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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/jun/12/australias-power-and-gas-companies-want-coalition-to-retain-labors-2030-climate-target>
"The owners of Australian coal and gas-fired power plants have joined the
country’s leading business groups in saying the Coalition should keep Labor’s
2030 climate target if it wins the next election.
The Australian Energy Council, which represents electricity companies and gas
wholesalers and retailers, the Business Council of Australia and the Australian
Industry Group said maintaining an interim target – legislated as a 43% cut
compared with 2005 levels – was an important step in getting to net zero
emissions by mid-century.
Some of the business groups said the 43% target would be difficult, but the
government should aim to meet it. None said they agreed with the opposition
leader, Peter Dutton, that it was “unachievable”.
Dutton on Tuesday repeated that he would not back the legislated goal, and
revealed the Coalition did not intend to propose an alternative 2030 emissions
reduction target before the next election, which is due by May 2025.
He said Labor’s target would “harm Australian families”, and that a decision on
interim targets would be made “when we are in government”. But he said the
Coalition was still committed to net zero emissions and the 2015 Paris climate
agreement.
Several climate experts said his refusal to back the country’s 2030 target
meant a Dutton government would be in breach of the Paris deal, which commits
countries to progressively increase commitments every five years and to make
pledges that reflect their “highest possible ambition”.
The agreement’s headline goal is to limit global heating to well below 2C and
to pursue efforts to keep it to 1.5C above preindustrial levels. Scientists say
this requires rapid emissions cuts before 2030 on the way to net zero.
The energy council told the
Guardian it continued to support the country’s
economy-wide interim emissions reduction target for 2030, describing it as an
“important stepping stone towards achieving net zero”. Its interim chief
executive, Ben Barnes, said interim targets gave certainty to industry and the
broader economy on the “investment pathway” to net zero.
He said the 43% target would be challenging to meet but said “that is not a
reason to stop trying”.
“The energy sector will do most of the heavy lifting to reduce emissions
between now and 2030, which will enable other sectors to achieve their
decarbonisation objectives,” Barnes said. “It’s critical that we continue to
work towards reducing our emissions as quickly as is possible and affordable.”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
