climate change Archive

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  Black milestone in climate change reached - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  A black milestone in climate change history was reached over the weekend. Concentrations of carbon dioxide, the key ingredient in global warming, hit 400 parts per million of the air in our atmosphere, up from 280 ppm in the mid-18th century when the Industrial Revolution kicked in.  Internationally, we are rushing headlong towards disaster – [...] read more
  May 13, 2013 2:25 pm - 138 Comments
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  Farrar wrong on renewables - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  As you might have caught we have (alongside Labour) announced a plan to cut excessive profits from the Electricity Sector and return the money to households. David Farrar over on Kiwiblog yesterday posted about the total cost of Electricity Production claiming that renewable options – which we prefer are more expensive than coal and gas. [...] read more
  April 18, 2013 4:35 pm - 154 Comments
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  Closing the gap: Australia vs. NZ on climate change - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  The Australian Climate Commission have released a report ‘The Critical Decade: Extreme Weather’. Throughout the authors are unequivocal and forthright about the reality of the effects of climate change on Australia. Australia is already experiencing, and is going to experience, extreme weather events more often – because of human-induced (‘anthropogenic’) climate change. There is no [...] read more
  April 4, 2013 1:22 pm - 56 Comments
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  Government must lead on climate - by Steffan Browning

  
  
  
  I have just had an opinion piece printed in Farmers Weekly. Here is what I wrote: As the list of regions being declared drought areas grows it’s distressing to see land and animals suffering from the lack of water. This summer’s drought has cost the country $1 billion and counting and might even take us [...] read more
  April 2, 2013 8:57 am - 113 Comments
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  Denniston too precious to mine - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  I am concerned that the interim decision of the Environment Court does not rule out the mining of the Denniston Plateau. The interim decision of the Environment Court acknowledges that the Denniston Plateau has high biodiversity values which would be impacted by mining and that the situation is too close to call. However the decision [...] read more
  March 28, 2013 2:53 pm - 9 Comments
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  IMF calls for fossil fuel subsidy reform - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  The IMF have come out strongly against fossil fuel subsidies, saying that they are threatening both the environment and the stability of the global economy. The IMF has calculated around $1.9 trillion worldwide, or 8 percent of Government revenue is spent on energy subsidies the vast majority of these contributing to climate change. read more
  March 28, 2013 2:31 pm - 94 Comments
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  Japan and Gas Hydrates-Fire in Ice - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  In news out this week, it’s clear the new frontline of climate change is deep at the bottom of the ocean. read more
  March 14, 2013 4:45 pm - 76 Comments
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  Is Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bill English a climate change denier? - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  Is the Deputy Prime Minister of our country a climate change denier? It may well be the case. During question time in Parliament yesterday I wanted to get into the lack of focus and inaction from this Government on climate change which is starkly highlighted by the suffering our drought-stricken farmers are going through. I [...] read more
  March 14, 2013 12:30 pm - 142 Comments
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  Lignite coal to stay in the hole - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  I am celebrating today after the news that Solid Energy will be dropping its Lignite project in Southland. This is a win for the climate and our environment and for Southland. read more
  February 22, 2013 3:50 pm - 20 Comments
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  New South Wales Government acts on oil and gas concerns - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  The New South Wales government has announced a ban on all coal seam gas development within two kilometres of residential areas and industry clusters, such as horse breeders and wine producers, across the state. What can we learn from it in New Zealand? read more
  February 20, 2013 1:23 pm - 45 Comments
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  Tell Southland District Council to keep the coal in the hole - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  Southland District Council is calling for submissions on its proposed District Plan. This is your chance to tell the Southland District Council that you want a sustainable and prosperous future for Southland, and call on it to make new mining and drilling for lignite coal and coal seam gas a prohibited activity. read more
  February 19, 2013 8:55 pm - No Comments
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  Solid Energy’s future is in clean energy - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  There hasn’t been a great deal of good news lately for Solid Energy. What does the future hold? read more
  February 7, 2013 12:25 pm - 163 Comments
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  The Parliamentary week that was, 11 December, for Pacific communities - by Jan Logie

  
  
