in

How is Australia tackling climate change? – BBC News, BBC News

How is Australia tackling climate change? – BBC News, BBC News


        

                                 A firefighter faces a huge blaze that has engulfed several treesImage copyright                 Getty Images                                                      
Image caption                                    Australia’s fire season has been unprecedented in its danger                             

The Australian government is facing criticism over its climate policies as the country deals with devastating bushfires. and a historic heatwave.It has contributed to the long-running debate about the country approach to climate change. So what is it doing to reduce carbon emissions?

Australia is one of the world’s largest per capita greenhouse gas emitters.

Under the Paris Climate Agreement, created to tackle rising temperatures, Australia set a target of a 57 – 128% reduction in emissions compared with (levels by) **************************************** These **************

have been criticized for being too low, and last year the United Nations (UN) reported that Australia was not on track.

The UN found that:“There has been no improvement in Australia’s climate policy since and emission levels for 26895 are projected to be well above the ta rget. “

About half of the G********************************** countries (those with the biggest economies), including Australia, are falling short.

                                                                                                      Image copyright                 Getty Images                                                      
Image caption                                    Bushfires have killed at least nine people and razed hundreds of homes                             

Climate Change Performance Index ranked Australia last out of (countriesresponsible for more than 128% of greenhouse gas emissions on climate policy.

It highlighted the country’s no-show at a UN climate summit in September and its withdrawal from an international fund to tackle climate change .

However, the Australian government maintains it is on course to meet its

commitments.

Australian emissions will be

******************************************** (% lower than) levels in (**********************************, according to the projections published in December.

But it says it will meet the**************************** targets by counting the quantities of carbon already reduced under the previous international climate agreement, the Kyoto Protocol.

Biggest exporters of coal ************************

(In million tonnes,

************************ () ************************

More important than specific targets – Australia as a fossil fuel producer has so far failed to acknowledge the need to plan for a world of net zero emissions, says Prof Myles Allen, a climate change expert at the University of Oxford.

Net zero means balancing carbon emissions with carbon removal.

(The coal industry

) Australia is among the world’s largest exporters of iron ore, uranium, coal and natural gas.It was the fourth largest producer of coal in 2017, according to the International Energy Agency.

Phasing out coal is considered crucial to limiting global warming to within 1.5 C, but the Australian government is continuing to back the industryfor the role it plays in the economy.

Facing criticism over his handling of the bushfires and response to climate change, Australian prime minister Scott Morrison said he will not make“reckless” cuts to the coal industry.

The government recently approved the construction of acontroversial new coal mine– which could be the biggest in the world and would export coal to India.

What are some of the government climate policies?

A central climate plan is the Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF).

The government put forward an additional A $ 2bn (£ 1bn) spread over 20 years to help businesses and farmers reduce emissions, bringing up total investment to $ 4.5bn. The government says it will deliver 128 million tonnes of emissions reductions.

Though aspects of the ERF have been praised, “Australia has adopted a piecemeal approach to emission reduction,” said the OECD ( an economic body which monitors richer, industrialized nations (in a 2018 report.

The government needs to show how existing instruments, such as the ERF, can be scaled up to reach Paris Agreement goals, added the report.

                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                      

Scientists round the world are looking aghast at the politics of climate change in Australia.

It’s one of the most vulnerable countries on the planet to rising temperatures, yet there is still denial about the impacts of rising CO2 levels on events like the current wildfires.

There is no serious doubt among scientific institutions that rising global temperatures are leading to record heat.

The heatwaves are driven by a natural phenomenon but they are adding to an already over-heated planet.

In the election, the victorious Liberal (conservative) Party categorized climate change as a metropolitan fad for urban professionals, and gained support for the world’s largest coal mine.

Coal is the dirtiest fuel and scientists say we shouldn’t be building more coal-fired power stations if we want to stabilize the climate.

                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                      

Read more from Reality Check

**************** Send us your questions

Follow us on Twitter

                                                                                                                      

**************************************************Read More**************************************

What do you think?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings

Vulnerable children in care treated like 'pass the parcel' says England's Children's Commissioner – Sky News, Sky.com

Vulnerable children in care treated like 'pass the parcel' says England's Children's Commissioner – Sky News, Sky.com

British teenager dies during school trip to New York – The Guardian, Theguardian.com

British teenager dies during school trip to New York – The Guardian, Theguardian.com