Where do the parties stand on climate change and the environment?
5 years, 8 months ago

Where do the parties stand on climate change and the environment?

ABC  

The word that springs to mind when you think about climate policy right now is 'division'. The Coalition is sticking with the figure it took to the Paris Climate Change Agreement in 2016 - to reduce Australia's greenhouse gas emissions by 26-28 per cent by 2030. Labor's emissions target is much higher than the Coalition's - it wants a 45 per cent reduction by 2030, with half of Australia's energy usage coming from renewable sources. Labor's program would see the top 250 biggest polluting companies cop a fine if their emissions exceed the cap of 25,000 tonnes of carbon emissions a year. Coal vs renewables Labor's 45 per cent target comes with the caveat that half of our energy needs will be met by renewable sources like wind and solar.

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History of this topic

Climate change laws appear shelved as WA government draws closer to state election
3 months, 1 week ago

Climate change laws appear shelved as WA government draws closer to state election

ABC  

Climate change legislation that promised to drive down WA's rising greenhouse gas emissions looks increasingly likely to be shelved as the state government looks to finalise its agenda ahead of the March election. Time ticking The Climate Change Bill, introduced by the WA Labor government almost a year ago, promised to "ensure Western Australia contributes to national and global mitigation …

Australian opposition puts nation’s first nuclear power plants in its energy plan ahead of elections
6 months, 3 weeks ago

Australian opposition puts nation’s first nuclear power plants in its energy plan ahead of elections

Associated Press  

MELBOURNE, Australia — Australia’s main opposition party on Wednesday announced plans to build Australia’s first nuclear power plants as early as 2035, arguing the government’s policies for decarbonizing the economy with renewable energy sources including solar, wind turbines and green hydrogen would not work. Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen accused the conservative opposition Liberal Party of serving Australia’s …

Australia’s leader says opposition will renege on greenhouse gas emissions target if elected
6 months, 4 weeks ago

Australia’s leader says opposition will renege on greenhouse gas emissions target if elected

Associated Press  

MELBOURNE, Australia — Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday said the opposition Liberal Party would renege on the nation’s ambitious target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 if it wins elections due within a year. Dutton said in an interview with the newspaper that he opposed the center-left Labor Party government’s plan to reduce emissions by 43% below …

Coalition to dump Australia's 2030 climate target, arguing 43 per cent emissions reduction is unachievable
7 months ago

Coalition to dump Australia's 2030 climate target, arguing 43 per cent emissions reduction is unachievable

ABC  

In short: The Coalition says Labor will fail to meet the Paris Agreement emissions reductions target but will damage Australian industry in trying. The Coalition says Labor will fail to meet the Paris Agreement emissions reductions target but will damage Australian industry in trying. CSIRO finds nuclear would cost twice as much as renewables Photo shows Nuclear power station chimneys …

This year's federal budget offers a preview of what the next decade of climate wars will look like
7 months, 3 weeks ago

This year's federal budget offers a preview of what the next decade of climate wars will look like

ABC  

Below the radio grabs for this budget — the $300 power bill rebate for every household and the extra rent assistance and the tax cuts and the inevitable "does my budget look inflationary in this?" There was a suggestion, even, that by budget day 2024 — that is to say, yesterday — Mr Dutton would have released six proposed sites …

Australia inches closer to 2030 emissions target, amid debate over renewable energy push
1 year, 1 month ago

Australia inches closer to 2030 emissions target, amid debate over renewable energy push

ABC  

The government says Australia is on its way to hitting its 2030 climate targets as it faces criticism from conservation groups for support of fossil fuels. Key points: Australia is on track for a 42 per cent reduction in emissions by 2030, according to new government data The government announced a renewable energy scheme this week, targeting 82 per cent …

The hints have been coming for a while, but now it's official: Australia isn't on track to meet its climate targets
1 year, 1 month ago

The hints have been coming for a while, but now it's official: Australia isn't on track to meet its climate targets

