We are already seeing significant climate impacts – heat waves, drought, bushfire, storm and flood made worse by climate change. These impacts are costing us money but also loss of life, property and livelihood. People are suffering. Further and worse events are imminent. We are likely to see very significant extreme events in the next few years where the Australian community will be hit hard yet again.
If we are not seeing government action to tackle this problem, politicians are likely to be held responsible by the community. We all are in the position to make changes and must act. The targets and goals are based on the scientific reports of IPCC, UNEP, etc. (refer Pathway 2022 report on (https://climatefuture.org.au/reports/ ).
The papers below serve as a guide for the upcoming election by defining our position on climate action and by showing our questions to the candidates.
Text from media release:
IMPLEMENT EMERGENCY CLIMATE ACTION NSW Election 2023
We are already seeing significant climate impacts – heat waves, drought, bushfire, storm and flood made worse by climate change. These impacts are costing us money but also loss of life, property and livelihood. People are suffering. Further and worse events are imminent. We are likely to see very significant extreme events in the next few years where the Australian community will be hit hard yet again. If we are not seeing government action to tackle this problem, politicians are likely to be held responsible by the community. You are in the position to make changes and must act. The targets and goals used for this notice are based on the scientific reports of IPCC, UNEP, etc. (refer Pathway 2022 report on https://climatefuture.org.au/reports/ ).
Emissions (mitigation):
Rapid, large-scale and deep cuts must be made in greenhouse gas emissions. To this goal, we itemise the following actions:
1. A ban on any new fossil fuel developments or investments by the government or the private sector – immediate implementation of this is required. This of course includes cancellation of all existing exploration licences and closing of all exploration zones for fossil fuels.
2. Rapid and deep downward pressure on emissions across all sectors of the economy. The necessary aim is: 75% cuts below 2005 levels by 2030.
3. For the initial economic sectors where replacement technology is already available: 100% renewable electricity by 2030; 80% renewable energy for the transport industry by 2030 with 100% to follow by 2033; 85% replacement of gas use with electricity by 2030.
4. Full government commitment to achieve the international agreements for emissions cuts with the aim to reach at least a 66% chance of no more than 1.5C globally. This is required to avoid tipping points. The necessary schedule of cuts is set out in the IPCC reports consistent with the budget of total emissions that remains available to reduce the chance of missing the 1.5C target to 1 out of 3 (66%).
5. A comprehensive detailed plan to achieve total de-carbonisation of all sectors of the economy with targets, dates and processes for re-employment of affected workers. This is most important for the sectors and industrial processes for which there is not yet an available solution or where there is little current progress (e.g., cement production, steel making).
6. Immediate stop to any new de-forestation and a large-scale plan to re-vitalise the biosphere. This measure is critical to controlling atmospheric GHG concentrations while protecting the remaining biodiversity for the maintenance of food supply and clean water which is required for survival, as well as for planetary stewardship and sustainability.
7. A fully funded plan to remove and permanently store carbon from the atmosphere designed to start in 2030 at 100 MtCO2/y (Australia’s share of atmospheric carbon extraction). The IPCC reports are clear that this is required following net zero. Extraction would need to continue for several decades to ensure the 1.5C target will be achieved. This is necessary because global emissions have continued to rise over the last 30 years. Secure long-term storage can currently only be achieved by sequestering captured carbon in geological formations underground. This will be a very large scale and expensive exercise that gets bigger for every tonne emitted each year. So, planning must begin today in order to be prepared to implement the necessary program when the time comes. Preparation of the community for the need to fund this program is critical to reducing the cost burden on future generations.
8. A rigorous and urgent program of international diplomacy and advocacy (this may include applying economic pressure such as border controls) to activate similar rapid action by all the world’s governments. China, India, the USA and Europe would be the initial targets here but Indonesia, Brazil, Russia, S.E. Asia and many other potentially high emitting regions would also be important.
Preparation (adaptation):
Urgent measures are required for the protection of people from extreme events. Increased extremes are now known and foreseeable with many events already visible and widespread
across the globe (e.g., Cyclone Gabrielle). This is not a complete list (as this notice focuses primarily on the most important actions that require immediate attention – i.e. emissions cuts). It reflects the sort of urgent preparation required for survival of our communities. The points below relate to the impacts of extremes such as heat wave, drought, bushfire, storm, flood, food and water availability, etc.:
1. Prepare local communities for the unexpected extreme impacts of climate change: education on how extremes might affect people, planning for survival, preparing for evacuation, emergency notification services, evacuation routes and shelters, etc.
2. Re-design and re-construct the built environment to cope with the increased impacts of unexpected extreme events. Examples include: escape routes and evacuation facilities, stormwater drainage, roads, sewer systems, communications, shelters, emergency response services, recovery, etc.
3. Change planning processes to protect future communities from increased climate risk.
4. Ban development on vulnerable land that could be impacted by flooding and other climate risk as the
crisis deepens.
5. Investigate how legal frameworks and processes need to be modified in the face of a changing
environment.
6. Prepare for large scale refugee flows as regions of the planet become deeply impacted into the 2030’s.
7. Plan for large scale movement of people within Australia due to impacts from extreme events. Such plans should include proposals for major cities in new locations that would not be impacted by sea level rise of several meters. Currently, several of our major cities lie on the coast and would be severely impacted as sea levels rise. Having major new cities already laid out would be of significant assistance to people in future decades if planning was commenced now.
NOTE: Inevitable rise is identified in IPCC reports as of the order of 1m by 2100 and 5m – 7m by 2300, with more than double this amount not ruled out. Unless there is a revolution in response by the world’s governments, this worst case scenario can just about be guaranteed.
These points are not a complete plan for the climate crisis, but are the bare minimum of adaptation response required. Note that the scope of this planning and action is of an order well beyond what government is used to doing. This should be an indication of the scale of the crisis and the degree of action required for the protection of the Australian people and populations around the world.
12 Mar 2023