Lethal Heating: 11/21/20

21/11/2020

(AU) Scott Morrison Flags Shift On Kyoto Climate Change Carry-Over Credits

ABC News - Melissa Clarke

Scott Morrison says he hopes Australia doesn't need to use the credits but is keeping the prospect open. (ABC News: Ian Cutmore)

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has signalled he may reverse one of the most controversial aspects of the Federal Government's climate change policy: using Kyoto "carry-over" credits to help meet Paris agreement emissions reduction targets.

In an address to a private dinner hosted the Business Council of Australia, Mr Morrison said it was his ambition to "not need them" and this was a "goal" for the Federal Government.

"I've … said we will only use that carryover … to the extent that it is required," he said.

"Let me be very clear. My ambition, my Government's ambition, is that we will not need them.

"And we are working to this as our goal, consistent with our record of over-delivering in these areas."

Australia's current 2030 target under the Paris Agreement is to reduce emissions by 26 to 28 per cent compared to 2005 levels.

On current projections, that will only be achieved by continuing to claim "carry-over" credits from over-achieving on previous emissions reduction targets under the Paris Agreement's predecessor, the Kyoto Protocol.

Whilst using carry-over credits is not explicitly banned under the rules of the Paris Agreement, most nations have declared they do not consider it valid to count emission reduced under the Kyoto Protocol towards future targets.

The Federal Government has found no support diplomatically from allies for its continued use of carry-over credits, which is particularly controversial as Australia was allowed to increase its emissions under the Kyoto Protocol because of the nation's reliance on the resources sector.

PM flags new emission reduction policies

The United Nations has encouraged all countries to present more ambitious emissions reduction plans at international climate change talks in Glasgow next year.

The Federal Government has so far resisted pressure to increase its 26 to 28 per cent target, instead announcing a "Technology Investment Roadmap" that focuses on backing a select few technologies and supporting heavy industry.

It has also declined to adopt a target of reaching net zero emissions by 2050, despite other major industrialised countries committing to the goal.

But Mr Morrison flagged his Government would have more to say on emissions reduction policies in the next few weeks.

"I hope to have more to say about this before the end of the year as we update our emissions projections that will take into account new policies and measures," he said.

Greens leader Adam Bandt said dropping the use of the carry-over credit "loophole" would be a positive step, but still insufficient.

"The Government's terrible 2030 targets leave Australia exposed," Mr Bandt said.

"We're in the critical decade and domestic political games will provide no cover for Australia's climate-pariah status on the world stage.

"With Europe and the United Kingdom looking to cut pollution by well over half by 2030, and the United States having already agreed to cuts of 26-28 per cent on 2005 levels by 2025, five years earlier than Australia, we're becoming increasingly isolated."

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The World's Leading Universities Join The Climate Fight

Sydney Morning Herald - Nick O'Malley

A new international network of top universities including the University of Melbourne, Monash and the University of NSW, as well as Oxford, Caltech and the Sorbonne is calling for wealthy nations to commit to net zero emissions targets.

“We implore world leaders - particularly G20 leaders - to learn lessons from managing the pandemic: namely, to heed expert advice, to act with urgency, and to prioritise investments strategically,” says the International Universities Climate Alliance’s first declaration, published on Wednesday.

Climate change could have long-standing impacts on agricultural yields. Credit: Nick Moir

“In the case of climate change, this means decarbonising the economy to build a climate-resilient world for future generations. Without a focus on a carbon-neutral economy, investments are incompatible with the important commitments that nations have pledged in the Paris Agreement."

The declaration, signed by 37 leading universities, says that the G20 group of the world’s richest nations has a particular responsibility to act because they represent 85 percent of the world’s wealth and 80 percent of its emissions.

"We still have a window of time to make the necessary transition to a carbon-neutral economy, we strongly encourage world leaders to ensure that all COVID stimulus measures maintain their countries’ commitments under the Paris Agreement and work toward a net-zero emission plan," it says.

The declaration of the International Universities Climate Alliance comes ahead of the G20 summit in Saudi Arabia this weekend. But according to Professor Ian Jacobs, president and vice-chancellor of the University of NSW, in future it will become a network for sharing climate resources and advice to governments, business and industry as well as the broader community.

University of NSW Scientia Professor Matthew England said that while many academics and universities have in the past been reluctant to participate in debates that are perceived to be political, academics and universities were becoming more determined to speak out.

He said Australia's goal of reaching net zero emissions sometime in the second half of the century was not in keeping with the goals of the Paris agreement.