ABC  

The first official concession came three weeks ago. The engineering brain drain facing Australia's renewable energy sector Photo shows Aerial shot lookingn straight down at big battery project under construction The renewable energy sector says large investment is urgently needed to keep up with the United States' landmark IRA bill. On top of the soaring supply chain costs and higher …

‘Climate wars’: Australia caps major fossil fuel polluters
1 year, 9 months ago

‘Climate wars’: Australia caps major fossil fuel polluters

Al Jazeera  

New laws signal the end of Australia’s decade of political brawling that repeatedly derailed attempts to tackle its contribution to global warming. Experts on Thursday said the laws signalled the end of Australia’s bitter “climate wars” – a decade of political brawling that has repeatedly derailed attempts to tackle the country’s contribution to global warming. “What the parliament has done …

Robert Glasser on Australia’s Turn to Climate Action
1 year, 11 months ago

Robert Glasser on Australia’s Turn to Climate Action

The Diplomat  

In the last few years, the costs and impacts of climate change have become unavoidably clear to Australians. face up to the challenge of climate change.” Sure enough, Australia’s federal election in May 2022 saw the incumbent Liberal/National Coalition – then led by Prime Minister Scott Morrison – fail to secure a fourth consecutive term. Across Australia, voters swung away …

The Climate Struggle Literally Hit Home in 2022
2 years ago

The Climate Struggle Literally Hit Home in 2022

Wired  

A year ago, I lambasted politicians for missing a huge opportunity for climate action. “I feel a lot more heartened about climate change now than I ever have,” says Jonathan Foley, executive director of the nonprofit Project Drawdown, which advocates for climate action. Like, Hey, wait a minute, things are really starting to pivot.” “2022 has proven to be a …

Australia is unprepared for the health consequences of climate change: report
2 years, 2 months ago

Australia is unprepared for the health consequences of climate change: report

ABC  

Australia is unprepared for the health burden of climate change, and our lack of a national climate change and health adaptation plan has put Australians' lives at risk, according to a report. Key points: Almost all aspects of human health are declining due to climate change, according to reports Concurrent crises, such as geopolitical conflict and disease outbreaks, exacerbate climate …

Australia passes landmark climate change bill for net zero emissions by 2050
2 years, 4 months ago

Australia passes landmark climate change bill for net zero emissions by 2050

Firstpost  

The legislation, a key election promise of Australia’s new centre-left Labor government, aims to slash emissions in the carbon-intensive economy by 43 per cent from 2005 levels Sydney: Australia on Thursday passed its first major climate change bill in over a decade, codifying emissions targets and enshrining into its law for the first time a goal to reach net zero …

Climate bill to write 43 per cent emissions target into law introduced to parliament
2 years, 5 months ago

Climate bill to write 43 per cent emissions target into law introduced to parliament

ABC  

The government has introduced a bill on its first full sitting day that would legislate a requirement for Australia to reduce emissions by 43 per cent by 2030. Key points: The government has introduced a bill to legislate its 2030 climate target It does not yet have the support needed to pass the upper house The Climate Change Minister says …

Australia commits to reducing greenhouse emissions by 43%
2 years, 6 months ago

Australia commits to reducing greenhouse emissions by 43%

Associated Press  

CANBERRA, Australia — Australia’s new government on Thursday formally committed to a more ambitious greenhouse gas reduction target of 43% by the end of the decade in fulfillment of a key election pledge. The previous conservative government was dumped by voters at the May 21 election after it stuck to a seven-year-old pledge to reduce Australia’s emissions by only 26% …

Australia's Paris Agreement commitment lifted to 43 per cent emissions reduction by 2030
2 years, 6 months ago

Australia's Paris Agreement commitment lifted to 43 per cent emissions reduction by 2030

ABC  

The federal government says it has "drawn a line" under a decade of slow action on climate change, with it formally committing to the United Nations it will pursue a substantially more ambitious emissions reduction target. Key points: Australia has committed to reducing its emissions by 43 per cent by 2030 The target still falls short of what is necessary …

Labor, Greens look set to push businesses to adopt tougher emission targets
2 years, 7 months ago

