Australia well behind on climate: Think tank

Canberra Times
Saturday 23/2/2008 Page: 4

Australia is falling well behind the United States, Germany and Japan in developing smart climate change policies and fast-tracking investment in critical renewable energy technologies, a leading business think-tank says. Environment Business Australia has called for the Rudd Government to commit to a 40 per cent cut in greenhouse emissions by 2020, with an early target of 20 per cent by 2015.

The call comes as federal Minister for Climate Change, Penny Wong, struggled to explain to a Senate Estimates hearing yesterday how the Government had arrived at its target to cut greenhouse emissions by 60 per cent by 2050.

Australian Greens climate change spokeswoman Christine Milne grilled Senator Wong over the scientific basis for the target. When asked what level of global warming, in degrees centigrade, should be avoided in order to prevent dangerous climate change, Senator Wong was unable to provide a figure. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the European Union have both been widely reported over the past year as estimating a two degree increase would cause global devastation.

"The Government has no scientific basis for its 60 per cent target, and it should be abandoned in favour of a target that will actually see Australia playing a constructive role in preventing dangerous climate change," Senator Milne said.

In a submission yesterday to the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, Environment Business Australia said the Government must accept the challenge of higher emissions reduction targets. It estimates the "rapid introduction of new policies and systems" could deliver a 20 per cent cut by 2020 from improved energy efficiency, with a 70 per cent cut in waste reduction delivering a 10 per cent emissions cut.

It also estimates a 138sqkm site with 20 per cent land coverage by solar thermal collectors working at 20 per cent overall efficiency would have the capacity to provide all of Australia's primary energy. "At least 25 per cent of new generation capacity could easily be provided by solar thermal energy by 2020," the submission says. By comparison, wind energy would provide only 5 per cent by 2020.

The think tank called for the Rudd Government to harness greater investment by establishing a climate bond, with underwritten guaranteed returns and a specialised index fund for investors to participate in technology and infrastructure overhauls. It argues Australia has high levels of renewable energy innovation but "a lumpy history" of commercial development of these new technologies for the domestic market, with many forced offshore.

The organisation says climate change can no longer be considered a long-term issue and the Government must rapidly put in place steps to avoid an average global temperature rise of two degrees. "The road map for action will not be a straight green line... It will be more like a zig-zag as initially we head right, and then left for five paces, but perhaps only two steps forward."