14/10/2021

(AU The Guardian) More Australians Than Ever Are Worried About The Climate Crisis, Annual Survey Suggest

The Guardian -  | 

A record 75% of voters are worried about climate and 69% want the PM to push for net zero, but Queenslanders are less concerned than the rest of the nation

Queensland’s Great Barrier Reef has suffered severe coral bleaching. A survey has found more than three-quarters of Australians are now concerned about global heating. Photograph: Greg Torda/EPA

A majority of Australians are worried about the threat posed by global heating and want serious action to address it, but Queenslanders are less concerned than people in other states, according to the latest Climate of the Nation report.

The authoritative annual survey of 2,626 voters – now in its 14th year and managed by the progressive thinktank the Australia Institute – suggests three-quarters are worried about the climate crisis, the largest proportion in its history.

As cabinet meets on Wednesday to consider a new climate roadmap the prime minister, Scott Morrison, wants to unveil before the Cop26 talks in Glasgow, the poll suggests a clear majority – 69% – want the Morrison government to put Australia on a path to net zero emissions. The same proportion wants the Coalition to do more to encourage the uptake of electric vehicles.

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But the survey data suggests Queenslanders are less perturbed about the risks posed by the climate crisis than other Australians, with 69% saying they are concerned, compared with the national average of 75%.

Queenslanders are also less likely to say Australia should be a world leader in looking for solutions than people in other states (63% of Queenslanders agree, compared with the national average of 67%).

Morrison is attempting to persuade the National party to sign on to a net zero target before the United Nations-led climate conference in November. Liberals are optimistic agreement with the junior Coalition partner can be reached but a number of Queensland Nationals oppose the shift.

While the Climate of the Nation data suggests attitudes in Queensland are different to other states, it also suggests public perceptions are on the move.

Half the Queenslanders in the sample now support a moratorium on coalmining, which is a three-point increase from 2020. A significant majority also agrees that Australia needs environmental protections (71% agreed in 2021, up from 68% in 2020).

Agreement among Queenslanders in the sample that coalmining has a strong economic future declined by eight points over the past 12 months (37% of respondents agree with that proposition now compared with 45% last year).

But Australian voters continue to think fossil fuel industries employ more people and generate more national income than they actually do.

With trenchant opponents of climate action declaring Australia should not cripple traditional industries with ambitious emissions reduction targets – an attack line a number of Queensland Nationals use regularly – the latest survey shows Australians overestimate the size of gas industry employment by a factor of 46. Voters estimate that on average 9.2% of the workforce is engaged in oil and gas extraction when the reality is those industries represent only 0.2% of the Australian workforce.

But a clear majority say they support the reliance on fossil fuels ending. The poll suggests 82% support the phasing out of coal-fired power stations.

The Nationals leader, Barnaby Joyce, told the ABC on Tuesday night that a deal with the Liberals on net zero was not yet done.

The deputy prime minister contended that regional Australians had been “done over” during previous international climate commitment periods because “people played a sneaky little game, and we ended up with the divestment of our private property”.

Joyce said the Nationals wanted complete clarity on the economic assumptions guiding the shift Morrison was proposing.

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The Nationals frontbenchers Bridget McKenzie, David Littleproud and Keith Pitt were briefed for the first time on Monday afternoon on the roadmap that has been worked up by the energy and emissions reduction minister, Angus Taylor, with input from across the government. Joyce was in Monday’s briefing.

Taylor was asked by Nationals to provide more detail about the economic analysis underpinning the new proposed roadmap for Wednesday’s cabinet deliberation. Some insiders insist the negotiation has a long way to go, and internal perceptions vary about the level of base support inside the Nationals for a climate policy pivot.

The new Climate of the Nation survey will be launched on Wednesday by the shadow climate change minister, Chris Bowen. Bowen argues strong support for climate action in the data indicates “the needle has shifted in the public debate around climate change”.

“It’s a global race to become a renewable energy superpower – it is clear Australians are on board – it’s past time for the government to join them,” Bowen said.

The new survey and the cabinet deliberation comes as the Liberal senator Andrew Bragg will use a speech to the Investor Group on Climate Change to advocate for carbon neutrality by mid-century, declaring a “100% renewable energy future is within sight”.

Bragg will argue schemes like Buy Now Pay Later have a role in driving the transition, and cite estimates showing that over the past year around 15% to 20% of all solar installations were financed by BNPL.