Labor, Greens look set to push businesses to adopt tougher emission targets

ABC  

The future of Australia's biggest emitters looks uncertain under the new Labor government, with the Greens and climate change-focused independents set for a loud voice. Emma Herd says corporate Australia is set for a "debate" on what the climate change targets should be. Corporate Australia ignoring climate risk Photo shows Children hold a sign saying 'Adieu fossil fuels' outside the …

In Australia, the Greens & Teals Will Turn Up the Heat on Labor's Climate Policy
2 years, 7 months ago

In Australia, the Greens & Teals Will Turn Up the Heat on Labor's Climate Policy

The Quint  

Greens and teal independents are aligned with Labor on legislating Australia’s net-zero emissions target and reinvigorating institutions such as the Climate Change Authority. The teals are likely to support Labor’s plans to standardise company reporting on matters such as climate risk and emissions. So too will Labor’s commitment to net-zero emissions in the federal public service by 2030, which will …

Will Labor govt in Australia put climate change at the forefront?
2 years, 7 months ago

Will Labor govt in Australia put climate change at the forefront?

Al Jazeera  

Australia’s conservative coalition has been voted out of office after nearly a decade in power. Australia is a major exporter of fossil fuels, and the outgoing government often objected to plans to reduce greenhouse emissions. Neighbouring Pacific Islands say Australia is blocking climate action, even as their territories are under threat of sinking. Uneasy ties with the island nations are …

Climate change has made old measures predicting weather events in Australia 'essentially worthless'
2 years, 7 months ago

Climate change has made old measures predicting weather events in Australia 'essentially worthless'

ABC  

When Jo Groves bought her property in Lismore, she worked hard to make it her own and thought she would grow old in it. Key points: Statistical measures like the "one-in-100-year flood" level are used by authorities in Australia to determine safe building standards Experts say climate change has made those measures "essentially worthless" They say accurate climate change projections …

Australian election: Where is climate change on the agenda?
2 years, 7 months ago

Australian election: Where is climate change on the agenda?

Al Jazeera  

The majority of Australians want action on climate change, but you would not know that from the campaign for Saturday’s election. “Despite decades of warnings from scientists about climate change, Australia is unprepared for the supercharged weather that it is now driving,” said Hilary Bambrick, co-author of Australia’s annual assessment of progress on climate adaptation. “Australia is at the forefront …

Climate change is being buried this election. We asked scientists to rate the major parties' policies
2 years, 8 months ago

Climate change is being buried this election. We asked scientists to rate the major parties' policies

ABC  

You'd think the government and opposition would be keen to focus on the number-one issue for voters this election campaign. This is the target recommended last year by an independent Climate Targets Panel…" Nerilie Abram — wildly inconsistent "To limit warming to 1.5 degrees requires Australia's emissions to be cut by 74 per cent by 2030 and reach net-zero by …

Australians are googling climate change much more than during the last federal election
2 years, 8 months ago

Australians are googling climate change much more than during the last federal election

ABC  

Discussion of climate policy may be conspicuously absent this federal election campaign, but Google search data suggests the warming of the planet is weighing on voters' minds — at least more so than in 2019. Key points: Big data can be a window into collective concerns and a "barometer of social awareness" Nationally, search interest in climate change has soared …

Vote Compass data shows climate change, cost of living and the economy are the big election issues, but voters still split along party lines
2 years, 8 months ago

Vote Compass data shows climate change, cost of living and the economy are the big election issues, but voters still split along party lines

ABC  

Climate change, cost of living and the economy are the most important issues to Australians this election, but there's a large split along voting lines, according to Vote Compass. More Australians mentioned climate change as their number one issue than any other topic, with 29 per cent of people saying it was important. For Liberal-National Party voters, climate change ranked …

What policies have the major parties proposed to tackle climate change?
2 years, 8 months ago

What policies have the major parties proposed to tackle climate change?

