Topics tagged with 'Tax'
Why cities are a rare good news story in climate change
27 Jul 2015
The visit last week of 65 mayors to the Vatican to discuss climate change, among other things, reflects the central role of cities in debates that for too long took place only at the global and national level.
One year on from the carbon price experiment, the rebound in emissions is clear
27 Jul 2015
Just over a year ago, Australia concluded a unique public policy experiment. For the preceding two years and two weeks, it had put a price on a range of greenhouse gas emitting activities, most significantly power generation.
Recycling trial aims to solve plastic bags problem
20 Jul 2015
The packaging sector and the Government are working together to find a way to recycle supermarket bags and other soft plastic.
Australia’s ‘climate roundtable’ could unite old foes and end the carbon deadlock
6 Jul 2015
Climate policy is in the Australian media yet again, but this time it might be different. The set of policy principles released by the Australian Climate Roundtable are extraordinary for two reasons.
It looks like carbon capture is going down down the tubes
6 Jul 2015
One of the much-heralded solutions to climate change which its supporters believe could enable the world to continue to burn fossil fuels looks likely to be a failure.
The carbon tax wasn’t a ‘slug’ to the economy and Direct Action may be a waste of money
29 Jun 2015
Federal Environment Minister Greg Hunt, writing in the Fairfax opinion pages, has said that the now abolished carbon tax was a far more expensive way to reduce Australia’s carbon emissions than the Direct Action policy that replaced it.
Treasury tells Government how to cut emissions
2 Jun 2015
Treasury has told the Government that if it wants to reduce greenhouse gas emissions it should introduce a carbon price floor, get rid of the two-for-one provisions or cut the number of free carbon credits it gives to emitters.
The world is waking up to the $5.3 trillion cost of fossil fuels
25 May 2015
Prospects for global energy markets have been reshaped by two recent pieces of news, one of which helps to explain the other.
Wealthy nations overlook the dangers of climate change
25 May 2015
By ALEX LO.- Do rich countries care more about the environment that poorer ones? In a recent study I found that’s not necessarily the case.
Where's the clean-tech economy talk, Mr Little?
18 May 2015
Labour leader Andrew Little is blasting the Government for failing to diversify the economy, but he is still not talking about a low-carbon, clean-tech economy.
Tesla's battery power could give Nevada a $100b jolt
18 May 2015
The new Tesla Motors factory being built outside Sparks, Nevada, was already on tap to produce 500,000 electric car batteries and become the largest battery factory in the world when chief executive Elon Musk announced last month it would also produce the potentially revolutionary home battery, the Powerwall.
We’re not there yet, Garnaut tells Australia
11 May 2015
Following the repeal of the carbon tax, the Australian Government has implemented its Direct Action climate policy, centred on the A$2.55 billion Emissions Reduction Fund.
So, where's the carbon auction money going?
28 Apr 2015
The results of the Australian Government’s first reverse auction (https://theconversation.com/explainer-how-does-todays-direct-action-reverse-auction-work-40152) of carbon-cutting projects have been released. Where is the money going?
NZ's fine on fossil-fuel subsidies, says Groser
20 Apr 2015
New Zealand has been given a clean bill-of-health on fossil-fuel subsidies, the Government says.
Inquiry takes aim at green charities that get political
20 Apr 2015
The almost 600 environmental groups that hold tax-deductibility status in Australia are being scrutinised by a Federal Government inquiry, with reports that more than 100 of them face being struck off the list.
Why all cities should have a Department of Food
7 Apr 2015
The United States is a nation where hunger and obesity go hand in hand. More than 17 million households struggle to put food on the table, and when they do, it’s often high in fat and sugar because healthy options are scarce in low-income neighborhoods.
Water crisis pushes Brazil toward solar power at last
7 Apr 2015
Brazil’s long-running drought could have the unexpected consequence of finally prompting one of the sunniest countries in the world to take solar power seriously.
No matter how you cut it, the answer is ecosystem services
23 Mar 2015
As a professor of ecology, Shahid Naeem knows all too well that there’s no shortage of environmental ills to keep us awake at night – global warming, the spread of diseases, dead zones in the Gulf of Mexico, collapsing fisheries, mass extinction, and a hundred other things that are the stock and trade of environmental doomsayers.
Why is low-carbon energy innovation so slow? You can thank Economics 101
23 Mar 2015
The world needs a lot of energy. Global energy demand is expected to increase by 37 per cent percent over the next 25 years, according to the International Energy Agency’s World Energy Outlook 2014.
Powerful wind blows through US energy sector
23 Mar 2015
By KIERAN COOKE.- The wind turbines are turning across America, and a major report by the US Department of Energy says the wind energy sector now supplies 4.5 per cent of the nation’s electricity.
