28/02/2021

(AU) Australia Accused Of 'Shamefully' Holding Back Global Action On Climate Change

The Guardian -  | 

United Nations calls on all countries to have ‘concrete plans to phase out fossil fuels as fast as possible’

Australian prime minister Scott Morrison is being urged to commit to a more ambitious carbon emissions reduction target. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP
Australia has been accused of “shamefully doing nothing” and weighing down global action after a UN analysis found national pledges to cut greenhouses gas emissions over the next decade have barely begun to do what is necessary to tackle the climate crisis.

The assessment of emissions reduction plans submitted to the UN by the end of last year found if all were fulfilled they would cut global CO2 by only 1% by 2030, compared with 2010 levels.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has advised a 45% cut is needed over this time to limit global heating to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels.

While some major economies such as Britain and the EU offered substantially increased short-term commitments late last year, others made only incremental shifts and some, including Australia, re-submitted the same targets put forward at the Paris climate conference in 2015.

Further pledges are expected this year, including from the two biggest emitters, China and the US.

Australia pumped out an extra six months' worth of emissions than previously recorded.  Read more...

Scott Morrison has said his government does not intend to change its 2030 target – a 26-28% cut, compared with 2005 levels – despite rising pressure for all countries to commit to doing more before a major climate conference in Glasgow in November.

Patricia Espinosa, the executive secretary of UN Climate Change, called on all countries, including those that submitted their commitments last year, to reflect on the new assessment and lift their ambition.

“We need concrete plans to phase out fossil fuels as fast as possible,” she said.

Mohamed Adow, director of the thinktank Power Shift Africa, said it was staggering how far countries were from dealing with the crisis given the rhetoric from leaders about the need to act.

He grouped Australia with Brazil, Japan, Mexico and New Zealand as countries that had “shamefully done nothing” in recent pledges. “This state of affairs cannot continue and we need to see things change dramatically,” he said.

Tasneem Essop, the executive director of the global Climate Action Network, said: “With their woefully weak climate targets, big emitters like Japan, Australia and Brazil are weighing down overall global ambition when in fact they should be leading.”

Greenpeace International’s executive director, Jennifer Morgan, said the US and China must make commitments before a leaders’ climate summit hosted by Joe Biden in April that would “give us cause for hope”, and called on Australia and Brazil to rein in fossil fuel and industrial agriculture interests, respectively.

A spokesperson for the emissions reduction minister, Angus Taylor, said Australia’s emissions had fallen faster than many comparable countries.

Government data released on Friday found Australia’s emissions were down 4.4% in the year to September, in part due to the short-term impact of Covid-19 lockdowns and the drought, and 19% since 2005. But official projections in December suggested Australia was not on track to meet its 2030 target.

Bill Hare, the chief executive of Climate Analytics, said Australia was being called out for its “almost complete lack of action”. He said the Morrison government should set a science-based target for 2030, which meant an emissions cut of more than 60%.

Joe Biden's climate envoy admits US and Australia not on 'same page'.  Read more...

“As we get closer to Glasgow, we’ll see big players like the US and China stepping up, and Scott Morrison’s government finding itself isolated amid a growing threat of carbon border taxes and increasing diplomatic and public pressure,” he said.

The UN report clarifies the gap between the growing mass of countries promising to cut emissions to zero by mid-century, and the short-term commitments they have so far been put forward.

More than 100 countries including all G7 members have now pledged net zero emissions by 2050, and China has made that commitment for 2060, but short-term goals remain a work in progress.

Britain and the EU have set stronger 2030 targets – 68% and 55% compared with 1990 levels, respectively – the US has promised to announce a new target by April and it is expected Japan, China and South Korea will set short-term goals this year after each committing to net zero in late 2020.

The US and Britain have pledged to take global leadership roles in the lead-up to the Glasgow summit in pushing for stronger targets and immediate action plans.

Morrison has shifted his rhetoric as climate targets have been increased elsewhere, but resisted the push to commit to doing more and said only that he hoped Australia would reach net zero emissions as soon as possible, and “preferably by 2050”.

The suggestion he might go further and set a formal target has triggered outrage from some backbench government MPs from the National party.

Biden’s climate envoy, John Kerry, has acknowledged “differences” between the US and Australia in tackling the climate crisis while calling for a faster global exit from coal-fired power.

In Canberra this week, top diplomats from Italy and the UK emphasised the world needed to confront the climate crisis decisively after three decades of inadequate action.

Speaking at a climate ambition event at the Italian embassy on Wednesday, its ambassador to Australia, Francesca Tardioli, said each country had a “great responsibility” to implement concrete and lasting solutions.

