The Climate Change Authority has published its advice for the first Annual Climate Change Statement to Parliament, as tasked by the Minister for Climate Change and Energy under the Climate Change Act 2022 (the Act). The report is entitled First Annual Progress Report 2022: The baseline, global context and methodology.
The report sets a baseline for the current status of climate policies and emissions reductions in Australia, and presents the framework the Authority will employ in future years to assess progress towards Australia’s emissions reduction targets.
Australia has taken significant steps in the past twelve months, adopting a net zero target and a more ambitious 2030 target, with the Government legislating these and commencing implementation of its Powering Australia plan.
Much more work is required. Australia needs to decarbonise at an average annual rate of 17 Mt CO2-e to achieve its 2030 and 2050 targets, 40 per cent faster than it has since 2009. The growing intensity of climate change impacts means Australia also needs stronger adaptation and resilience efforts.
‘More urgency is required, from governments, businesses and communities—who must work together—if Australia is to meet its targets and also improve its resilience to climate change impacts’ said Authority CEO, Brad Archer.
The Australian Government can ‘light the way’ to net zero with a long-term strategy for emissions reductions—a strategy that sets expectations and steps out the sequence for when, how, and by how much, emissions should be reduced across different sectors of the economy.
The report makes clear that Australia must seize the opportunities that the transition to a net zero global economy presents.
‘The technologies for meeting the 2030 target exist, but the scale and speed of the task demand greater attention, planning and action—for example to ensure we have the necessary supply chains, workforces and planning and approvals processes to support the achievement of Australia’s targets,’ said Mr Archer.
The report also includes the methodology for assessing progress towards targets in future Annual Progress Reports. The methodology includes four core elements—wellbeing, emissions, policies, and context, The Authority intends to establish and track leading indicators under this methodology to see where the economy is heading, track the transformation to net zero, and identify where further action is needed.
Download a copy of the report.
Date: Thursday, 01 December 2022
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