The Standard

climate change

Categories under climate change

Advantage’s 2026 predictions

Written By: - Date published: 12:03 pm, December 23rd, 2025 - 11 comments

Advantage gets out the crystal ball and postilated what may happen next year.

The Tunnels project and SH 1 to Wellington Airport

Written By: - Date published: 9:50 am, December 20th, 2025 - 13 comments

The plan ignores standard traffic planning practice, takes no account of predicted sea level rise and will be obsolete before the last stone is turned.

$270 a year more in energy costs for householders – Government pushes fossil fuel / agricultural corporate welfare

Written By: - Date published: 9:48 am, December 13th, 2025 - 5 comments

Under a series of science driven policy options, National / ACT and NZ First unanimously choose “catastrophic peril”. Anything for the fossil fuel and farmer industry, but at what cost, NZ?

Accelerating climate change under urgency

Written By: - Date published: 2:02 pm, December 11th, 2025 - 7 comments

The Government is legislating to halve methane emission reduction targets and remove the requirement for the ETS to accord with Paris Accord obligations. And intends to pass these changes under urgency despite there being no requirement to do so.

Why the next election will not be easy for Labour

Written By: - Date published: 12:12 pm, December 7th, 2025 - 27 comments

This may be a one term National Government. But electoral law reform, the state of Labour’s coalition partners, a possible economic upturn and a change in National’s leader threaten this.

The Government’s 59 policy changes that are destroying the country’s climate response

Written By: - Date published: 8:41 pm, December 5th, 2025 - 8 comments

Count them and weep.

Is National planning to welch on Paris Climate obligations?

Written By: - Date published: 11:50 am, December 4th, 2025 - 12 comments

It appears to be more and more inevitable that National will welch on the country’s Paris Accord obligations.

Why does National really hate EVs?

Written By: - Date published: 8:56 am, November 19th, 2025 - 14 comments

The Government has reversed the clean car standard and by doing this has ensured that the country’s car fleet will be less efficient and produce more greenhouse gasses.

Who’s winning the Climate Change Revolution?

Written By: - Date published: 9:42 am, November 17th, 2025 - 3 comments

The world’s largest economies are lowering or flatlining emissions at the same time as they are growing their economies. 

The Fast Track law is being made worse

Written By: - Date published: 8:48 pm, November 16th, 2025 - 8 comments

Just over a year ago the Government passed a constitutional abomination of a law and is now trying to make it worse and do this quickly. What is going on?

Wrecking the country’s climate change response

Written By: - Date published: 11:59 am, November 8th, 2025 - 18 comments

If you thought that your contempt for the current administration had peaked let me disappoint you. This week they have taken steps to undermine the Climate Change Commission and the ability of the public to influence future emission reduction plans.

Labour Day: the working class and civil emergencies

Written By: - Date published: 6:06 am, October 27th, 2025 - 17 comments

On this Labour Day, a massive shout out to all the workers in Southland, Otago and other areas affected by the storms last week. Paid and volunteer, obvious and those in the background doing support for the frontline workers.

More RONS!

Written By: - Date published: 9:40 am, October 25th, 2025 - 23 comments

National has announced it will be spending nearly three times as much on Roads of National Significance as it campaigned on and has justified dubious investment decisions by changing how benefits are calculated.

Government by the Farmers for the Farmers

Written By: - Date published: 12:14 pm, October 13th, 2025 - 13 comments

In a move that further undermines the country’s response to the climate crisis the Government has halved the methane reduction goal and determined that farms will not pay a price for greenhouse gas emissions.

Luxon’s bad faith stunt

Written By: - Date published: 8:56 am, October 1st, 2025 - 29 comments

Christopher Luxon recently wrote to Chris Hipkins seeking a bipartisan approach to gas drilling but then immediately turned this into a farce by leaking the letter to the Herald.

Old man yells at rest of the world

Written By: - Date published: 10:53 am, September 26th, 2025 - 12 comments

Winston Peters has blamed the two most populous countries in the world for contributing to climate change, a problem that many in his party thinks does not exist.