ABC  

More Australians mentioned climate change as their number one issue than any other topic, according to Vote Compass data. Labor's policy Labor has also committed to net zero emissions by 2050, along with a 2030 target of a 43 per cent cut in emissions. To reach net zero, the party plans to: Upgrade the electricity grid to allow it to …

Coal mining or climate action? Australia faces up to COP26
3 years, 2 months ago

Coal mining or climate action? Australia faces up to COP26

Al Jazeera  

Australian government’s new ‘plan’ to combat climate change may have little effect if coal mining continues. Canberra, Australia – Days before departing for Glasgow to attend COP26, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the Australian government’s plan to combat climate change. Morrison’s latest plan – described as “the Australian way” to reduce carbon emissions – relies heavily on unspecified “low emissions …

Analysis: Australia’s climate policy is being dictated by a former accountant in a cowboy hat
3 years, 3 months ago

Analysis: Australia’s climate policy is being dictated by a former accountant in a cowboy hat

CNN  

CNN — Australia’s Prime Minister has all but confirmed he won’t join global leaders at crucial climate talks in Glasgow. “It’s talking to people in regional Australia, how the deputy prime minister and I believe our plan will help them in their communities, how our plan will help them realize their future.” With that remark, Morrison made it clear his …

On climate change, Biden $3.5T plan making up for lost time
3 years, 3 months ago

On climate change, Biden $3.5T plan making up for lost time

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — As President Joe Biden visited one disaster site after another this summer — from California wildfires to hurricane-induced flooding in Louisiana and New York — he said climate change is “everybody’s crisis” and America must get serious about the “code red” danger posed by global warming. “This is a ‘code red’ moment, but Democrats are answering the call,’’ …

Advocates urge further climate action in Australia ahead of Glasgow COP26 conference
3 years, 3 months ago

Advocates urge further climate action in Australia ahead of Glasgow COP26 conference

ABC  

Australia's carbon reduction efforts are receiving global scrutiny — and in a grassy paddock on the Mornington Peninsula, outside Melbourne, the impact is being felt right now. Key points: The United Nations' climate conference COP26 will be held in Glasgow in a month Advocates are urging action to reduce emissions well before 2050 Trading partners could soon place carbon tariffs …

Australia widely criticised over emission reduction targets ahead of COP26 climate talks
3 years, 4 months ago

Australia widely criticised over emission reduction targets ahead of COP26 climate talks

ABC  

This week has seen the UK, the US and others pile onto Australia's approach to climate change at a virtual conference on climate action. Ban Ki-moon put it bluntly: "Australia's current goal of a 26 to 28 per cent reduction on 2005 levels by 2030, and the absence of a national zero emissions target, is out of step with its …

Australian Budget infuriates climate activists AND oil and gas industry with $1bn to lower emissions
3 years, 7 months ago

Australian Budget infuriates climate activists AND oil and gas industry with $1bn to lower emissions

Daily Mail  

Climate activists and the oil and gas industry are unhappy at parts of the federal budget, with a mixed bag of measures for the environment and energy sector. The Morrison government's 2021/22 budget revealed on Tuesday confirmed $1billion on measures to lower emissions and $58.6million to support an expansion of the gas industry. Climate activists and the oil and gas …

The Costs of Australia’s Climate Politics
4 years ago

The Costs of Australia’s Climate Politics

The Diplomat  

At the beginning of 2020, Australia’s catastrophic bushfires were making international headlines. Climate Change and Foreign Policy: The Regional Context By any account, Australia’s immediate region is among the most vulnerable in the world to the effects of climate change. While the government had announced that it would commit A$500 million over five years to climate change programs in the …

Australia faces more fires, drought as climate continues to heat
4 years, 1 month ago

Australia faces more fires, drought as climate continues to heat

Al Jazeera  

Country’s weather bureau says higher temperatures and less rainfall creating conditions for more extreme weather events. Australia’s climate is expected become hotter and drier, increasing the risk of drought and extreme weather events such as the bushfires that devastated swathes of southeastern Australia in the last southern hemisphere summer, according to the latest climate report from the country’s weather bureau. …