“We have seen this in Australia on climate change for many decades now. Back in the 90s, early 1990s, when the IPCC was established, we already knew enough back then that we needed to get off our addiction to fossil fuels and move towards solar, geothermal, wind, all these different technologies.

“For 30 years, we've been calling for these changes, and the policy implementation in Australia has been far too slow. So scientists are starting to amp up the advice they're giving.

“If, for example, we come out of this pandemic and we go back to our old ways of creating energy with carbon intensive technologies, we're really going to surrender the planet to impacts of climate change that are just prohibitively costly for future generations to deal with.”

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(AU) Going Underground — Lessons For Suburbia From Subterranean Coober Pedy

ABC News - Luke Radford | Shannon Corvo

A typical living room in a Coober Pedy dugout house. (ABC News: Luke Radford)

Key Points

Residents of Coober Pedy live underground to escape the searing heat
The University of South Australia's Stephen Berry says indoor conditions in underground homes are stable
One businessman has created a semi-underground house called the Earthship

It is summer in Australia and the temperature is soaring towards the 40s, so you reach for the air-conditioning remote but cringe at the thought of the energy bill come March.

The struggle for energy efficiency in a changing climate and the mental maths of keeping your home comfortable are a dominant point in day-to-day life.

But deep in the South Australian outback is a town that has been dealing with this problem for years.

So, what's the secret?

Digging down

Coober Pedy is a difficult place to live.

Set on the edge the Stuart Range, the town of 2,000 people sits atop a bed of sandstone glittered with opal, with no topsoil and practically no vegetation.

The average daytime temperature in summer is 37 degrees, but living in a house in such conditions is uncomfortable and expensive.

So, the locals turned to dugouts: underground homes.

Many Coober Pedy residents live underground to avoid the heat. (Flickr: BRJ Inc)

Stephen Berry, manager of the University of SA's Research Node for Low-Carbon Living, said it was obvious why.

"When you have a building that's covered in earth or is underground, you effectively get infinite thermal mass," he said.

"That means the indoor conditions remain remarkably stable — they hardly vary at all.

"If you have a building with high thermal mass but let the sun's light pour in uncontrolled, it would be uncomfortable."

Despite the temperature edging into the 40s during summer, dugouts in Coober Pedy usually stay between 19 and 25 degrees, which saves residents huge amounts of money on cooling expenses.

Coober Pedy Underground Accommodation

So, why aren't we living underground?

If underground housing has such obvious benefits, why isn't it more widespread?

Dr Berry said not everywhere was as well suited to building underground as Coober Pedy.

"Coober Pedy is fantastic because it's soil type allows for relatively easy construction of underground buildings," he said.

"In many other places, there are different soil types — there's a groundwater table that you have to deal with."

Martin Freney, a lecturer in Sustainable Design at the University of South Australia, said while building underground homes in suburban areas was not impossible, it was extremely difficult.

"You're essentially digging a big hole and if that's near neighbouring buildings or fences, there's the potential for undermining and the collapse of those structures," Dr Freney said.

"If you want to build a fully underground house, you might get some pushback from the planning officer at council, because it probably won't comply with the streetscape rules."

Coober Pedy has a mixture of above ground and below-ground housing options. (Supplied: Justin Lang)

The art of compromise

While building underground homes might be difficult, there are alternatives.

Alongside his work as a lecturer, Dr Freney also runs a business that builds a style of house known as an 'Earthship'.

The Earthship concept was developed by an American architect named Michael Reynolds in the 1970s and was designed as a self-sustaining, off-the-grid house.

Earthship-style buildings are dug slightly into the ground and the rear of the building is covered with an earthen mound and reinforced with a retaining wall made of recycled tyres.

The mound gives the building a high thermal mass: absorbing heat during the day and radiating it at night to keep the temperature consistent.

The Earthship design seeks to minimise the earthworks while still getting some of the benefits of living below ground.(Supplied: Allan Bjerre.)

"If you have the mound itself, ideally to the east, south and west, combined with glazed glass facing north and well insulated walls, you can get the benefits of an underground house in suburbia," Dr Freney said.

"At the end of the day, you don't have to use nearly as much energy for heating and cooling."

But according to Dr Berry, much like entirely underground houses, the Earthship is not without its downsides.

"The earth sheltered concept is a fabulous one, and it's very useful for particular situations," Dr Berry said.

"We're unlikely to see a high number of earth-covered buildings in suburbia … because each type of house isn't valid in every location."

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