutting planet-heating emissions and reducing the Chinese economy's reliance on coal.
NZ voluntary carbon market’s sad state
Mon 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.
Common low-grade clay strengthens low-carbon concrete
5 Jun 2025
Media release | Engineers at RMIT University have converted low-grade clay into a high-performance cement supplement, opening a potential new market in sustainable construction materials.
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.
More choices for how we use, buy and sell electricity – and lower our power bills
Today 11:30am
Media release – Electricity Authority | New Zealanders will have more choices for how they use, buy and sell electricity – so they can lower their power bills – because of new market rules confirmed today by the Electricity Authority Te Mana Hiko (the Authority).
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.
Govt announces $600k package for flood-affected farmers in Nelson Tasman
Today 11:30am
The government has announced a $600,000 support package for flood-affected farmers in the Nelson Tasman Region, a move Federated Farmers says is a lifeline.
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.
Foresters seek time; end to using ETS as a land use tool
Today 11:30am
By Pattrick Smellie | Production and carbon forestry owners have begged the environment select committee to at least give the sector more time to come up with workable rules for legislation intended to cap forest planting on farmland.
Climate backtracking could impact trade relationships: Labour
9 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | Labour Party Energy spokesperson Megan Woods says the government needs to be upfront about how its energy policies will impact trade relationships, following revelations New Zealand was warned by other governments that backtracking on climate policies jeopardised its membership of an international alliance.
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.
Debanking bill 'financially dangerous'
Tue 15 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | A private member’s bill aiming to stop financial institutions from considering ESG factors has been slammed by leading investment groups, legal experts, and climate finance advocates as misguided, financially dangerous, and legislative overreach.
4000 hectares of forest uprooted by extreme winds in Nelson-Tasman storms
Tue 15 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | Foresters are facing a massive clean-up and tens of millions of dollars worth of damage from recent climate change-fuelled storms at the top of the South Island, with initial reports of 4000 hectares of wind-thrown production forestry.
Can you trust climate information? How and why powerful players are misleading the public
Fri 11 Jul 2025
The climate crisis is more urgent than ever, so why is there a disconnect between stated policies and actual practices?
Methanex closure comes early this year
14 May 2025
The almost-now-annual closure of Methanex has come earlier this year, giving more confidence that the electricity system will get through the winter without a fuel shortfall.
Electric firebricks: decarbonising high-temperature industrial heat
13 Jun 2025
By Ian Mason | A new technology could offer a more cost-effective solution than hydrogen to decarbonise one ‘hard-to-abate’ sector of New Zealand’s economy, as well as having ample potential for demand response as the electricity grid becomes more renewable.
‘Significant gaps’ in proposed approach to climate adaptation
Thu 10 Jul 2025
A new report into climate adaptation doesn’t suggest how development in high-risk areas should be avoided - an issue that needs urgent action with thousands of homes still being built in hazardous areas, according to the Environmental Defence Society.
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.
In Latin America, the energy transition stirs a rise in human rights lawsuits
8 Jul 2025
A new report shows that more than half of the 95 energy transition-related lawsuits recorded globally since 2009 took place in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Clear-sighted view to trade-offs crucial to reimagining our relationship with the land
7 Jul 2025
By Nick Swallow | COMMENT: New Zealand could see a 70% drop in the value of dairy land if we pursue our emissions targets for agriculture, according to a new report.
Unlocking economic growth on conservation land
9 Jul 2025
Media release - New Zealand Government | A targeted effort to reduce the backlog of applications for use of conservation land is accelerating economic growth without compromising conservation values, says Conservation Minister Tama Potaka.
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.
Millions of tons of tiny plastic particles are polluting the ocean, study finds
Tue 15 Jul 2025
At least 27 million tonnes of nanoplastics are estimated to be floating in the North Atlantic Ocean, weighing more than all wild land mammals combined.
'Back-to-basics' approach for councils ignores climate risk
Fri 11 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | While ACT is standing local government candidates to oppose councils' attempts to manage emissions and ministers are calling for local authorities to 'get back to basics' - or even suggesting scrapping regional councils altogether - one expert says this narrative is putting communities at risk in the face of climate change.
Markets aren't going to save us – Carr
9 Jul 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Consumerism is reaching its ecological and economic limits, and only systemic change - not market tweaks - can steer us away from climate catastrophe, according to former Climate Change Commission chair Rod Carr.
Microplastics found in sand on dozens of NZ beaches
4 Jun 2025
Scientists have extracted microplastics from the sand of 22 beaches from the Far North to Banks Peninsula.
Feedback sought on national fuel security plan
Today 11:30am
Media release - Beehive: The Coalition Government is seeking feedback on a draft Fuel Security Plan that provides a long-term strategy to ensure New Zealanders have reliable access to fuel in times of domestic and global disruption, Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones says.
US: Why the federal government is making climate data disappear
Today 11:30am
Under Trump, climate denial has given way to something even more dangerous: climate erasure.
UK: Thousands lobby MPs to demand climate action
Thu 10 Jul 2025
More than 5,000 people from across the UK arrived in Westminster on Wednesday to meet their MPs and demand urgent climate action to protect their communities.
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.
Have renewables decreased electricity prices?
Today 11:30am
There is a persistent argument in certain circles that renewable energy is associated with higher costs than fossil fuels.
Green budget 'ludicrous la-la land' – govt
15 May 2025
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said the budget was "clown show economics" and an "absolute circus".
Kiwi ‘smart panel’ startup aiming to reduce energy bills and emissions
4 Jul 2025
NZ start-up Basis this week launched an ‘intelligent’ panel to replace traditional electrical switchboards in homes, which it says can save the average home $1,200 NZD annually on bills and lead to lower 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.
Fast, sustained phase-out of fossil fuels: best-performing countries in coal and transport sectors
Thu 10 Jul 2025
By Robert McLachlan | It’s true that climate change is getting worse – it will continue to get worse until emissions fall to near zero. But is action on phasing out fossil fuels really stalling?
UN Human Rights Council fails to call out fossil fuels after decision cuts mention
Fri 11 Jul 2025
A proposal by the Marshall Islands and Colombia calling for a transition away from fossil fuels at the UN Human Rights Council failed to make it into the council’s declaration on climate change and human rights issued on Tuesday.
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
Fri 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.
