Decarbonisation stories
Wellington has cut net emissions by 7% in 20 years despite 26% growth, as EV chargers and car share schemes reshape transport.
Establishing a carbon baseline gives firms a starting point to cut emissions, compare sites and plan against future climate targets.
Public consultation begins on a draft plan that says faster action is needed if Aotearoa is to stay within its climate targets.
Clean energy stocks may stutter in 2021 even as investment, EV sales and solar and wind capacity all hit fresh records.
Plants could stop buffering a third of human emissions within 20 years, making climate change harder to slow as warming rises.
South Australia’s push to export renewable energy will add 40,000 tonnes of ammonia a year, backed by GBP £37 million for Port Bonython.
Older buildings could lock in high emissions unless retrofits and digital twins cut energy demand before 2050.
Australia’s recovery risks being blunted unless governments shift spending towards social infrastructure, housing and renewable energy.
Weak planning, funding and governance are leaving New Zealand unable to deliver the wider public outcomes it now says it wants.
Even an ideal recycling system would cut plastics-sector emissions by only 14% by 2050, leaving major producers still far from net zero.
Sweeping planning and infrastructure reforms could speed housing and business land supply, although transport pricing still awaits progress.
New Zealand’s shift away from fossil fuels has a dedicated national hub, as Ara Ake opens to test clean energy options for wider uptake.
The site could draw USD $2 billion to USD $4 billion in logistics investment and ease freight congestion around Palmerston North.
Consumers faced an extra USD $80 million bill as the Electricity Authority found Meridian’s spilling also raised emissions and fossil fuel use.
The project will add 93 MW of capacity and offset 100,000 tonnes of CO2 a year as MainPower begins site works near Waipara.
Private technology firms are poised to dominate infrastructure, as automation and data reshape jobs, services and investment across the sector.
Lockdowns are set to cut CO2 emissions by at least 5% this year, but any climate gain could be erased unless stimulus backs cleaner growth.
New roads, rail, schools and hospitals should help address years of underinvestment, though critics question whether USD $12 billion is enough.
Investors may pour more money into low-carbon projects this year, but election outcomes and climate shocks could still slow decarbonisation.
Long-term upgrades to tracks, trains and ferries could finally be unlocked as the government shifts rail funding away from annual budget battles.