“A lot has been achieved for sure, but not enough – not at all – to keep global warming within this threshold and now we have little time left,” she said. “Therefore, we need to act quickly and decisively and with new levels of ambition if we want to be successful.”

The British high commissioner, Vicki Treadell, told the same event the Glasgow summit would be “about making the tough decisions and carrying our people with us”.

The EU ambassador, Michael Pulch, said the bloc was encouraging all countries to raise their level of climate ambition, reflecting that global heating was a global problem that needed global responses.

He praised Australian states and territories for committing to net zero by 2050.

Australia’s environment minister, Sussan Ley, told the event the government’s commitment to the Paris agreement had not wavered and reiterated that it would “preferably” achieve net zero by 2050.

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World ‘Walking Blindfolded Into A Minefield’ Due To Climate Inaction

Sydney Morning Herald - Nick O'Malley

The United Nations has issued a stark warning that new emissions reductions targets promised by world leaders in December are nowhere near enough to limit an increase in global warming to 1.5 degrees and meet the goals of the Paris agreement.

The coal-fired Plant Scherer, one of the top carbon dioxide emitters in the US, stands in the distance in Juliette, Georgia. Credit: AP

“Today’s interim report from the UNFCCC is a red alert for our planet. It shows governments are nowhere close to the level of ambition needed,” said United Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres.

“If this task was urgent before, it’s crucial now. This is a rare moment that cannot be lost. As we rebuild, we cannot revert to the old normal. The NDCs must reflect this reality, and major emitters, especially G20 nations, must lead the way.”

According to the new analysis of commitments made at the so-called Climate Ambitions summit in December, while most countries have incrementally increased ambition, the combined impact puts them on a path to achieve only a 1 per cent reduction in emissions by 2030 compared with 2010 levels.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says emissions reduction ranges to meet the 1.5 degree temperature goal should be about 45 per cent lower, and 25 per cent lower to avoid 2 degrees of warming.

Australia, which has maintained its commitment to reduce emissions by 26-28 per cent by 2030, was not invited to speak at the summit because its ambitions were viewed as being too low.

According to Climate Action Tracker, which conducts independent climate analysis, Australia is one of the nations that delivered a plan that failed to improve its 2015 target, along with Japan, South Korea, Russia, New Zealand and Switzerland. Brazil’s climate plan lacked any goals to cut emissions by 2030 or stem deforestation rates, the analysis showed.

Bill Hare, chief executive of the global non-profit group Climate Analytics, said Australia had been “called out” for its “almost complete lack of action”.

“As we get closer to Glasgow, we’ll see big players like the US and China stepping up and Scott Morrison’s government finding itself isolated amid a growing threat of carbon border taxes and increasing diplomatic and public pressure to submit a stronger target for 2030,” he said.

A spokesman for Energy and Emissions Reductions Minister Angus Taylor said the Secretary General did not reference Australia in his remarks or mention individual nations.

“As the Prime Minister has said, Australia’s policies, when it comes to reducing emissions, are set here in Australia, in Australia’s national interests.”

Patricia Espinosa, executive secretary of UN Climate Change, said, “This report shows that current levels of climate ambition are very far from putting us on a pathway that will meet our Paris agreement goals.

“I call on all parties – even those who have submitted [new commitments] – to reflect on this and increase ambition. At the moment it is like we are walking into a minefield blindfolded.

“What we need is much more radical and transformative than we have now. We need concrete plans to phase out fossil fuels as fast as possible.”

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(AU) Against The Odds, South Australia Is A Renewable Energy Powerhouse. How On Earth Did They Do It?

The Conversation -  | 

Shutterstock
Author
  •  is Research Associate, Flinders University
  •  is Matthew Flinders Distinguished Professor, Foundation Director, Southgate Institute for Health, Society & Equity, Flinders University     
Less than two decades ago, South Australia generated all its electricity from fossil fuels. Last year, renewables provided a whopping 60% of the state’s electricity supply.

The remarkable progress came as national climate policy was gripped by paralysis – so how did it happen?

Our research set out to answer this question. We analysed policy documents and interviewed major actors in South Australia’s energy transition, to determine why it worked when so many others fail.

We found governments need enough political power to push through changes despite opposition from established fossil fuel interests.

They must also watch the energy market closely to prevent and respond to major disruptions, such as a coal plant closing, and help displaced workers and their towns deal with the change.

South Australia shows how good public policy can enable dramatic emissions reduction, even in a privately owned electricity system. This provides important lessons for other governments in Australia and across the world.