  
  Parliament has been very busy trying to pass quite a few pieces of relatively uncontentious legislation over the last couple of weeks. Select committees have also been very busy. Wednesday 12th December was the last day that the House sat for the year, which means the various parties made their adjournment speeches. Greens Co-leader Metiria [...] read more
  December 17, 2012 4:33 pm - No Comments
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  “As predictable as a Tui billboard ad…..” Mr Groser’s characterisation of his climate change policy - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  The 18th UN annual climate change conference commenced on Monday.  I’ll be attending the 2nd week, and will blog from there about its dynamics and outcome. Meanwhile the Key Government, with breath-taking timing, has taken two decisions in the run-up to Doha, both resulting, intentionally or otherwise, in seriously weakening New Zealand’s climate change credentials [...] read more
  November 28, 2012 10:45 am - 40 Comments
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  Fracking report is a red flag not a green light for new fracking wells - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment’s interim report on fracking entitled, “Evaluating the environmental impacts of fracking in New Zealand” was tabled today in Parliament. read more
  November 27, 2012 5:43 pm - 55 Comments
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  Death of an ETS - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  The ETS Amendment Bill went through the House Thursday afternoon, at the end of the 3rd reading. The NZ Parliament, I said, was enacting an iniquity.  With a bare majority, it was amending the ETS and guaranteeing dangerous climate change. I levelled the charge of moral ecocide at two Government leaders – John Key and [...] read more
  November 9, 2012 1:32 pm - 62 Comments
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  Climate change and New Zealand – Mr Groser leads us to the promised land… - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  Two months ago, international scientists reported that the Polar ice-cap had melted far faster than the IPCC anticipated, about 80% since 1980.  It might have its first ice-free day about 2015 (half a century ahead of expectations) and be completely ice-free around 2030-35. This was described as ‘terrifying news’ by the leading scientist, since it [...] read more
  November 7, 2012 1:47 pm - 18 Comments
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  Fair hearing for Denniston in Environment Court - by Eugenie Sage

  
  
  
  Forest and Bird deserves every success in its Environment Court case to protect the distinctive coal measures ecosystems and landscapes of the Denniston Plateau. This week the Court began hearing the Society’s appeal against West Coast councils granting resource consents under the RMA to Australian miner, Bathurst Resources’ destructive plans for an open cast coal [...] read more
  October 30, 2012 2:04 pm - 1 Comment
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  The parliamentary week that was, 23-25 Oct, for Pacific communities - by Jan Logie

  
  
  
  Parliament was preoccupied by two major pieces of law last week, alcohol law reform and climate change. Climate change We can no longer debate whether Climate change is real or man-made, the science is unchallengeable and the signs increasingly visible. Pacific countries know this, because they are at the front line of Climate change. Some [...] read more
  October 29, 2012 4:29 pm - 3 Comments
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  Climate change and human psychoses – seeking, genuinely, a National-Green dialogue - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  It has been a week of climate change. A quarter century, actually, since the US Senate and the Brundtland Report put the issue on the international agenda.  We’ve had, since then, Rio and Cairo, Kyoto and Marrakesh, Copenhagen and Cancun and Durban, and Rio again. But the past week has been especially intensive, and this [...] read more
  September 21, 2012 12:16 pm - 35 Comments
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  Civilising ourselves, resolution by resolution – advancing the concept of ‘human security’ - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  Ideas drive political action.  They come from the deep well of philosophical and religious belief. They are disciplined by science, and flourish through the medium of literature and the arts. And through UN resolutions. Once upon a time, like the past 5,000 years, the safety of the individual was taken to be dependent on a [...] read more
  September 19, 2012 8:47 am - 13 Comments
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  Joyce shows Government foolish on biofuels - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  Anyone else nearly choke on their Weet-Bix this morning listening to Steven Joyce on Morning Report? read more
  September 11, 2012 9:19 pm - 19 Comments
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  Searching for common ground – over common sense: Hon John Banks, climate change, and me - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  Thursday was one of those rare moments when parliamentary debate tosses up a touch of democracy – a juxtaposition of deeply-held views, expressed back-to-back, in one bill before the House. First up on the Order Paper was the Government’s latest foray into climate change legislation – the Climate Change Response (Emissions Trading & Other Matters) [...] read more
  August 24, 2012 9:55 am - 14 Comments
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  Gluckman on science and the environment - by frog

  
  