Our Energy Future
4 years, 7 months ago

Our Energy Future

ABC  

Panellist % Matt Canavan 33 Joel Fitzgibbon 20 Zali Steggall 18 Zoe Whitton 21 Sophia Hamblin Wang 9 HAMISH MACDONALD When COVID-19 struck, our leaders followed the science. HAMISH MACDONALD So, are you saying you don’t think Labor can win government in Australia with a more aggressive approach to climate change? HAMISH MACDONALD Before we go to Matt Canavan, Sophia, …

Australia’s most senior former public servants and scientists reveal their anger about climate policy failure
4 years, 7 months ago

Australia’s most senior former public servants and scientists reveal their anger about climate policy failure

ABC  

For more than 30 years, Australian politics has been grappling with climate change and the nation's most senior public servants have been there through it all. Former secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet Peter Shergold, former Treasury secretary Ken Henry, and former secretary of the Department of Climate Change Martin Parkinson. The first and last time Australia …

The Coalition’s Climate Change Conundrum
4 years, 10 months ago

The Coalition’s Climate Change Conundrum

The Diplomat  

The bushfires in Australia these past few months have brought to the fore discussions on the local effects of climate change. With drier conditions fuelling longer and more intense fire seasons, Australia will continue to be vulnerable to fire events, like this year’s, that have devastating effects on people’s lives and on the country’s unique wildlife. Yet this vision of …

It's Too Late For Us To Fight Climate Change. Instead, Here's How We'll Spend Our Lives.
4 years, 10 months ago

It's Too Late For Us To Fight Climate Change. Instead, Here's How We'll Spend Our Lives.

Huff Post  

Barry Rueger looking out over the Pacific Ocean on Vancouver Island in Ucluelet, British Columbia. “If the powerful people who could significantly reduce carbon emissions at the stroke of a pen won’t act to save us, are we wasting our time?” My wife and I are at the age when we’re preparing for retirement as much as possible. We’d like …

What Australians really think about climate action
4 years, 11 months ago

What Australians really think about climate action

ABC  

With the country burning and otherwise "quiet Australians" crying for action, it's worth asking: what do Australians really think about climate change? Just after the election, we asked 54,000 Australians what climate action they want — and when — through the Australia Talks National Survey. Immediate action ; Some action ; More research first ; Do nothing The most common …

Scientists call on Australia to urgently reduce carbon emissions
4 years, 11 months ago

Scientists call on Australia to urgently reduce carbon emissions

India Today  

Australia needs to pull its weight when it comes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, according to 274 of the country's leading climate, fire and weather scientists who penned an open letter to the nation's policy makers on Monday. "In many ways, this letter is the product of despair as scientists witnessed the deadly fire season unfold," Australian National University climate …

What are the Government's emissions reduction policies?
4 years, 11 months ago

What are the Government's emissions reduction policies?

ABC  

Australia has been criticised for inaction on climate change, but what policies does our Government actually have? But among those, there are two overarching policies that have a national impact: The Emissions Reduction Fund The National Energy Productivity Plan The Emissions Reduction Fund, or Climate Solutions Fund, is by far the biggest policy and is the one we most often …

Australians protest PM Scott Morrison’s climate policies amid bushfire crisis
5 years ago

Australians protest PM Scott Morrison’s climate policies amid bushfire crisis

CNN  

CNN — Thousands of activists marched in several major citiesacross Australia on Friday, calling on the government to act on the climate crisis and do more to stop the bushfires that continue to ravage large swathes of the country. “The Morrison government needs to act before it’s too late, before we reach a tipping point, before these impacts get worse …

Australia’s leaders unmoved on climate action after devastating bushfires
5 years ago

Australia’s leaders unmoved on climate action after devastating bushfires

The Hindu  

Australia's government is sticking firmly to a position that there is no direct link between climate change and the country's devastating bushfires, despite public anger, the anguish of victims and warnings from scientists. Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his Emissions Reduction Minister, Angus Taylor, say Australia does not need to cut carbon emissions more aggressively to limit global warming, even …