He will also argue that non-superannuation asset managers should use their investment clout to drive broader uptake of existing technologies, and further work on firming technologies like batteries.

As the Morrison government’s pre-Glasgow deliberation moves to end game, the New South Wales government will pledge $3bn in incentives to build a local hydrogen industry and exempt green hydrogen production from government charges.

The treasurer and energy minister, Matt Kean, said the state’s hydrogen strategy would help it meet a newly set target to cut emissions by 50% compared with 2005 levels by 2030 and reach net zero emissions by 2050. “This strategy is forecast to more than half the cost of green hydrogen production in NSW,” he said.

It follows similar announcements in other jurisdictions and nationally, though the federal government has emphasised the role of blue hydrogen, created using gas, along with green hydrogen, created using renewable energy.

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(AU SBS) Queensland Backs Net Zero By 2050 As Pressure Mounts On Scott Morrison

SBS News

Queensland will officially back a target of net zero emissions by 2050, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has confirmed.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk. Source: AAP

Queensland’s state parliament has backed a target of net zero emissions by 2050, as pressure mounts on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to commit to attending the COP26 global climate change summit in Glasgow.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk confirmed Queensland would officially endorse the target, following a vote in parliament on Tuesday. The federal government is yet to commit to the net zero by 2050 target, instead saying Australia will “meet and beat” its goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 26 to 28 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030.

The government is preparing to release a new climate plan ahead of the COP26 summit that Mr Morrison said will focus on "technology not taxes".

Queensland’s move comes as the Prime Minister faces growing pressure to attend the COP26 summit which starts at the end of this month.

In an interview with the BBC, Prince Charles was asked why it was so important for world leaders to go to COP26 in Glasgow, given Mr Morrison might skip the conference.

"Well, that's what I'm trying to say all the time, and the point being that this is a last chance saloon, literally," the Prince said.

SBS News understands it is highly likely the Prime Minister will attend the upcoming COP26 summit.

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(Climate Council) Jobkiller: Australian Climate Inaction Puts 20,000 NSW Jobs At Risk From Carbon Tariffs




Key Findings
  • The European Union’s CBAM is expected to be the first of many such schemes as countries re-level the economic playing field on climate action. Such moves are being considered by Australia’s key trading partners.
  • A growing number of countries have a carbon price which requires those responsible for creating emissions to pay for them. As such carbon prices continue to rise, the costs of failing to act will also rise.
  • Every day that the Australian Government delays climate action it is hurting households and businesses in missed economic opportunities and rising costs. 
A NEW REPORT released today by the Climate Council finds the lack of federal government climate policy exposes the nation to serious economic consequences – including 20,000 jobs at risk in New South Wales – from carbon border tariffs.

Markets are moving: the economic costs of Australia’s climate inaction was authored by Climate Councillor Nicki Hutley, a former partner at Deloitte Access Economics.

Ms Hutley said: “The world is responding to the climate crisis and carbon border tariffs are now inevitable. Australians will pay the price unless the federal government cuts our national carbon emissions in line with our major trading partners – and NSW will be disproportionately affected.

The European Union announced a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) in July 2021. Ms Hutley said the new modelling by economists at Victoria University shows Australia will experience a cut to our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as a result. 

If South Korea, China and the Group of 7 follow suit, New South Wales will be heavily impacted due to the dominance of targeted exports – particularly coal. Under the above scenario, the state is projected to lose around 20,000 jobs and more than $5 billion in Gross State Product.

“The federal government should be getting out in front, and putting support for regions affected in place. The new, low-carbon economy is coming and we urgently need a transition plan in place for Australian communities and workers”, said Ms Hutley.

Ms Hutley said there are huge opportunities for investment in clean jobs and industries with modelling by Beyond Zero Emissions estimating Australia could grow a new green export mix worth $333 billion per annum, almost triple the value of existing fossil fuel exports.

Deloitte Access Economics’ modelling suggests support for a low carbon economy would add $680 billion in economic growth and 250,000 new jobs by 2070. 

“We have the natural resources and the ingenuity to become a world leader in renewable energy, and in industries such as clean manufacturing, minerals processing and renewable hydrogen – bringing tens of thousands of jobs to the states and regions.

Ms Hutley said, “Federal government action is long overdue. As a first step, we should match our key trading partners and at least halve emissions by 2030. In line with the science, the Climate Council recommends a 75% cut by 2030 on the way to zero by 2035.”

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