“Human-caused global warming is already irreversible on the timescale of people alive today and will worsen in decades to come.” – NASA
“We basically have three choices: mitigation, adaptation and suffering. We’re going to do some of each. The question is what the mix is going to be.” – John Holdren, Harvard University Professor and Obama Administration Climate Advisor
The issues
The world must change its approach to energy, recognise the limit to endless growth, and find a sustainable balance with nature, or we will suffer the worst consequences of climate change. We must electrify energy and fundamentally change our lifestyle.
A federal government plan is essential to reach net-zero by 2050. Action must be decisive and the trajectory clearly defined for the next 10 years. Australia still ranks an appalling 55th in the Climate Change Performance Index – below USA and China.
Current government projections are for a 32-42% reduction in emissions by 2030 on 2005 levels. Targets put up by the government’s own Climate Change Authority in 2015 were to reduce emissions by 45-65%. The report Pathways to Deep Decarbonisation in 2050 shows that this is achievable if government drives the transition
Our plan
- Commit to reducing emissions by at least 55% by 2030.
- Develop and publish plans for decarbonising this decade, not wait until 2050.
- Plan the transition away from fossil fuels, targeting the areas with the biggest emission footprints – electricity, transport, stationary energy (including homes and offices), and agriculture.
- Electrify everything – or as much as possible! (heating, cooking, cars, industrial processes).
- Provide transport alternatives to internal combustion engine vehicles, including enhanced regional rail links and non-car transport links in cities. Move to renewable fuels where appropriate.
- Support Australia’s clean energy manufacturing supply chains ensuring appropriate protections and equitable participation for indigenous owners.
- Take a key role in planning and regulating new renewable infrastructure so it is timely, orderly and evidence-informed.
- Price carbon at $30/tonne, and increase this in line with our key trading partners
- Stop subsidising the fossil fuel industry and stop authorising new coal and gas mines
- Ensure the burdens and benefits for people, the economy, and the environment are transparent, properly considered, and fairly shared.
- Make Australia self-sufficient in renewables and a leading renewables exporter.
The evidence
The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPPCC) finds that average global temperatures have risen by 1.1 degrees celsius since the 19th Century, as a result of human-made greenhouse gas emissions.
Looking forward, the IPCC’s sixth assessment report shows five future emissions scenarios, with the range of scenarios resulting in warming outcomes of between +1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels in the very low case and +5 degrees in the very high case.
Analysis by Climate Action Tracker projects that under current policies the world is heading for warming of 2.7°C by 2100, which is nearest to the IPCC’s ‘intermediate’ scenario.
This result would be well above the target set in the 2015 Paris Agreement to keep warming “well below 2°C”.
Many nations other than Australia are taking increasingly ambitious action to reduce and phase out the use of fossil fuels. As a wealthy, developed country, Australia can and should be a leader in the energy transition. Moreover, we have the wealth of renewable energy resources (sun and wind) and critical minerals to be a major beneficiary of the energy transition.
Despite this, as one of the worlds largest exporters of fossil fuels, vested interests and the fossil fuel lobby have held back progress in orienting Australia towards a clean energy future.
This is why it is so important to keep the bastards in power honest and demand that government acts.