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.
) 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.
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