Storms bring relief — and danger — to Australian wildfire regions
5 years ago

Storms bring relief — and danger — to Australian wildfire regions

LA Times  

Thunderstorms and showers brought some relief for firefighters battling deadly wildfires across Australia’s drought-parched east coast on Wednesday, but also raised concerns that lightning will spark more fires before dangerous hot and windy conditions return. Around 2,300 firefighters in New South Wales state were making the most of relatively benign conditions by frantically consolidating containment lines around more than 110 …

The bushfire crisis has given the Government a political 'out' to its climate change problem
5 years ago

The bushfire crisis has given the Government a political 'out' to its climate change problem

ABC  

The fires across Australia are taking a terrible toll. You need to lead It could be the turning point for Australia's climate change politics and policy that is so deeply in the ditch. The party of progress and social justice needs to stand for strong action on climate change, and for helping workers and communities in the transition that will …

Are the bushfires Scott Morrison's Hurricane Katrina moment that he can't live down?
5 years ago

Are the bushfires Scott Morrison's Hurricane Katrina moment that he can't live down?

ABC  

Hurricane Katrina was one of the worst natural disasters in US history. As people yell at the Prime Minister when he visits their devastated communities, or howl for his blood on social media, the story of Bush's failure to immediately recognise a catastrophe and the urgent need for leadership it represented tells us what problems are created by Scott Morrison's …

Australia burns as government resists calls for climate action
5 years ago

Australia burns as government resists calls for climate action

Al Jazeera  

Experts say Australia is on ‘front line’ of the climate crisis and the government has to do more to tackle problem. “There is no argument … about the links between broader issues of global climate change and weather events around the world,” he said, speaking from the Rural Fire Services headquarters in Sydney. “The European Union, New Zealand and Pacific …

Will devastating bushfires and division among Liberals force Scott Morrison to rethink climate policy?
5 years ago

Will devastating bushfires and division among Liberals force Scott Morrison to rethink climate policy?

ABC  

Scott Morrison is picking up that Australia's devastating, prolonged fires are producing a soured, anti-government mood among many in the community. He's placing the most positive spin he can on what Australia is doing on climate change, but all the time emphasising Australian emissions are only a tiny portion of the global total "so any suggestion that the actions of …

Climate change and the economy are linked — it's time the Morrison Government accepts that
5 years, 1 month ago

Climate change and the economy are linked — it's time the Morrison Government accepts that

ABC  

Time is a precious commodity. Rate cuts not enough to boost growth There's little doubt interest rates will be cut to 0.5 per cent by February and that, in the absence of direct government stimulus, rates will be lower than otherwise necessary and for a much longer period. That's despite three interest rate cuts since June to an unprecedented 0.75 …

Climate Issues: Where 2020 Democrats Stand On The Green New Deal And More
5 years, 3 months ago

Climate Issues: Where 2020 Democrats Stand On The Green New Deal And More

NPR  

Climate Issues: Where 2020 Democrats Stand On The Green New Deal And More Enlarge this image Photo illustration: Getty Images and Renee Klahr/NPR Photo illustration: Getty Images and Renee Klahr/NPR Editor's Note on April 8, 2020: With the Democratic primary now down to one candidate, we're no longer updating the below graphic. Climate change — or, more precisely, fighting climate …

Climate change survey shows Australians want action on emissions, but are divided on nuclear
5 years, 4 months ago

Climate change survey shows Australians want action on emissions, but are divided on nuclear

ABC  

The majority of Australians blame increasing energy costs on "excessive profit margins" of energy companies, and 64 per cent think we should be aiming for net-zero emissions by 2050. Key points: More than 40 per cent of Australians said droughts and floods were already being affected by climate change New report found solar was the most popular energy choice, with …

Sydney declares climate emergency
5 years, 6 months ago

Sydney declares climate emergency

India TV News  

The Australian city of Sydney on Tuesday declared a climate emergency and called for a price on carbon to be reinstated, stressing that global warming poses a danger to its residents and to the whole country. "By declaring a climate emergency, we call on the Federal Government to respond urgently, by reintroducing a price on carbon to meet the Paris …

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