Voter concern about climate change has surged and about half of Australians want new coal mines banned, according to new research that suggests the Morrison government’s relegation of emissions reduction is at odds with public sentiment.
As federal cabinet agreed on Monday night to dump climate targets associated with its energy plan, official figures also show crop production in Australia has dropped due to the harsh drought – conditions exacerbated by climate change - and the United Nations chief warned of “a direct existential threat” unless Earth changes course on deadly greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.
Research by progressive think tank The Australia Institute to be released on Wednesday found that 73 per cent of Australians were concerned about climate change, up from 66 per cent last year.
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| A polar bear on melting ice off the coast of Svalbard, Norway. The vast majority of Australians say they are concerned about climate change. Photo: Steven Kazlowski |
The Climate of the Nation research involved 1,756 Australians interviewed over a week in June – before Scott Morrison assumed the prime ministership and officially abandoned government efforts to cut emissions from electricity generation.
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| The threat of more frequent bushfires as a result of climate change troubles the minds of most Australians. Photo: NSW Rural Fire Service |
It found that public acceptance of the reality of climate change is higher than at almost any time since the research began – 76 per cent, up 5 per cent from last year.
Some 11 per cent believed climate change is not occurring and 13 per cent were unsure.
While One Nation and Nationals voters were most likely to say climate change was not real (22 per cent and 15 per cent respectively), this proportion had declined markedly from the previous year.
Asked if governments should impose a moratorium on new coal mines and the expansion of existing coal mines, 49 per cent said yes, 20 per cent said no and the rest were unsure. Some 70 per cent thought the government should plan the orderly closure of coal plants and replace them with clean energy and just 20 per cent wanted Australia to withdraw from the Paris climate treaty.
Those results are at odds with the Morrison government’s support for efforts by Adani and others to open up coal reserves in Queensland’s Galilee Basin, and its pressure on AGL to extend the life of the ageing Liddell power station.
It also indicates that a push by conservative Coalition backbenchers for the government to underwrite new coal mines and quit the Paris deal enjoys little support in the broader electorate.
Amid the government’s renewed rhetoric on bringing electricity bills down, the survey showed 52 per cent of respondents believed the privatisation of electricity generation and supply had caused higher prices, and 29 per cent blamed “expensive” renewable energy.
The research comes as United Nations secretary-general António Guterres issued a desperate plea overnight for politicians to show leadership and avert the “deadly” climate change threat.
“If we do not change course by 2020, we risk missing the point where we can avoid runaway climate change, with disastrous consequences for people and all the natural systems that sustain us,” he said in a speech in New York.
“Let there be no doubt about the urgency of the crisis ... Scientists have been telling us for decades. Over and over again. Far too many leaders have refused to listen.”
Government figures released on Tuesday show the drought crippling eastern Australia will wipe millions of tonnes off crop production this season – including in NSW where production is forecast to fall by 46 per cent compared to last year.
Links
- Climate poll shows Morrison politically vulnerable as more voters back action
- Paris climate deal doesn't stop us building new coal plants, Canavan says
- Australia’s authority in Pacific 'being eroded by refusal to address climate change'
- Tony Abbott targets renewables subsidies in latest energy intervention
- Scott Morrison contradicts energy advice, saying Paris targets can be met 'at a canter'
- Australia will honour Paris climate agreement, Simon Birmingham says
- Business Council attacks Coalition's 'ad hoc' energy policy – as it happened
- Labor pledges price caps on power bills as Coalition's Neg woes continue
- Josh Frydenberg says government will focus on power prices over emissions reduction