Emissions need to fall further, faster states Australia’s Climate Change Authority
What is the Climate Change Authority?
The Climate Change Authority is a statutory body established under the Climate Change Authority Act 2011 to provide independent, evidence-based advice to the Australian Government on climate change policy. The Authority plays a crucial role in guiding Australia's climate strategy and ensuring that policy decisions are informed by scientific and expert analysis.
Key Aspects of the Climate Change Authority:
Composition: The Authority is made up of a Chair, the Chief Scientist, and up to 7 other members who bring expertise in various areas, including environmental science, economics, and policy.
Advisory Role: It is tasked with providing advice on key climate change issues, which include:
The preparation of the Annual Climate Change Statement to Parliament, which outlines the government's progress on climate change mitigation and adaptation.
Setting greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets to be included in Australia's nationally determined contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement. These targets guide Australia's commitment to reducing emissions and combating climate change.
Role in Governance:
The Climate Change Authority helps shape the governance of Australia's climate change mitigation policies by ensuring that emissions reduction targets are scientifically grounded and aligned with international agreements. By advising on realistic and effective measures, it plays a pivotal role in driving Australia towards its climate goals, including achieving net zero emissions by 2050 and fulfilling its obligations under the Paris Agreement.
In essence, the Authority provides the Australian Government with the necessary expertise to navigate the complex challenges of climate change, ensuring that national policies are both ambitious and achievable.
Broader systemic changes
The Climate Change Authority has emphasised that while progress is being made, emissions across various sectors, including aviation, need to fall further, faster to meet Australia's climate targets and address the urgent challenges of climate change. The Authority’s warning reflects the need for accelerated action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and achieve net zero by 2050.
Despite efforts from airports like Brisbane Airport, which has achieved net zero for Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions and is working toward emission-free flights through initiatives like the Hydrogen Flight Alliance, the Climate Change Authority underscores that broader, systemic changes are required. These changes should include:
Stronger emissions reduction policies
Faster transitions to renewable energy
Technological advancements (such as carbon capture, hydrogen, and electric aviation)
The call to reduce emissions further and faster is a reminder that, while individual organisations can make significant strides, collective action across industries, backed by policy and government leadership, is essential to meet the Paris Agreement targets and ensure a sustainable future.
What does the Report state?
According to the Climate Change Authority's 2024 Annual Progress Report, Australia has made important progress in delivering new policies aimed at reducing emissions, which increases the likelihood of meeting the nation's 2030 target. However, the report stresses that there is still significant work to be done to accelerate the roll-out of renewable energy and ensure that emissions are clearly trending down across every sector.
Key findings of the report highlight:
Progress in policy: Australia has introduced new policies and initiatives designed to reduce emissions, particularly in sectors such as renewable energy and electric vehicles.
Further acceleration needed: Despite progress, the pace of transition to renewable energy needs to speed up, and further efforts are required to ensure emission reductions are seen in every sector (including agriculture, transportation, and industry).
Emissions trends: For Australia to meet its 2030 emissions reduction targets, it must achieve a more consistent and significant downward trend in emissions across the economy.
This independent assessment plays a crucial role in informing Minister Bowen's Annual Climate Change Statement, which was delivered in Federal Parliament. The Minister's statement, guided by the Climate Change Authority's findings, provides an official update on Australia's efforts to meet its climate goals, signaling the need for continued action and investment to secure a sustainable future and achieve net zero emissions.
The Annual 2024 Progress Report
The Climate Change Authority's 2024 Annual Progress Report indicates that while emissions fell by 3 Mt CO2-e in the year 2023-24, Australia still faces a significant challenge in meeting its 2030 emissions target. To achieve the target, emissions must decrease by an average of 15 Mt CO2-e each year over the next six years.
The report includes 10 key recommendations aimed at consolidating the progress made so far and accelerating the transition to a low-carbon economy. These recommendations focus on several critical areas:
Accelerating renewable energy infrastructure: The roll-out of renewable energy needs to be ramped up to prepare for the eventual closure of coal-fired power plants and ensure a stable and clean energy supply.
Cleaning up emissions from the energy sector: Further action is needed to reduce emissions from electricity generation and other sectors of the energy industry, ensuring that the energy transition is both rapid and efficient.
Unlocking emissions reductions in transport and industry: The report highlights the need for additional efforts to reduce emissions from transport and industrial sectors, which have proven to be more challenging to decarbonise.
The report acknowledges the significant new policies that have been legislated or are set to begin this year, which provide a foundation for achieving further emissions reductions:
Expanded Capacity Investment Scheme: This program will help increase investment in renewable energy infrastructure.
Reformed Safeguard Mechanism: This policy aims to ensure that the largest emitters reduce their emissions to meet strict targets.
New Vehicle Efficiency Standard: This initiative is designed to improve the fuel efficiency of vehicles and reduce emissions from the transport sector.
Critical climate challenges for Australia
The 2024 Annual Progress Report from the Climate Change Authority highlights a critical challenge for Australia: while total emissions have fallen by 28% compared to 2005 levels, this reduction has primarily been driven by efforts such as reduced land clearing, new tree planting, and the growth of renewable energy. These factors have contributed significantly to lowering emissions but are not sufficient on their own to ensure a comprehensive reduction across all sectors.
The report flags that emissions are not yet falling consistently across every sector of the Australian economy. In fact, agriculture, the built environment, resources, transport, industry, and waste emissions have increased by 13% above 2005 levels. This reflects ongoing challenges in decarbonising sectors that are traditionally more difficult to transition, such as:
Agriculture: Emissions in this sector remain high due to methane from livestock and other farming practices.
Transport: Emissions are growing due to increased vehicle use, and the transition to electric vehicles is not yet widespread enough to reverse this trend.
Industry and Resources: These sectors are energy-intensive and face challenges in switching to low-carbon technologies.
Built Environment and Waste: While some progress has been made in waste management and energy efficiency, more work is needed to reduce emissions across these sectors.
The report calls for accelerated action to address these areas, underscoring the need for policies and technologies that can reduce emissions across the economy, especially in harder-to-decarbonise sectors. It stresses the importance of ensuring that all sectors contribute to the emissions reductions required to meet Australia's 2030 climate targets and ultimately achieve net zero emissions.
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