Why is pumping CO2 underground stuck in second gear?
16 Mar 2015
There are many uncertainties with respect to global climate change, but there is one thing about which I have no doubts: we will not solve climate change by running out of fossil fuels.
Biobattery breakthrough boosts waste-to-energy revolution
9 Mar 2015
Competition to make biofuels out of waste products that would otherwise have to be dumped is creating a fast-growing, worldwide industry.
Let's cut emissions, not worry about how
2 Mar 2015
Australia had an emissions trading scheme with a fixed price; it was one good way to encourage carbon cuts throughout the economy.
New Zealand’s defective law on climate change, by Sir Geoffrey Palmer
23 Feb 2015
Distinguished law fellow Sir Geoffrey Palmer, QC, has been at or near the heart of our attempts to tackled climate change for nearly three decades.
Energy-efficiency rules fail US academic's test
16 Feb 2015
Energy efficiency rules in California have failed to cut energy consumption, suggesting that direct action is less effective than carbon pricing in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, a visiting economist says.
Australia readies for first emissions auction
16 Feb 2015
Australia’s first Emissions Reduction Fund auction will be in April – a month later than the market expected.
Climate debt grows as Australia messes about
9 Feb 2015
Policy procrastination over climate change is costing Australia money, a new analysis shows.
Trading will be back, say Australian businesses
2 Feb 2015
Most Australian businesses believe the country will return to an emissions trading scheme or a carbon tax by 2020.
Carbon pricing the challenge for the future
2 Feb 2015
The concept of carbon pricing as a tool to combat climate change is broadly accepted by the international community. But at what price, and under what conditions?
Yes minister, but ...
2 Feb 2015
In a piece published in the Guardian recently, Australian Environment Minister Greg Hunt was purported to have once again rejected claims that a price on carbon would benefit emissions reduction targets.
Our new energy mix is a game-changer, says India
15 Dec 2014
While the political spotlight focused on the world’s two biggest polluters − China and the US − in the run-up to the Lima climate talks, pressure is mounting on India to set emissions targets to help to prevent the planet overheating.
Getting out of fossil fuel investment is the right way to go
1 Dec 2014
The controversy ignited by the Australian National University in October, when it decided to sell its shares in seven resources companies, has raised two important questions about divestment from assets such as fossil fuels.
Australia’s coal and gas exports being left stranded
24 Nov 2014
The United States and China have announced goals to reduce emissions by 26 per cent to 28 per cent and to cap emissions by 2030 respectively.
G20 climate challenge calls for a rethink of economics
17 Nov 2014
Focusing on growth, the Brisbane G20 leaders' summit has not grappled with three key issues - how much more growth the planet can survive, how poorer nations can raise their living standards to parity with the developed world, and how can a fairer distribution of the benefits of growth be realised?
UK ignores pledge to end fossil fuel support
17 Nov 2014
Despite promises to phase out subsidies to the coal, oil and gas industries, a new report says the UK and other G20 governments are still providing them with massive financial help.
Election rout blow to US climate change role
10 Nov 2014
The role of the United States in confronting the global climate crisis has been cast into serious doubt after an election that stacked the deck in Congress in favor of fossil fuel industries.
Chile's new tax could open carbon doors for NZ
20 Oct 2014
Chile’s new carbon tax potentially offers New Zealand an opportunity to offset some of its own agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, says economist Dr Suzi Kerr.
WANTED: $44 trillion to switch to clean energy
13 Oct 2014
In a world wrestling with climate change and the need to phase out fossil fuels, nothing is more critical than making sure there are reliable and cost-effective clean energy technologies ready to fill the void.
Europe throws nuclear power a state-aid lifeline
13 Oct 2014
The European Commission has now agreed that Britain can subsidise the building of the world’s most expensive nuclear power station − despite previously believing that the deal breaks the European Union’s rules on state aid.
E-cars could make British carmakers great again
6 Oct 2014
British-owned car manufacturing has been in decline for decades, but the shift to electric cars might be just what is needed for a revival.
MIA ... but it doesn't mean China's not interested
29 Sep 2014
There were a few notable absentees among the more than 120 world leaders gathered in New York for last week's United Nations Climate Summit - and perhaps most notable of all was the head of the world’s highest-emitting nation, China’s President Xi Jinping.