  
  Professor Peter Gluckman, the Prime Minister’s science advisor, delivered a speech today about “Bringing science and policy together for good environmental outcomes”. While he touches on many issues some positive others not so much I wanted to focus on a particular issue he addresses. Part way through his speech he highlights that “[s]cience and technology [...] read more
  August 22, 2012 3:41 pm - 50 Comments
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  Responding to the two global crises: thoughts on the Rio+20 conference - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  This piece was originally produced for the UN Association of Australia Conference, Brisbane, August 2012 Humanity today faces the first truly global crisis in its 5,000-year political history.  As we enter the Anthropocene: -       Our ecological footprint, surpassing Earth-share (bio-productive capacity per capita) in 1981, recorded an overshoot of 18% in 1992 and 50% in [...] read more
  August 21, 2012 5:54 pm - 110 Comments
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  A new organising framework – re-imagining global governance: Post-Rio reflection #3 - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  In the first two post-Rio reflections, I advanced two main propositions: That the international community needs to declare a global Ecological Crisis and undertake global executive action, rather than wallow in ineffective international legislative negotiations; That the interface between science and politics needs improvement, with the Secretary-General using high-level panels as an intermediary for policy [...] read more
  August 6, 2012 11:11 am - 22 Comments
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  A ‘cross cutting and persistent crisis’ – Climate Change at Rio - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  What is the Rio+20 Earth Summit saying about climate change? Our world leaders, minus New Zealand’s John Key, are about to pass the torch. In the draft declaration, our world leaders will acknowledge that climate change is a ‘cross-cutting and persistent crisis’. They will express their concern that ‘the scale and gravity of the negative [...] read more
  June 22, 2012 11:50 pm - 7 Comments
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  Rio+20: We can give Kiwi kids a future they can look forward to - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  In Brazil the Rio +20 Earth Summit officially starts today. It’s great that Kennedy Graham is there from the Greens and blogging on his experiences. As I told Parliament today, 20 years on it is a good time to look back at our environmental record over the last two decades since the first Rio earth summit in 1992. read more
  June 20, 2012 7:24 pm - 4 Comments
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  The Future We Want [to avoid]: scrutinising ten objections of the US, at Rio - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  The fat draft has come out of the final Prepcom and is going before the Conference.  It runs to 287 paragraphs. Most brackets are removed, with paragraphs approved ad referendum.  Yet there remains work still to be done. I shall assist by scrutinising some of the objections advanced by the United States of America, as [...] read more
  June 19, 2012 11:09 am - 16 Comments
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  “We shall not make it, and we shall pay the price”;…unless we change direction… - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  Legislators make laws.  But they are also politicians, and politicians can talk – Darwin makes sure about that. That became clear this afternoon, at the Rio+20 World Summit of Legislators. Saturday afternoon we focused on climate change.  The GLOBE secretariat has undertaken a systematic study of national legislation which, just in passing, disproved the contention [...] read more
  June 18, 2012 3:05 pm - 2 Comments
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  A twitterstorm is brewing - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  Numerous environmental groups are joining forces to try and break the world record for most tweets of a single hashtag #endfossilfuelsubsidies in a 24 hour period. This is in advance of the Rio+20 Earth Summit, where climate change is expected to feature in discussions. read more
  June 18, 2012 11:13 am - 2 Comments
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  An amazing Kiwi off to Rio - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  I’d like to congratulate Brittany Trilford, who is off the Rio +20 Earth Summit in Brazil after winning the Date With History contest. She won it after posting this amazing short video – The future I want:   It was a pleasure to meet her this week along with Kennedy Graham and Holly Walker. We [...] read more
  June 1, 2012 4:11 pm - 22 Comments
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  Solar has a brighter future - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  Solar could make a bigger contribution to New Zealand electricity supply with its price plummeting and a new international report out optimistic about the transformation of the industry. read more
  May 29, 2012 8:45 pm - 37 Comments
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  3rd Global Greens Congress in Senegal…a rising political force - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  Co-leader Metiria Tūrei and I were the two Kiwi MPs attending the 3rd Global Greens Congress which concluded last week. Green party colleagues, Pete Davis (International Secretary) and Jackson Wood (Young Greens) attended as well, so there was a respectable turnout of four from NZ.  Yes, offsetting occurred. These are, more or less, five-year events.  [...] read more
  April 11, 2012 12:32 pm - 22 Comments
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  The link between environmentalism and social justice - by Holly Walker

  
  
  
  I’ve been doing some thinking about the links between the environment, the economy, and social justice. So have Ban Ki-moon and Tim Flannery. read more
  March 24, 2012 10:30 am - 26 Comments
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  Climate change post-Durban: Still “punching above our weight”…? - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  Yesterday was just one of those days. I experienced, yet again, one of those apocryphal exchanges with Dr Nick Smith on climate change. Those who perceive global climate change as a competitive sport will be heartened to hear Minister Smith assure Parliament that New Zealand is punching above its weight in the negotiations. This is [...] read more
  March 9, 2012 11:49 am - 35 Comments
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  Carbon Zero and the University of Canterbury – One small step, one (potential) giant leap…. - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  Without identifiable and reputable certification, emission reductions are too often seen as ‘hot air’ and clever marketing. read more
  February 27, 2012 3:29 pm - 1 Comment
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  Energy Strategy to worsen Energy Outlook - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  The Ministry of Economic Development have released their Energy Outlook for New Zealand and it should be a wake-up call for the Government. The report projects New Zealand’s future energy supply, demand, prices and greenhouse gas emissions but the major challenges identified in it are at odds with the Governments ‘drill it, mine’ fossil-fuel-focused Energy Strategy. read more
  January 30, 2012 12:34 pm - 45 Comments
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  Cycling to Southland — Epilogue - by Julie Anne Genter

  
  
  
  This is how the story ends. Yesterday I took apart my bike and crammed it into the small rental car of a friend attending the festival. We drove back to Dunedin airport, where incredibly helpful people gave us materials to pack up the bike. Upon arrival in Wellington, I unpacked it, put it back together [...] read more
  January 24, 2012 3:37 pm - 22 Comments
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  Cycling to Southland – Day 1 (the easy part) - by Julie Anne Genter

  
  
  
  When I initially conceived of this journey to Southland by bike, I hoped to cycle down the west coast from Picton. But a quick look at the distance (over 1000km) and the calendar made it clear it would be impossible to get to the festival by the 21st. So I decided to take the train [...] read more
  January 14, 2012 11:03 pm - 34 Comments