Science Media Centre

Week from hell for climate science It broke last weekend and has run all week – the “climategate” saga that has seen the private emails of prominent climate scientists leaked onto the web and picked over by climate change sceptics who accuse them of manipulating data to show the world’s climate is warming. New Zealand [...]

Just before 6pm last night, Parliament passed the Climate Change Response (Moderated Emissions Trading) Amendment Bill by 63 votes to 58, with the support of National, the Maori Party and United Future. With features such as halved power and petrol price increases for households and business during the transition phase, it is a softer version [...]

The report of the Finance and Expenditure Committee on the Moderated Emissions Trading Amendment Bill has been released and outlines the reasons for dissent among committee members on whether the amendments should proceed. The committee reported: “We were unable to reach agreement on whether to recommend that the Climate Change Response (Moderated Emissions Trading) Amendment [...]

David Williams of The Press reports on the disagreement over the changes to the proposed ETS between parties. Currently, the proposed changes are likely to encounter a 6-all stalemate, meaning they will have to be renegotiated.  While many would like for New Zealand to have an agreed ETS in place before Copenhagen next month, others [...]

With the announcement yesterday of a revised New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), there has been much debate over the pros and cons of this ‘weaker’ ETS. At the beginning of the month, the New Zealand Climate Change Research Institute released a commentary on the (then) new report from the Parliamentary Select Committee about the [...]

The National Government has reached an agreement with the Maori Party on an Emissions Trading Scheme for New Zealand. The controversial new plan, announced yesterday, is significantly ‘softer’ than the plan originally put forward and has the transport, energy and industry sectors entering the ETS mid next year, but agriculture only entering early 2015. Other [...]

The Government’s climate change legislation has now passed into law. The bill that sets up the emissions trading scheme (ETS) went through its third reading in Parliament on Wednesday night on a 63-57 vote. Further information New Zealand Parliament New Zealand’s climate change solutions Ministry for the Environment – New Zealand climate change Ministry of [...]

The emissions trading scheme (ETS) legislation, which passed on a 63-57 vote after its third reading in Parliament on Wednesday night, sets limits on the amount of greenhouse gas sectors of the economy can emit. Farmers and large industries have attacked the bill. Others say that while well meaning it will do little to counter [...]

What support for the ETS bought the Greens: $1 billion over about 15 years to insulate and upgrade low-income homes. Higher-income homes will also get a substantial subsidy. A commitment from the Government to develop and implement a National Policy Statement on biodiversity no later than February 1, 2011. A contestable fund of 150,000 carbon [...]