WORLD WEB ... Obama’s drive for carbon pricing fails to win at home
29 Sep 2014
* Chile becomes the first South American country to tax carbon * UK to introduce fracking drilling law despite 99% opposition * US Homeland Security moves to tackle climate change risks * Hawaii's solar industry in precarious situation * The top 10 greenest cities in America * Avatar director James Cameron talks climate change
Clear skies for aviation industry, says Boeing report
29 Sep 2014
The business outlook for civil aviation is bright thanks mainly to rising Asian demand for aircraft. But airlines are expected to have a harder time, with tougher competition in Europe leading to a consolidation of the sector, according to the latest industry forecast.
It's simple ... either you believe, or you don't
16 Sep 2014
By editor ADELIA HALLETT.- Voters in this weekend’s general election face a simple choice when it comes to climate change – you either believe it is a real and massive problem requiring transformation of the economy, or you don’t.
We've got the world's lowest carbon prices
8 Sep 2014
New Zealand has the lowest carbon prices in the world, the World Bank says.
Australian transport stuck in the energy queue
1 Sep 2014
Australia has scored poorly in the energy efficiency of its land transport, and is well behind other major economies, a recent international scorecard has revealed.
Green fatigue ... or just not so much recycling?
25 Aug 2014
It has been suggested that a recent fall in recycling rates in Britain is due to green fatigue, caused by the confusing number of recycling bins presented to householders for different materials.
Business needs to make climate change stand
18 Aug 2014
There is still an element of climate change scepticism in New Zealand business, says a leading policy analyst.
Experts pinpoint what emissions cost economy
18 Aug 2014
For the first time, economists have put a financial cost on the impact of greenhouse gases released by the industrialisation of developed countries.
The climate change world according to Piketty
18 Aug 2014
French economist widely debated Thomas Piketty and his book Capital in the Twenty-First Century are a global publishing phenomenon. But while Piketty’s writing on wealth inequality has been widely debated, far fewer people know that he has some useful things to say about climate change and public capital.
Farm-level emissions cuts possible, but almost everything stands in the way
18 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Progress to slash farming emissions is being blocked by limited farmer confidence in mitigation tools, inconsistent engagement, misinformation and a lack of clear policy signals, according to a new report.
State-owned farmer drives profit growth with emissions reductions
19 Dec 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Government-owned Landcorp, trading as Pāmu, is one-third of the way to meeting its 2031 emissions reduction targets, with five years left to run to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 30.3% against 2021 emissions.
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.
‘Cali Fund’ aiming to raise billions for nature receives first donation – of just $1,000
16 Dec 2025
A major biodiversity fund – which could, in theory, generate billions of dollars annually for conservation – received its first donation of just $1,000 in November.
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.
Climate law change spanner in the works for Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry
19 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s controversial changes to New Zealand’s legal framework for climate policy have thrown a spanner in the works for a long-running Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry into climate change.
Seven quiet wins for climate and nature in 2025
19 Dec 2025
This year's environmental backdrop is familiar: emissions are rising and nature is continuing to decline. But there have nevertheless been bright spots in 2025.
Govt unveils plans for carbon storage regulations – and ETS rewards
18 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government has released plans to regulate carbon capture and storage in natural geological formations, which include Emissions Trading Scheme incentives, with the aim of introducing related legislation in 2026.
Global coal demand hit record high this year but is set to decline by 2030
18 Dec 2025
Global coal demand reached a record high in 2025 but is expected to decline by 2030 as renewables, nuclear power and abundant natural gas squeeze its dominance in power generation.
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.
RMA’s successors hinge on two untested bets
17 Dec 2025
Two ideas sit at the heart of the Government’s replacement for the Resource Management Act: regulatory relief and spatial planning.
India at COP30: A mismatch between grandstanding and climate action
11 Dec 2025
Despite India’s attempt to anoint itself as the leader of the developing world, at the COP30 summit, New Delhi’s track record remains contradictory.
Govt warned that scrapping ag emission pricing comes with risks
11 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s move to halt plans for agricultural emissions pricing without replacing it with any other action will leave New Zealand facing a bigger gap to meet its third emissions budget, Environment ministry officials have warned.
NZ hydrogen regulation to catch up with the world
18 Dec 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | The government has announced a regulatory reset for New Zealand’s emerging clean tech hydrogen sector.
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.
Pacific climate response in question as NZ finance remains unclear
19 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | With New Zealand's $1.3 billion international climate finance commitment set to end with no clarity on what follows, the Auditor-General says oversight of that funding remains patchy and long-term outcomes are unclear.
Transport dominates NZ’s rising consumer emissions
10 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Transport pollution was the biggest contributor to an increase in New Zealand’s consumption-based emissions in 2023, with emissions from household travel up 12%, and consumption-based emissions totalling 58.3 million tonnes – up 1.6% from the previous year.
