Solid Energy Archive

  • Kennedy Graham

    The Lignite Mirror Maze - by Kennedy Graham



    If the Ministry of Economic development can join the Coal Association to lobby the Government, should the Environment Ministry not join the Wind Association to do the same? read more
    July 15, 2011 9:35 am - 7 Comments
  • Russel Norman

    Podcast: The Green Plan for our SOEs - by Russel Norman



    Green Co-leader, Dr Russel Norman, last week outlined his plan for a sustainable and prosperous economy at the Party’s AGM. One of his most talked-about initiatives was how our state-owned enterprises could be leveraged to lift our country’s economic performance in partnership with the private sector. He proposed this as an alternative to John Key’s [...] read more
    June 20, 2011 11:31 am - 13 Comments
  • Gareth Hughes

    Stop the lignite-mare - by Gareth Hughes



    Lignite is at the New Zealand coal-face of the environmental crisis. It is well and truly on the agenda with top climate scientist James Hansen, currently touring NZ, urging us to keep the coal in the hole. State-owned Enterprise Solid Energy and the L&M Group are currently either planning or at the permitting stage (behind [...] read more
    May 16, 2011 11:13 am - 11 Comments
  • frog

    Leading climate scientist touring Aotearoa this month - by frog



    I’m really looking forward to meeting one of the world’s leading climate scientists, James Hansen, in a few short weeks. He will be touring New Zealand giving a public lecture entitled “Climate Change: a scientific, moral and legal issue” in Auckland, Palmerston North, Wellington, Dunedin, Gore and Christchurch. I just finished his latest book – [...] read more
    May 1, 2011 9:22 pm - 25 Comments
  • frog

    Democracy in NZ: Lost, Stolen or just Mislaid? - by frog



    Last weekend Jeanette Fitzsimons delivered the inaugural Rod Donald Memorial lecture to a packed audience in Christchurch. Here are some highlights of the speech and you can read the whole thing here. Running through the history of democracy has been the issue of just who is a member of society? In ancient Athens women and [...] read more
    November 23, 2010 12:22 pm - 21 Comments
  • frog

    Jeanette says we must keep the coal in the ground - by frog



    The Herald ran a very compelling op-ed by Jeanette Fitzsimons yesterday, suggesting that from a climate perspective our priority must be to keep most of the remaining fossil fuel in the ground. For 35 years I have been wrong about how to prevent climate change. It’s time I confessed. For 35 years I have worked [...] read more
    November 3, 2010 6:57 pm - 51 Comments
  • frog

    Big Gerry treads lightly on Solid Energy privatisation plans - by frog



    Earlier today, Solid Energy Chair John Palmer advocated, in a presentation before the start of the NZX Annual Meeting in Wellington, the partial privatisation of Solid Energy. We want a Yes or a No, Gerry, not your equivocation! read more
    June 17, 2010 7:15 pm - 10 Comments
  • Kennedy Graham

    Coal and Sustainable Energy: An exciting essay topic - by Kennedy Graham



    To the CEO of Solid Energy: Dear Sir, I understand that your corporation is sponsoring an essay competition for schoolchildren in Southland, West Coast, Canterbury and Waikato. The essay, up to 1500 words, must address “The Role of Coal in Sustainable Energy Solutions for New Zealand.” read more
    March 13, 2010 10:20 am - 21 Comments
  • frog

    From alpine wilderness to a big hole - by frog



    It’s the beginning of the end for the unique red tussock lands of Happy Valley. Solid Energy commenced coal-mining preparations in the area on Earth Day by constructing fences, installing security equipment, and taking apart the Save Happy Valley camp. Metiria discusses the devastating implications of this, the first move to turn Happy Valley into [...] read more
    April 29, 2009 8:30 am - 5 Comments
  • frog

    Save Happy Valley celebrates 3rd anniversary - by frog



    The Save Happy Valley Coalition celebrated the occupation’s 3rd anniversary on the weekend. The valley is home to endangered kiwi and snails in a precious forest-edged red tussock wetland. Destroying this special place to mine coal that will contribute to climate change is doubly criminal. While the occupation has so far protected the valley from [...] read more
    January 27, 2009 9:43 am - 1 Comment
  • frog

