LETTER TO THE EDITOR:
THE government’s target to reduce climate pollution by 26 to 28 per cent from 2005 levels by 2030 is simply not good enough.
There is global agreement that all nations must jointly ensure the planet does not warm past two degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels.
Even that ceiling is now considered dangerously high, with 1.5 degrees considered a safer limit.
The first and most important test of the government’s target is whether it is in line with this limit.
The answer is a resounding “no”.
It is consistent with warming of three to four degrees.
That gives it a “fail” on the most basic test.
Importantly, that test can mean the difference between avoiding the most catastrophic impacts of climate change and allowing them to happen.
The government has made its target look better than it really is by shifting the baseline from 2000 to 2005.
The 26 per cent target is actually a 19 per cent target when set against the new baseline.
That means is it lower than the current 2020 target of five to 25 per cent, but it adds a decade and leaves the next generation to pick up the tab.
The government’s weak target also keeps Australia in the embarrassing and unpalatable position of being the highest per person carbon polluter in the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development).
It also leaves Australia with one of the most pollution intensive economies in the developed world.
That is the case now and it will still be the case in 2030 with the current target.
None of this is good enough.
The government still has the chance to be responsible about climate change and strengthen this target.
It can be done at the Paris climate change conference at the end of the year.
Now is the time for everyone who cares about leaving a liveable Australia for coming generations to lift their voices and let the government know that this matters.
It’s not that Australia can’t afford to do something about this.
In fact, we can’t afford not to.
Our future depends upon a healthy climate.
And the longer we leave serious action, the harder it will be.