Hydrogen emissions are ‘supercharging’ the warming impact of methane
19 Dec 2025
The warming impact of hydrogen has been “overlooked” in projections of climate change, according to authors of the latest “global hydrogen budget”.
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 NZ announces partnership to form Blue Economy hub in Nelson
17 Dec 2025
Media release | Westpac NZ has announced a new three-year partnership with the Nelson Regional Development Agency and Kernohan Engineering to help accelerate the development of a sustainable marine economy – also known as the blue economy.
NZ ‘clearly’ breaching international law on climate – Vanuatu Climate Change Minister
12 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | Vanuatu’s Climate Change Minister, Ralph Regenvanu, says New Zealand restarting fossil fuel exploration and subsidies is an obvious breach of international law, exposing the country to international and domestic litigation.
Govt slammed for weakening methane target
15 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams The Government has pushed through legislation under urgency to almost halve New Zealand’s 2050 methane target – a move Opposition parties say disregards scientific advice, breaks the country’s hard-won political consensus on climate action, and shifts the burden of higher warming and higher future costs onto the next generation.
COP30 microcosm of difficult geopolitics, says Vanuatu's Climate Minister
15 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | Despite ‘intransigent’ states blocking multilateralism and a disappointing official outcome, Vanuatu’s Climate Change Minister Ralph Regenvanu says he left the COP30 climate summit feeling more positive than after previous UN climate conferences.
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.
Three Greenpeace activists removed by police from Fonterra
17 Dec 2025
Media release | Three Greenpeace activists were removed by police from Fonterra’s downtown Auckland offices, following a protest on Monday at the Shareholders’ Fund meeting over the corporation’s role in the contamination of rural communities’ drinking water.
Oil and gas majors would create $78bn more value by stopping exploration
11 Dec 2025
Media release | Ten of the world’s largest oil and gas companies would create significantly more shareholder value by ending exploration and sharply curtailing upstream development, according to new analysis released today by ACCR.
Wetlands and biodiversity at risk as mining rules loosen: Greenpeace
19 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Greenpeace says Government changes to national direction instruments under the RMA paves the way for mining in wetlands and biodiversity hotspots and will expose some of Aotearoa’s most fragile ecosystems to irreversible damage.
NZ could become ‘dumping ground’ for dirty vehicles: Commissioner
16 Dec 2025
By Liz Kivi | Simon Upton, Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, has warned the Government that its changes to the clean car standard could turn the country into a dumping ground for high emitting cars, making future emissions budgets harder to achieve.
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.
Offshore windfarms enhance function of coastal waters and diversity of aquatic life
19 Dec 2025
Media release | A study conducted by researchers from Murdoch University in Australia and Dalian Ocean University in China has found that offshore windfarms can improve marine ecosystems and diversify aquatic food chains.
‘A shift no country can ignore’: where global emissions stand, 10 years after the Paris climate agreement
16 Dec 2025
The watershed summit in 2015 was far from perfect, but its impact so far has been significant and measurable.
Govt consulting on Pacific Resilience Facility
12 Dec 2025
The Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee is calling for submissions on its international treaty examination of the Agreement to Establish the Pacific Resilience Facility.
Govt green lights rural recycling scheme
4 Dec 2025
The Government has approved new regulations to bring rural waste schemes under one unified framework.
KiwiRail pauses coal trains amid rising climate protests
9 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Climate activists are ramping up actions this week, with a Christchurch protest leading to KiwiRail pausing some coal train operations on Saturday, and another protest against the Fast-Track Amendment Bill planned for parliament today.
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.
Could tidal energy one day power NZ?
18 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New research suggests Aotearoa holds some of the world’s strongest tidal-stream energy potential – enough to generate up to 93% of today’s electricity use – but one expert cautions that extracting energy at such a scale could have significant impacts and remains highly uncertain.
NZ could lose nearly all glaciers this century without stronger climate action
16 Dec 2025
New Zealand could see 97% of its glaciers vanish by 2100, with new international modelling projecting a rapid acceleration in glacier extinction from the 2030s onward – even under lower-warming scenarios.
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.
The surprisingly convincing case against cars
19 Dec 2025
Life After Cars dares to imagine how different, and enriching, a car-free world could be.
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.
Heatwaves, downpours and droughts – Auckland on track for more extreme weather
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.
NZ just had its hottest spring in at least 116 years
10 Dec 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | This year New Zealand had its hottest spring since records began, with widespread heat, rainfall extremes and destructive wind driven by sudden stratospheric warming.
Media round-up
12 Dec 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Another offshore wind firm exits New Zealand over a clash with seabed mining; Fonterra falls behind on its climate goals as farm emissions remain flat; and the businesses trapped by the gas 'death spiral'.