South Australia is a world leader in renewables deployment. Pictured: artist impression of solar thermal plant proposed for the state. Solar Thermal Power Plant
Why is the energy transition so hard?

In decades past, fossil-fuel-dominated energy markets revolved around a few big, powerful players such as electricity generators and retailers. Overhauling such a system inevitably disrupts these incumbents and redistributes benefits, such as commercial returns, to newer entrants.

This can create powerful - and often vocal – losers, and lead to political problems for governments. The changes can also cause hardship for communities, which can be rallied to derail the transition.

The change is even harder in a privatised energy market, such as South Australia’s, where electricity generators and other players must stay profitable to survive.

In the renewables shift, fossil fuel businesses can quickly become commercially unviable and close. This risks supply shortages, as well as price increases like those after Victoria’s Hazelwood coal plant closed in 2017.

The obstacles help explain why a wealthy nation such as Australia, with extremely high per capita emissions and cheap, plentiful renewable resources, has struggled to embrace its clean energy potential. Even frontrunners in environmental policy, such as Germany, have struggled to make the switch.

Coal workers and their communities must be assisted during the renewables transition. Dan Himbrechts/AAP
How South Australia did it

South Australia is a dry state – extremely vulnerable to climate change – with abundant wind and solar resources. These factors gave it the motivation and means to transition to renewables.

The South Australian Labor government, elected in 2002, adopted a target for 26% renewables generation by 2020. At the time, wind energy was already a competitive supplier of new generation capacity in Europe, creating an established wind farm industry looking to invest.

Some of South Australia’s best onshore wind potential was located near transmission lines running 300 kilometres from Port Augusta to Adelaide. This greatly reduced the cost of connecting new wind generators to the grid.

South Australia benefited greatly from the federal renewable energy target, established by the Howard government in 2001 and expanded under the Rudd government.

The scheme meant the South Australian government didn’t need to offer its own incentives to meet its renewables target – it just had to be more attractive to private investors than other states.

This was a relatively easy task. Under the state Labor government, South Australia’s energy and environment policy was consistent and coordinated, in contrast to the weak and inconsistent policies federally, and in other states.

To attract renewable energy investors, the government made laws to help construct wind farms in rural zones away from towns and homes. New wind farms were regularly underwritten by state government supply contracts.

As the transition progressed, the state’s largest coal generator, at Port Augusta, was wound back and eventually closed. To help workers and the town adjust, the state government supported employment alternatives, including a A$6 million grant towards a solar-powered greenhouse employing 220 people.

The Labor government enjoyed a long incumbency, and the state was not heavily reliant on the export of fossil fuels. This helped give it the political leverage to push through change in the face of opposition from vested interests.

A state government grant helped establish a solar greenhouse. Sundrop Farms
It’s not easy being green

South Australia’s transition was not without controversy. Between 2014 and 2018, the state’s consumer electricity prices rose sharply.

While critics sought to blame the increasing renewables share, it was largely due to other factors. These include South Australia’s continued reliance on expensive gas-fired power and the closure of the Hazelwood coal-fired power station in neighbouring Victoria, which fed large amounts of power into South Australia.

And in late 2016, South Australia suffered a statewide blackout. Again, renewables were blamed, when the disaster was in fact due to storm damage and overly sensitive trip switches.

After a second, smaller blackout six months later, the then federal treasurer Scott Morrison brought a lump of coal into parliament and argued South Australia’s renewables transition was:
…switching off jobs, switching off lights and switching off air conditioners and forcing Australian families to boil in the dark as a result of their Dark Ages policies.
In 2018, Labor lost office to a Liberal party highly critical of the renewables transition in opposition. But by then, the transition was well advanced. In our view, specific legislation would have been required to halt it.

The state Liberal government has now firmly embraced the renewables transition, setting a target for 100% renewable electricity by 2030. By 2050, the government says, renewables could generate 500% of the state’s energy needs, with the surplus exported nationally and internationally.

Scott Morrison, holding a lump of coal in Parliament, said SA’s renewables policy took the state back to the Dark Ages. Lukas Coch/AAP
Leading the world

The South Australia experience shows a successful renewables transition requires that governments:
  • have enough political power to advance policies that disadvantage energy incumbents
  • monitor the energy market and respond proactively to disruptions
  • limit damage to displaced workers, businesses, consumers and communities.
It also highlights the importance of having transmission infrastructure near renewable resources before new generators are built.

As energy markets the world over grapple with making the clean energy transition, South Australia proves it can be done.

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