    Imminent extinction for august snail - by frog



    The Department of Conservation says that the powelliphanta augustus snails are not faring so well in their new homes. Up to 40% mortality is evident in the new populations established just within the last 2 years.Over 6000 snails have been gathered up and thrown in DOC fridges for the crime of daring to live on [...] read more
    November 28, 2008 3:39 pm - 13 Comments
  • frog

    Don’t look back, Don - by frog



    Don Elder waxed poetic about the prospects for NZ coal this week at Solid Energy’s maiden annual meeting in Auckland. We have more coal resource energy per capita than Saudi Arabia has oil. In a world of increasing demand, and increasingly constrained supply of energy, New Zealand is now the lucky country. Sorry, Don, but [...] read more
    November 26, 2008 11:24 am - 59 Comments
  • frog

    An unusual request - by frog



    I just received this email this morning: Dear Sir/Madam, This is mathew gary and I will like to order coal. Do get back to me with the types and cost for the ones you do carry and let me know if there is an extra cost when using visa or master card. Kindly get back [...] read more
    September 18, 2008 9:29 am - 6 Comments
  • frog

    Business Council for Sustainable Development’s internal ructions - by frog



    The Business Council for Sustainable Development’s report arguing that an emissions trading scheme could lead to more than $12 billion of investment over the next 10 years and create nearly 10,000 jobs has certainly thrown the cat amongst the pigeons. The interesting thing to me is not so much the validity or not of NZBCSD’s [...] read more
    June 25, 2008 9:50 am - 33 Comments
  • frog

    A coal mining ditty - by frog



    A reader has sent in this ballad; Old King Coal was a dirty old soul And a dirty old soul was he; He stuffed up the air, to the climate’s despair; So he called for the CSC. Every denier has their denial, And a very fine denial has he; But there’s none so rare, as [...] read more
    April 24, 2008 8:54 am - 17 Comments
  • frog

    Solid Energy and Jeanette’s double act - by frog



    There’s a gentle irony, following yesterday’s coal protest, to see that Jeanette is one of the heroes in Solid Energy’s media release today. Both Solid Energy and Jeanette have been celebrating Mairehau High School which is, with the help of a Renewable Heating for Schools Grant from EECA, switching its heating system from coal to [...] read more
    April 23, 2008 5:02 pm - 13 Comments
  • frog

    Support for ‘keep coal in the hole’ - by frog



    Greenpeace called last night for Labour and National to support Jeanette’s six-point plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from coal. Coal is the most climate-damaging fossil fuel. “It smacks of hypocrisy for New Zealand to claim any leadership role on tackling climate change while coal-mining continues to expand,? said Mr Boxer. “Political parties need to [...] read more
    April 23, 2008 9:05 am - 7 Comments
  • frog

    Keep the coal in the hole - by frog



    This afternoon Jeanette presented Solid Energy with a gift from the Green Party to mark Earth Day – a stocking containing a lump of coal – a traditional gift at Christmas for naughty girls and boys. But, as Jeanette says, it’s not just Solid Energy that has a coal addiction problem: [I]mportant as oil is, [...] read more
    April 22, 2008 5:21 pm - 28 Comments
  • frog

    Coal - by frog



    Tonight Jeanette will be speaking in Ilam, Christchurch, and releasing the Green Party’s coal policy. In the mean time here’s some coal related videos. You may have heard Gerry Brownlee talking about ‘sexy coal‘ but this General Electric ‘ecomagination‘ ad campaign from a couple of years ago actually uses sex appeal to sell coal. No [...] read more
    April 22, 2008 1:45 pm - 11 Comments
  • frog

    Earth Day - by frog



    In case you missed the street parades and glitzy advertising campaign, I thought I’d better remind you that today is Earth Day.  A traditional Earth Day activity is to show a picture of the Earth, which reminds us how compact and small our planet is, such as this one taken from Apollo 8 in 1968. [...] read more
    April 22, 2008 1:20 pm - 6 Comments
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