The infantilisation of Western Grand Strategy – and the rise of Eurasia.

Written By: - Date published: 5:11 pm, September 13th, 2025 - 23 comments

The greatest threat Russia poses to Europe is not that it marches west but that it turns its back and builds a brighter future to the east. We may be witnessing the emergence of a Eurasian World Order.

The $671 million dollar woman

Written By: - Date published: 10:18 am, August 18th, 2025 - 23 comments

The Government is trying to spin that cancellation of the ferry contract will cost the country $144 million when the actual figure is at least $671 million.

Good, Democratic, Easy-To-Support Energy Policies

Written By: - Date published: 8:43 am, August 11th, 2025 - 16 comments

How to make fundamental changes to the country’s energy systems to ensure that future supply is sustainable and democratically controlled/

Power Companies Collude to Require New Zealand Coal-Fired Electricity

Written By: - Date published: 8:33 am, August 6th, 2025 - 20 comments

The country’s four main power companies have signed an agreement to stockpile coal and to extend the life of the coal-fired Huntly power station.

Hey Federated Farmers climate change is real

Written By: - Date published: 10:22 am, July 22nd, 2025 - 9 comments

The Commerce Commission has dismissed Federated Farmers’ claim that banks offering lower interest rates to clients who meet greenhouse gas emission targets are engaging in cartel type behavior.

Do humans have to respect the limits to growth?

Written By: - Date published: 1:23 pm, July 19th, 2025 - 11 comments

we don’t have to, but we probably should.

Climate Change and Bumper Sticker Politics

Written By: - Date published: 7:50 am, July 15th, 2025 - 16 comments

Christopher Luxon has engaged in a classic example of bumper sticker politics by blaming Labour for excessive power prices, not the structure of the power sector. And he has completely ignored the imperitave action that climate change demands the country takes.

New Zealand starting to feel the pointy end of the climate crisis

Written By: - Date published: 10:26 am, July 14th, 2025 - 57 comments

Nelson Tasman region is still in a civil emergency and our climate denying Prime Minister is signalling an end to future flood bail outs.

The Rainbow Warrior 1985-2025.  Part 1: French State Terrorism and the end of innocence. 

Written By: - Date published: 9:05 am, July 6th, 2025 - 41 comments

Immediately after blowing up the Rainbow Warrior the French agents went on a ski holiday in the South Island to celebrate.  Such was the contempt they had for Kiwis and our police.  How wrong they were.

Oceania: Journey to the Center and other Auckland events

Written By: - Date published: 11:17 am, June 27th, 2025 - Comments Off on Oceania: Journey to the Center and other Auckland events

A few things I will be heading to over the coming 5 days in Auckland. A documentary on climate change on pacific islands. Phil Goff on foreign affairs. And the Inaugural Keith Locke Memorial Debate. Moot is “China is a threat to regional peace”. I kind of got caught up in each of these for one reason or another…

The existential moment we are in

Written By: - Date published: 10:44 am, June 2nd, 2025 - 26 comments

As the world re-entangles and pushes our interdependence to the foreground, we need a new thesis on freedom.

We’ve Lost Australia

Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, May 12th, 2025 - 45 comments

New Zealand was once in a sustained Australasian partnership. Now, with New Zealand tracking further and further into policy extremes, Australia – and our children – are leaving New Zealand behind.

Vale David Parker MP

Written By: - Date published: 2:08 pm, May 8th, 2025 - 20 comments

David Parker’s Deputy Leader ‘s speech in 2014 at the Wellington Labour Party Conference was the best I ever heard from a Labour Leader. Vision matched values in intensity and scope. Parliament now loses one of its very best.

Winston’s war on wokeness

Written By: - Date published: 7:04 am, March 25th, 2025 - 41 comments

In what looked like an early election campaign launch Winston Peters has done his old man shaking his fist at the sky tirade against everything woke.

Reasons for Optimism

Written By: - Date published: 11:10 am, March 22nd, 2025 - 14 comments

We’re good, but we know we want better leadership.